Meta vs Apple: Mark Zuckerberg takes toll on Apple, says 'Steve Jobs invented the iPhone and now they’re just sitting..'

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg has openly criticized Apple, claiming that the tech giant has not introduced any groundbreaking innovations in the past 20 years. While acknowledging the transformative invention of the iPhone by Steve Jobs, Zuckerberg argued that Apple's recent advancements have been lackluster.

Zuckerberg made these comments during an extensive three-hour conversation on the Joe Rogan podcast. He shared his views on Meta's recent moderation policy changes, the rivalry between Meta and Apple, and Apple's business practices, including their controversial App Store policies.

“Apple hasn’t invented anything great in a while. Steve Jobs invented the iPhone, and now they’re just sitting on it 20 years later,” Zuckerberg said. He also pointed out that iPhone sales might be declining, as year-over-year improvements in the product are minimal, leading customers to delay upgrades.

The Meta CEO criticized Apple’s App Store policies, particularly its 30% developer fee. He referred to this as a way for Apple to compensate for declining iPhone sales. “They’ve made money by squeezing people and imposing this 30% tax on developers,” Zuckerberg stated.

Zuckerberg also discussed the growing competition between Meta and Apple in the virtual reality (VR) market. He compared Apple’s Vision Pro, priced at USD 3,500, to Meta’s more affordable VR headsets like the Quest, which sell for USD 300 to USD 400. “They shipped something for USD 3,500 that’s worse than what we shipped for a fraction of the price,” he said. However, he admitted that Apple is a strong technology company, predicting improvements in future iterations of the Vision Pro.

Zuckerberg concluded by acknowledging the Vision Pro as one of Apple’s boldest attempts at innovation in recent years, but he maintained that Apple has failed to match its past legacy of transformative breakthroughs.