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☆ Ex-Apple Engineer Indicted in Crackdown on Flow of Restricted Tech to China, Russia
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-16 | by ( Sadie Gurman | Dylan Tokar | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Steve Jobs Theater on the grounds of Apple Park corporate headquarters in Cupertino, Calif. Photo: Andrej Sokolow/dpa/ReutersWASHINGTON—A former Apple engineer has been charged with trying to steal the company’s self-driving-car technology, U.S. authorities said Tuesday, one of a series of actions aimed at dismantling what they say are illicit networks providing Russia and China with access to trade secrets and restricted items such as aircraft parts and battlefield equipment. Weibao Wang, 35 years old, a software engineer at Apple from 2016 to 2018, was charged with six counts of theft or attempted theft of the company’s “entire autonomy source code,” tracking systems, architecture designs and descriptions of hardware behind the technology, the Justice Department said in an indictment.

☆ A $175 check signed by Steve Jobs is up for auction—it’s 'expected to fetch $25,000' or more
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( Megan Sauer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

But if you find one signed by Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, it might be worth extra cash. RR Auction, a Boston-based organization that sources and sells historical autographs, manuscripts and artifacts, is auctioning off a $175 check signed by Steve Jobs in July 1976. The check is expected to fetch $25,000," over 142 times its original worth, according to the company's press release. In 1974, Jobs left his role as a video game designer and reconnected with Steve Wozniak, a former high school friend. When Jobs was kicked out of Apple in 1985, he started a rival computer company called NeXT.

☆ Apple stock price surge adds $135 billion to its market value after solid earnings beat. Here's what Wall Street is saying about the report.
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Apple's latest earnings report exceeded analyst expectations and alleviated concerns of a slowdown in iPhone sales. The company launched a $90 billion stock buyback program and raised its quarterly dividend by 4%. While revenues declined for the second quarter in a row, falling about 3% year-over-year, the company's quarterly iPhone sales exceeded $51 billion, which beat analyst estimates by $2.5 billion. Also giving Apple investors confidence is the company's announcement of a new $90 billion stock buyback program and a 4% increase to the company's quarterly dividend, to $0.24 per share. Shares of Apple jumped more than 5% on Friday, adding $135 billion to the company's market value, which stood at about $2.77 trillion.

☆ Apple's results send shares surging to nine-month high
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-05 | by ( Noel Randewich | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

With Apple's results helped by emerging markets like India, executives said gross profit margins for the current quarter would be better than forecast. Apple's stock market value climbed by over $100 billion to about $2.7 trillion, extending its lead over Microsoft, the world's second most valuable company, at $2.3 trillion. Apple's stock has recovered almost 40% from its closing low in January, and it is now down just 4.7% below its record high close in January 2022. By comparison, the S&P 500 remains down 15% from its record high close, also in January 2022. At least 13 analysts raised their price targets for Apple's stock following its report, with the median target climbing to $180 from $170 before the report, according to Refinitiv data.

☆ 'Solid iPhone demand to offset Mac weakness': Here's what Wall Street expects from Apple's hotly anticipated earnings report
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Apple stock is set to report its second-quarter earnings results after the market close on Thursday. From solid iPhone demand to the launch of a massive stock buyback, a lot is expected from the largest company in the world. BofA analyst Wasmi Mohan estimated that Apple will announce an $80 billion stock buyback program, which would be a decrease from last year's $90 billion stock buyback authorization. Goldman Sachs: "Expecting solid iPhone demand to offset Mac weakness." Wedbush: "All focus on stable iPhone demand despite macro storm."

