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| Source: Engadget |
To celebrate both Tim Cook's fifth year at the helm of
Apple and the production of the billionth iPhone, the chief has sat down with
the Washington Post.
It's very much a goodwill piece, although there are a few insights into both
Cook and Apple that the CEO lets slip along the way.
For instance, on the
subject of the San
Bernardino iPhone, the company did spend a long
time working out if they could unlock it. After deciding that it was possible,
but that it'd be extremely difficult to stop the exploit being shared, Cook
refused to do it. As he explains, "the risk of what happens if it got out,
we felt, could be incredibly terrible for public safety."
Cook also reiterated that the $3
billion purchase of Beats Electronics was
really to get at the company's streaming platform. In his eyes, Apple doesn't "acquire for
revenue," but for "talent and/or intellectual property,"
although the profit that Beats generates is a handy bonus. Buying Beats enabled
Apple to get its own music service "out probably a little sooner than we
would have otherwise." Cook also claimed that Apple may make more original
video and audio shows like Planet of the Apps and
Beats 1, but only if it will act as a "catalyst" for pushing apps as
the future of TV.
Tim Cook does seem determined to gloss over Apple's tax
status in Europe, claiming that the company didn't get special treatment in
Ireland. The European Union feels differently and has opened a lengthy
investigation to examine the terms of a
so-called sweetheart
deal when Apple Ireland was established in
1991. The fact that, in 2014, Apple booked two-thirds of its global profits to an Irish-registered tax
haven implies something may
not be right. Cook also believes that where you
"create value is the place where you are taxed," his justification
for saying that only US tax is worth paying.
As for the future, Cook refutes the suggestion that Apple
is lagging behind companies like Facebook, Google and Amazon on Artificial
Intelligence. Reiterating the fact that Siri is "with you all the
time," and that Siri's next word prediction has gotten "a lot
smarter." Another big growth area is augmented reality, and Cook concedes
that Apple is "doing a lot of things" behind the scenes on developing
the technology. Not to mention all of those secret purchases of firms -- 63
since late 2013 -- including a few AI firms like Turi and an AR company called Metaio.
Article by: Daniel Cooper
For: Engadget
Date: 8/15/16
