A SYMBIOTE IS A PARASITE
Apple enjoys 'symbiotic' relationship with China, Cook says

AFP
Sat, March 25, 2023 


Apple enjoys a "symbiotic" relationship with China, CEO Tim Cook said on Saturday, as the iPhone giant looks to move production out of the country.

Cook, who is in China to attend the high-profile China Development Forum, said "Apple and China grew together," during an interview on the role of technology in education.

"This has been a symbiotic kind of relationship that I think we both enjoyed," he said at the state-run event attended by top government officials and corporate leaders.

Cook's visit comes as Apple, the world's biggest company by market value, is trying to move production out of China.


Last year, Apple sales were hit by curtailed production at factories as a result of China's zero-Covid policy.

US export controls on high-tech components are also threatening the company's supply chain.

Cook did not address supply chain issues during his discussion.

Instead, he focused on the need to bridge the education gap between urban and rural schools and encouraged young people to learn programming and critical thinking skills.

He also pledged to increase Apple's spending on its rural education program in China to 100 million yuan ($15 million).

Cook visited an Apple Store in downtown Beijing on Friday, and a photo of him posing for a selfie with singer Huang Ling has gone viral on Chinese social media.

Apple CEO praises China's innovation, long history of cooperation on Beijing visit

Reuters
Fri, March 24, 2023 

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Apple CEO Tim Cook on Saturday used his first public remarks on his visit to China to praise the country for its rapid innovation and its long ties with the U.S. iPhone maker, according to local media reports.

Apple CEO Tim Cook on Saturday used his first public remarks in China in recent years to praise the country for its rapid innovation and its long ties with the U.S. iPhone maker, according to local media reports.

Cook is in Beijing to attend the China Development Forum, a government-organised event being held again in full force after the country ended its COVID controls late last year.

Besides Cook, the event is being attended by senior government officials as well as CEOs of firms such as Pfizer and BHP.

"Innovation is developing rapidly in China and I believe it will further accelerate," Cook was quoted by The Paper news outlet as saying.

His visit comes at a time of rising tensions between Beijing and Washington and as Apple has been looking to reduce its supply chain reliance on China and moving production to new up and coming centres such as India.

Last year, production at the world’s largest iPhone factory run by Apple supplier Foxconn was heavily disrupted after China's zero-COVID policies fuelled worker unrest.

Cook also visited an Apple Store in Beijing on Friday, pictures of which went viral on Chinese social media.

During his speech, Cook also discussed education and the need for young people to learn programming critical thinking skills, announcing that Apple plans to increase spending on its rural education programme to 100 million yuan, the local media reports said.

(Reporting by Brenda Goh)