In fact, whereas in 2004 there were some 600 foreign R&D centers in China, by 2010 that number had more than doubled, and their scale and strategic importance had increased. Pfizer moved its Asia headquarters to Shanghai that year. In 2011 Microsoft opened its Asia Pacific R&D center in Beijing, and General Motors opened an Advanced Technical Center comprising several engineering and design labs. Merck's Asia R&D headquarters in Beijing is scheduled to become operational in 2014.