May 25, 2010: Apple opens an investigation into a string of suicides at Foxconn, its Chinese manufacturing partner for assembling iPhones.
After reports of a ninth death at a Foxconn factory, Apple says it is “independently evaluating” Foxconn’s response. Cupertino vows to take a long, hard look at the facilities that manufacture its products. It’s a tough challenge for Apple to deal with — and CEO Steve Jobs’ controversial comments don’t exactly help.
Foxconn, a critical supplier for major hardware companies including Apple and Nvidia, confirmed Tuesday that a cyberattack struck its North American operations. And the group behind the attack claims to have walked away with a trove of sensitive data touching some of the world’s biggest tech companies.
That could include Apple files, but it’s difficult to say which ones and how important they are.
December 11, 2013: A Chinese labor rights group calls on Apple to investigate the deaths of several workers at a Shanghai factory run by iPhone manufacturer Pegatron.
Most controversially, one of the dead workers is just 15 years old. The underage worker reportedly succumbed to pneumonia after working extremely long hours on the iPhone 5c production line.
We’ll have to stop thinking of the iPhone as a product made in China — nearly all Apple’s handsets for sale in the United States are reportedly now assembled in India.
It’s part of Apple’s effort to reduce paying the tariffs President Donald Trump places on most products imported into the U.S., especially ones that come from China.
Apple’s efforts to move iPhone assembly to India and Vietnam are reportedly being hampered by the Chinese government.
The iPhone-maker wants to increase the number of countries in which its products are assembled amidst a worsening U.S./China trade war.
Apple reportedly will switch its servers that power Apple Intelligence to M4 chips next year. Currently, these servers use the M2 Ultra, the same chip found inside the Mac Pro and Mac Studio.
Apple is also reportedly in talks with Foxconn to manufacture AI servers to enhance the company’s AI processing capabilities.
In an episode that Taiwan describes as “bizarre,” China reportedly detained four employees at a plant that makes Apple products.
The facility is owned by Foxconn, a Taiwanese company, but it is located in Zhengzhou, China. Relations between the two countries are tense.
Apple reportedly told the companies that assemble the iPhone to replace up to 50% of their employees with automation.
It’s an ongoing effort, and one that supposedly began after riots at a Foxconn plant several years ago over stringent Covid restrictions.
Everyone knows iPhone is made in China, right? Well, yes and no. A new report indicates that as many as 14% of Apple handsets are actually produced in India.
It’s part of Apple’s plan to diversify where its products are assembled to reduce its dependence on China.
The Chinese government began multiple investigations into Foxconn, the Taiwanese company that assembles the iPhone, MacBooks and other Apple devices in China.
There are suspicions that the investigations are politically motivated: Foxconn founder Terry Gou is running for president of Taiwan.
Apple and the companies assembling the iPhone 15 reportedly worked through all the significant production problems they faced making the next iOS handsets. They supposedly faced issues with the cameras, LCDs, batteries and titanium frame in upcoming models
After clearing those hurdles, the four models in the iPhone 15 series are now set for the launch that’s almost certainly happening in September.
Apple manufacturing partner Foxconn reportedly already started assembling the upcoming iPhone 15 in India. This marks the first time a yet-to-launch iPhone is being produced outside of China.
Last year, iPhone 14 production started in India within a month of the phone going on sale.
Foxconn will soon start making AirPods for Apple. For this, the Taiwanese company will spend upwards of $200 million to build a factory in India.
Foxconn has never assembled AirPods for Apple despite being its biggest contract manufacturer. This will change once its new factory in India is ready.
Apple has expedited plans to move a part of its supply chain outside of China. The company is asking suppliers to increase their assembly base in India and Vietnam.
Over the last year, China’s strict COVID-19 restrictions have disrupted Apple’s production lines in the country multiple times.
The Chinese government lifted the COVID-19 lockdown in Zhengzhou, China, the location of the Foxconn facility where most iPhone Pro models are assembled. This raises the possibility that normal operations at the facility will resume soon.
Lockdowns in the area have dramatically lowered assembly of Apple handsets… possibly by as much as 80%.
Protests at a Foxconn plant in China where the two iPhone 14 Pro models are assembled will allegedly cut deeply into the supply of these handsets. Millions of units that would have been produced in 2022 without the protests supposedly now will not be.
Workers clashed with police during recent COVID-19 lockdowns at the plant, known as “iPhone City” due to its strategic importance to Apple.
Protests over unpaid bonuses, anti-COVID-19 controls and even food quality led police to clash with hundreds of workers at the world’s largest iPhone factory in China, reports indicated Wednesday.
Social media videos and witnesses in Zhengzhou, where Foxconn operates a giant factory nicknamed “iPhone City,” said police beat and detained protesters.
Planning on getting the iPhone 14 Pro or iPhone 14 Pro Max this holiday season? Getting your hands on one might be more difficult than you anticipate.
The latest COVID-19 curbs in China’s Zhengzhou have hampered the production of the latest Pro iPhones. Due to this, Apple now expects customers to wait longer to get their new iPhones.
Days after reports of Foxconn employees hopping fences and fleeing from their jobs, a report late Wednesday from Taiwan News says Apple’s biggest iPhone factory is now on “total lockdown.” These new restrictions may have a big impact on Apple’s sales during the crucial holiday period.
Foxconn, whom Apple contracts to manufacture the lion’s share of iPhones, Macs and other Apple products, has had employees stay in on-site dormitories in a “closed-loop system” to prevent COVID outbreaks. Employees have been complaining about the “increasingly unsafe and inhumane working conditions” of the dorms.
Apple will reportedly start manufacturing iPhone 14 in India two months after its initial launch in September. The company has been working closely with its Indian suppliers to boost their production capacity in the region.
Apple typically starts manufacturing new iPhones in India six to nine months after their launch.
Foxconn will begin shipping the iPhone 14 from its assembly plant in India almost as soon as its Chinese plant starts shipping Apple’s next smartphone, according to an industry analyst. This is apparently a sign that Apple is decreasing its dependence on China.
And Foxconn is reportedly building up its assembly capacity in India.
Apple is reportedly looking to expand the production of its devices outside China due to its strict anti-Covid policy.
The Chinese government’s uncompromising zero-covid policy has affected the manufacturing of Apple devices, with shipping times slipping to July for some products.
Analysts note that new COVID-19 lockdowns in China are hitting Apple’s supply chain hard. And the pain will likely worsen, with production falling behind by up to 10 million iPhones.
And this is not just about iPhones. Authorities have halted production at three key suppliers for iPhone, iPad and Mac assembly. Meanwhile, Apple is negotiating to reopen production lines, though success could be hard to come by, according to one analyst Friday.
This follows recent news of assembly and shipping delays on built-to-order MacBook Pro models.
Foxconn, Apple’s primary assembly partner for iPhones, has resumed production in its assembly plant in Shenzhen, China, as the city’s COVID-19 lockdown has partially lifted.
Foxconn, Apple’s largest manufacturing partner, was this weekend forced to close one its biggest plants due to a citywide lockdown. Another COVID-19 outbreak has put all of Shenzhen, China, out of action until March 20 at the earliest.
The city, home to 17.5 million people, houses the Longhua Science & Technology Park — sometimes dubbed “Foxconn City” — which features 15 factories, worker dormitories, grocery stores, restaurants, and more.