ITEM DETAILS
video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6RRpkRxmzek
World building: Apple in China
Business, politics, technology
Apple's China Crisis - CCP Just Banned Apple From Leaving China
Prelude:
It's so unfortunate that content algorithms force creators to use hyperbolic, sensationalist, essentially extremist materials to present their work.
The title and thumbnail artwork of this video have almost nothing to do with the content of the video, other than the video being an interview of a journalist who wrote a book called 'Apple in China' about the relationship between a company and a country other than its own.
I have not yet read the book, but will do so as soon as possible because the Apple-China story appears to be riveting, and likely the international relationship of the past 25 years with the most influence over our everyday lives.
Just based on this video interview of Patrick McGee, the author of 'Apple in China', this book explains *a lot* of our current international dynamics.
Instead of just trying to decrease labor costs ("chasing cost"), Apple decided to invest in educating engineers ('chasing quality'). Their investments in manufacturing and factories in China were so enormous that the estimate is they trained ~30m people in advanced manufacturing. [ For comparison, that's the equivalent of the entire population of Cameroon. ]
There are so many great stories in this interview alone, some of which we lived through as customers, but that was of course only what we could see and experience. The inner workings were the usual combination of an unlikely but brilliant team, overcoming enormous odds just by walking around and talking to people, and just generally a very low probability of success.
In the end, Failure + Design + Logistics won the day. If Tim Cook 10xed the company, then Steve Jobs 100xed the company.
The interview is a must see for anyone interested in technology, particularly the intersection of technology with business, as well as getting a better grasp of the reasons our everyday lives are what they are.
It's so unfortunate that content algorithms force creators to use hyperbolic, sensationalist, essentially extremist materials to present their work.
The title and thumbnail artwork of this video have almost nothing to do with the content of the video, other than the video being an interview of a journalist who wrote a book called 'Apple in China' about the relationship between a company and a country other than its own.
I have not yet read the book, but will do so as soon as possible because the Apple-China story appears to be riveting, and likely the international relationship of the past 25 years with the most influence over our everyday lives.
Just based on this video interview of Patrick McGee, the author of 'Apple in China', this book explains *a lot* of our current international dynamics.
Instead of just trying to decrease labor costs ("chasing cost"), Apple decided to invest in educating engineers ('chasing quality'). Their investments in manufacturing and factories in China were so enormous that the estimate is they trained ~30m people in advanced manufacturing. [ For comparison, that's the equivalent of the entire population of Cameroon. ]
There are so many great stories in this interview alone, some of which we lived through as customers, but that was of course only what we could see and experience. The inner workings were the usual combination of an unlikely but brilliant team, overcoming enormous odds just by walking around and talking to people, and just generally a very low probability of success.
In the end, Failure + Design + Logistics won the day. If Tim Cook 10xed the company, then Steve Jobs 100xed the company.
The interview is a must see for anyone interested in technology, particularly the intersection of technology with business, as well as getting a better grasp of the reasons our everyday lives are what they are.
Planet Earth, USA, China
2025-09-08
Business Basics - Chaos & Peace
YouTube
This item is shared by Philip M Shearer
with
the Community and the World.