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Curated with neuroscientists, ’Focus’ is the official C_NCENTRATE playlist that aids your encoding and recall. Play as is, or hit shuffle.
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Apple was accused on greenwashing with its eucalyptus farms investment in Brazil. Meanwhile, the private market for Musk’s companies heated up, with investors offering $1B worth of SpaceX and xAI shares outside traditional markets. Saudi billionaire Prince Alwaleed deepened ties with Musk, reinforcing xAI’s capital base.
IBM is doing better but needs more AI wins. In a major regulatory move, Meta was fined $220M in Nigeria for discriminatory consumer practices. Authorities extradited a member of the Scattered Spider cybercrime group to the U.S. Meanwhile, Symbiotic raised $29M to build a universal staking platform. Etsy offloaded Reverb to focus on its core marketplace. M&S is in the midst of a large a cyberattack.
OpenAI expanded its deep research capabilities to free-tier users, while Baidu launched Ernie 4.5 Turbo to counter DeepSeek's rise. Adobe integrated GPT, Imagen, and Veo models into Firefly, pushing deeper into generative AI tools. Apple finalised plans to shift U.S. iPhone assembly to India by 2026 to insulate itself from escalating tariffs. Microsoft continued to struggle, with Copilot’s weekly active users flatlining around 20M (big oooooooof), while ChatGPT blew past 400M users. DoorDash is circling a Deliveroo buyout at a steep discount to its IPO valuation (interesting if goes through).
Lots happened with Chinese brands.Temu and Shein preemptively raised prices to cushion against the imminent end of de minimis tariff exemptions (small package tariff loophole). TikTok culture evolved again, with a flood of videos urging Americans to buy directly from Chinese factories, highlighting how geopolitics is increasingly shaping consumer behaviour online.
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New quantum navigation will be +50x more precise than current standards. /5 mins
↑ Thailand used an ‘AI police cyborg 1.0’ officer at a recent festival. /4 mins
A staggering amount of Gen-Z thinks AI is conscious already. /7 mins
↑ These are the companies who got the most patents in 2024. /10 mins
OpenAI no longer considers manipulation and mass disinformation campaigns a risk worth testing for before releasing its AI models. /9 mins
Butterflies + electron microscope = better than your wildest AI landscapes. /4 mins
Here’s why Gen Alpha are the ones businesses are really waiting for. /9 mins
↑ Adidas’ 3D-printed shoes (once only limited-edition) are launching globally on May 2nd. /5 mins
REPORT: 63% of people globally feel that the pressure to be well is impacting their wellbeing. /15 mins
MIT’s nano ‘skin’ is making night vision weigh a lot less. /5 mins
APPLE FLIPS THE FACTORY FLOOR
Apple is shifting nearly all U.S.-bound iPhone production to India by 2026, with plans to manufacture over 80 million units annually according to internal company targets, while Foxconn, Pegatron, and Tata Electronics rapidly scale local assembly operations based on supply chain disclosures.
China’s position as the global factory is deteriorating under rising regulatory pressure, escalating tariffs, and an explicit pivot from economic growth to national security priorities. COVID-era shutdowns at Foxconn’s Zhengzhou plant exposed the fragility of China's centralised manufacturing power, and recent events only accelerated Apple’s diversification urgency.
India’s infrastructure still lags though. Power outages, slower logistics, and lower-skilled labour pools make fast scaling difficult. Apple's reliance on a handful of partners like Tata, who only recently entered large-scale electronics manufacturing, creates real risks for Apple. Equally, labour compliance issues could resurface at scale, threatening brand reputation as well as supply chain.
Geopolitically speaking, Washington’s desire to “friendshore” (love that term) critical supply chains away from China intersects perfectly with Modi’s push for India to become a tech manufacturing superpower. Apple is gambling that India can mature fast enough to offset the slow collapse of China as a neutral production base. Meanwhile, Beijing is likely to retaliate quietly against U.S. firms operating in China, increasing operational risks for Apple’s remaining activities there. Big tech has never been as hot potato political as it is right now.
SO WHAT?
Strategically, Apple isn’t just moving assembly, it’s testing whether complex, high-volume consumer electronics can ever be truly "de-Chinafied." Success would redefine global tech supply norms, but if anyone could it, it’s probably Apple due to the money in the bank even with Trump knocking them for $700 billion. Failure would cement China’s irreplaceability, despite the geopolitical noise. The clock is certainly ticking. India has roughly 18 months to prove it can handle the world's most valuable hardware product at Apple’s quality and volume standards. The stakes could not be higher, for Apple, India, and the future of tech manufacturing.
DO treat this as a major realignment of the global manufacturing map, not just a tactical risk hedge. Prioritise understanding second- and third-order supply chain effects. And yes, that is as thrilling as it sounds(!).
DON’T assume India is a perfect substitute for China yet. Infrastructure gaps, labour issues, and slower ecosystem build-out will likely still derail timelines massively.
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I deliver actionable insights that keep companies ahead of the disruption that’s coming. As the founder of TBD Group and author of Disruptive Technologies, I am trusted by global brands, agencies, and when breaking news hits media giants like FT, WSJ, BBC, and CNN ask for my analysis. Connect with me on LinkedIn and Bluesky.
