Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook openly proclaims his company's strong pro-democracy beliefs and has pushed back against new U.S. voting laws as part of those beliefs.
Cook recently told Axios that Apple supports efforts to ensure American democracy and the right to vote, while condemning Georgia's new voting law. In China, however, Cook and Apple have agreed to abide by China's censorship rules on pro-democracy campaigns on its apps and podcasts, according to Business Standard.
"The right to vote is fundamental in a democracy. American history is the story of expanding the right to vote to all citizens, and black people, in particular, have had to march, struggle and even give their lives for more than a century to defend that right," Cook told Axios. "Apple believes that, thanks in part to the power of technology, it ought to be easier than ever for every eligible citizen to exercise their right to vote. We support efforts to ensure that our democracy’s future is more hopeful and inclusive than its past."
Despite this belief, in order to conduct business, the company takes a different pro-democracy approach in China, where it has a huge manufacturing base.
"Cook often talks about Apple’s commitment to civil liberties and privacy. But to stay on the right side of Chinese regulators, his company has put the data of its Chinese customers at risk and has aided government censorship in the Chinese version of its App Store," the New York Times reported.
Tens of thousands of apps have disappeared from Apple's Chinese App Store over the past several years, including foreign news outlets, gay dating services and encrypted messaging apps, according to a New York Times analysis. Apple has also blocked apps with tools for organizing pro-democracy protests, as well as apps about the Dalai Lama.
The Times interviewed 17 current and previous employees of Apple to demonstrate that Cook has made compromises to do business in China. The company earns 20% of its revenue in China, made possible by approving Xi Jinping's anti-democratic demands, which include storing customer data on Chinese servers and aggressively censoring apps.
Additionally, The Times found Apple's agreements with China have made it nearly unstoppable for the Chinese government to gain access to emails, documents, contacts and photos of millions of residents.
Apple, the biggest tech company in the world, sold more than 300 million devices in 2020, the Guardian reported. Drawn to China's manufacturing and skills pool, Apple contracts with manufacturers to produce products there. Reuters, in an analysis of the company's supplier list, found Apple has added far more factories in China than anywhere else. It has also sourced more raw materials, such as circuit boards, chips and wiring from China.
Apple denies it has acquiesced to China's censorship demands, indicating that the New York Times reviewed outdated documents. Apple also claimed its Chinese data centers featured its latest protections.
In 2014, Apple hired Doug Guthrie, the departing dean of the George Washington University business school, to help deal with China. Guthrie, currently a professor of Global Leadership and Director of China Initiatives at Arizona State University, spent decades studying the country and one of his first projects dealt with Apple's Chinese supply chain, according to the Times. Guthrie's project showed only China could offer what Apple required in terms of infrastructure, skills and government assistance.
Apple earns $55 billion a year from China, where workers assemble almost every iPad, Mac and iPhone. The Times reported that Guthrie said, "this business model only really fits and works in China...but then you're married to China."
Apple has reportedly moved substantial iPad production out of China for the first time, to Vietnam. Other products will be made in Vietnam, and its iPhone production is expected to increase in India, according to Investopedia. Apple reportedly began implementing a plan to shift 15% to 30% of its production from China to other countries several years ago.
Apple manufactures products in 30 countries, six of which account for more than 80% of all production. China contributed 42%, Japan accounted for 16%, the U.S. 9%, Taiwan 6%, South Korea 5% and Vietnam at 4%.
With Apple's majority of manufacturing in China, the company now has to "answer to the China government," as the Times put it.