The era of big-tech exceptionalism may be over

https://www.economist.com/leaders/2022/07/27/the-era-of-big-tech-exceptionalism-may-be-over

by Michelangelo11 • 4 years ago

24 8 4 years ago

economist.com

alatkins• 4 years ago

Full text, anyone?

mitchbob• 4 years ago

https://archive.ph/GbTTe

remarkEon• 4 years ago

Apple (which like Amazon was due to report its results after we went to press) warned that its revenues would be $4bn-8bn lower than expected in the second quarter, chiefly because of supply-chain snags in China, where factories are locked down with unnerving severity every time a case of covid-19 turns up.

Does Apple have any plans at all to untether itself from Chinese manufacturing? Every once in a while I’ll see stories about manufacturing or assembling some_older_thing in the US or elsewhere, but how actually dependent Apple is on Chinese manufacturing isn’t immediately clear to me. This article suggests it’s substantial if they’re blaming a revenue miss on it.

adammarples• 4 years ago

They've gone all in on China

askafriend• 4 years ago

They're actively trying to diversify away from China. However, it is not easy as Chinese manufacturing is so vertically integrated and built up over the last couple of decades to a point that very very few places in the world can match the efficiency. This will have to be a long term strategy change - not one that can be made overnight.

https://www.phonearena.com/news/apple-considers-diversifying...

ksec2• 4 years ago

Another one of these PR submarine articles. When as a matter of fact Apple has been doubling down on Chinese Supply Chains.

ksec2• 4 years ago

Does Apple have any plans at all.....

None.

but how actually dependent Apple is on Chinese manufacturing isn’t immediately clear to me.

Extremely.

Every once in a while I’ll see stories about manufacturing or assembling some_older_thing in the US or elsewhere

Those were PR moves. Or in the case of Brazil or India they are for Tax incentives. And in US it was more of a political show.

Apple actually publish their own Supply Chains report as part of their Supplier Responsibility so you dont need to take my word for it. And if you have any friends working inside electronics Supply Chains, ( it doesn't even need to be inside Apple's Supply Chain), they would know.

Now let me make one thing clear, helping Chinese Companies moving out of China isn't exactly diversifying their supply chains.

AzzieElbab• 4 years ago

I do not understand the points this article is making. IMHO current downturn will result in more centralisation, not the other way around. Less money to go around, less competition

The era of big-tech exceptionalism may be over

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