'Not about low wages': Tim Cook reveals real reason why Apple manufactures iPhones in China, not in US

Back in the day, when former US President Donald Trump began his tariff war with China, he made it clear that he wanted big companies like Apple to start making their products in the United States. But industry experts and critics said that kind of large-scale manufacturing just isn’t practical in America right now.

Now, a 2024 video of Apple CEO Tim Cook is going viral again on social media. In the 55-second clip, Cook explains why Apple continues to manufacture its products in China, and it’s not because of cheap labor, as many people think.

Cook said, “The popular conception is that companies come to China because of low labor costs. I'm not sure what part of China they go to, but the truth is China stopped being the low labor cost country years ago.”

Tim Cook breaks down why Apple builds in China and why the U.S. isn’t ready to replace it yet.

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So why is Apple still there? According to Cook, it’s all about the skills. He said China has a massive number of highly skilled workers in one place — and that’s rare. “The products we make require advanced tools and high precision,” he explained, adding that the level of tooling expertise in China is “very deep.”

He even compared it to the US, saying if Apple tried to hold a meeting with American tooling engineers, the room might not even be full. In China, though, “you could fill multiple football fields.”

Despite pressure from Trump and US officials, Apple is unlikely to shift its iPhone production to the US anytime soon. A Bloomberg report highlighted key challenges like lack of skilled labor, fewer manufacturing facilities, and the absence of a strong supply chain in America, all of which are available in Asia.

However, Apple is trying to reduce its dependence on China. It has turned to India, where it’s building the world’s second-largest iPhone plant. Over the past year, Apple made USD 22 billion worth of iPhones in India, a 60% jump from the year before, showing that the tech giant is actively expanding its base beyond China.