Companies Apple Inc FollowMasimo Corp FollowMay 1 (Reuters) - A U.S. judge in California on Monday declared a mistrial in Masimo Corp's (MASI.O) potential billion-dollar smartwatch trade secret lawsuit against Apple Inc (AAPL.O) after jurors failed to reach a unanimous verdict, multiple media outlets reported. The jury in federal court in Santa Ana could not determine whether Cupertino, California-based Apple misused confidential information from Masimo related to the use of light to measure biomarkers including heart rates and blood-oxygen levels, U.S. District Judge James Selna said. The jury began deliberating on April 26 after a trial lasting about three weeks. Reporting by Blake Brittain and Stephen NellisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Apple bets big on India, but will still rely on China for 'years' to come
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Charmaine Jacob | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Apple's first physical retail store is located in the populous city of Mumbai. Now, he's betting big on the South Asian giant as Apple shifts its focus away from China and expands its footprint in India. Still, analysts told CNBC the iPhone-maker's dependency on China will remain for years to come. "It will take Apple years to diversify away from China," Soni said. The iPhone maker had to scale back production in China due to those restrictions, a move that hurt its bottom line.

☆ Apple opens its first store in India as it looks for a new generation of iPhone users
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-18 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Apple on Tuesday opened its first store in India, highlighting the importance of the market to the iPhone maker's future. The first store, called Apple BKC, is located in the populous city of Mumbai. Cook posted a photo of himself and staff at the new apple store on Monday. Apple BKC runs on 100% renewable energy, Apple said. Cook traveled to India for the opening of the store, nearly seven years after his first visit as Apple CEO.

☆ Apple to open first stores in India next week underscoring CEO Tim Cook's bullish view on the country
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-12 | by ( Arjun Kharpal | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

A view of Apple's first company-owned store in India to be launched inside the Jio World Drive mall at Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) in Mumbai. Apple is set to open its first physical stores in India next week, highlighting the country's importance to the U.S. tech firm's future in iPhone sales and manufacturing,The Cupertino giant will open a store in Mumbai on Apr. Apple CEO Tim Cook may travel to India to open the stores, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Apple is "putting a significant amount of energy" in India, Cook stressed at the time. The manufacturing push in India comes as Apple is looking to reduce its reliance on China, where it currently makes the bulk of its iPhones.

☆ Amazon's return-to-office mandate, supposed to happen in May, was so rushed, many offices won't be ready until September, including New York and Austin, leaked memo shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Eugene Kim | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Some Amazon offices won't be ready to fully accommodate employees until September, an internal note said. The delayed office readiness dates for some locations show Amazon may have rushed its return-to-office announcement. Most offices around the Seattle headquarters area and those near the second headquarters in Arlington, VA, have readiness dates in May. The delayed office readiness of some locations shows how unprepared Amazon may have been for the RTO mandate announced in February. In an email to Insider, Amazon's spokesperson said the different readiness dates are needed to "make the necessary accommodations for everyone."

☆ Lawmakers meet with Apple, Disney CEOs as part of talks on competition with China
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Lauren Feiner | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

High-profile tech and media executives shared their experiences of working in and competing with China with lawmakers who visited California this week. Over the three-day trip that kicked off on Wednesday, lawmakers were scheduled to meet with Disney CEO Bob Iger and Apple CEO Tim Cook, as well as high-level executives from Google , Microsoft , Palantir and Scale AI. The trip highlights the key role tech and media industries play in America's increasingly complex relationship with China. In Hollywood, the group of lawmakers from the select committee learned about a range of topics related to competition with China. The group was also slated to meet with venture capitalists on Thursday, including Andreessen Horowitz, Khosla Ventures and SV Angel.

☆ Apple to open first company-owned retail store in India
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BENGALURU, April 5 (Reuters) - Apple Inc (AAPL.O) is set to open its first official retail store in India's financial hub of Mumbai, the iPhone maker said on Wednesday. The Cupertino, California-based company launched an online retail store in India in 2020. Its 2021 plans for the launch of an offline retail store in the country were delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Apple products have been sold in India for years on ecommerce platforms such as Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and Walmart Inc's (WMT.N) Flipkart as well as through resellers. Some products in Apple's catalogue, including iPhones, are assembled in India by Taiwanese contract electronics manufacturers Foxconn (2317.TW) and Wistron Corp (3231.TW).

☆ Apple CEO Tim Cook explains why people might want a mixed reality headset
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Rohan Goswami | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Apple CEO Tim Cook poses for a portrait next to a line of new MacBook Airs as he enters the Steve Jobs Theater during the Apple Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) at the Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California on June 6, 2022 . Apple CEO Tim Cook recently explained in an interview with GQ why people might want the sort of mixed reality headset his company is expected to announce in the coming months. In short: art, communication, "creative" applications, and corporate environments, Cook told GQ. "The idea that you could overlay the physical world with things from the digital world could greatly enhance people's communication, people's connection," Cook told GQ. Meta has struggled to find success with its virtual reality business, called Reality Labs.

☆ Google giggles at China tech’s shrinking act
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Pete Sweeney | Thomson Reuters | Asia Economics Editor Pete Sweeney Joined Reuters Breakingviews In Hong Kong In September Previously He Served As Reuters' Chief Correspondent For China Economy | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

HONG KONG, March 31 (Reuters Breakingviews) - As an $18 trillion economy home to 1.4 billion people, China is a natural font of statistical superlatives. The country’s internet giants, however, are dwarfed by American colossi like the $1.3 trillion Google owner Alphabet (GOOGL.O). Access to cheap capital helped founders like Alibaba’s Jack Ma quickly diversify and build sprawling empires with global ambitions. Meanwhile, the top eight U.S. tech names, led by Apple (AAPL.O), Microsoft (MSFT.O) and Alphabet, are worth $8 trillion today. The American tech giants already generate three times more revenue and nearly five times more free cash flow than their aspirant Chinese challengers, Refinitiv Eikon data shows.

☆ Apple announces its big annual conference, where it could reveal its new headset
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Kif Leswing | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Apple announced on Wednesday that its annual developer's conference, WWDC, will begin on June 5 and run through June 9. Apple holds a launch event led by CEO Tim Cook on the first day of the conference and typically unveils new iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Apple TV, and Mac software. However, this year, Apple could reveal its long-awaited virtual and augmented reality headset at the conference, according to Bloomberg. The conference will be held online, with an in-person day at Apple's headquarters, Apple Park, on the first day of the conference. Last year, Apple invited developers and media to watch the pre-recorded opening presentation at its headquarters in Cupertino, California, called Apple Park.

☆ Apple to host annual developers' conference from June 5
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 29 (Reuters) - Apple Inc (AAPL.O) said on Wednesday it will host its annual developers' conference from June 5 to June 9, where the iPhone maker is expected to unveil its latest software updates. Analysts will also look for hints from Apple about the much-anticipated mixed-reality headset that can overlay digital objects on a view of the real world. For new devices, the company sometimes gives developers a heads-up so they can start working on apps. Prior to 2020, Apple hosted the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) in San Jose, California, with thousands of developers and Apple employees in attendance. The company said it will host developers and students at Apple's headquarters in Cupertino, California on June 5 to watch the keynote and State of the Union videos along with the online attendees.

☆ Apple may launch mixed reality device this year — but we're not scared, HTC CEO says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-06 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Cher Wang, chairperson, co-founder and CEO of HTC, speaks at a keynote on the second day of the Mobile World Congress 2023. BARCELONA — The boss of consumer electronics firm HTC thinks Apple is going to launch its own mixed reality headset, but she's not worried about the competition. Speaking with CNBC at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, HTC CEO and co-founder Cher Wang said the Cupertino tech giant was likely to launch a mixed reality, or XR, product "very soon" — potentially as soon as this year. In January, Bloomberg reported that it is gearing up to release a mixed reality headset in the spring. "Apple and the entire industry realizes the potential and hence want to enter and eventually lead this segment," he added.

[1/2] A view of damaged Apple supplier Foxlink is seen after a fire at its assembly facility in Tirupati district in the southern state of Andhra Pradesh, India, February 28, 2023. A second source familiar with the developments said that Foxlink was a key supplier for Apple in India, and "there could be potential supply chain disruptions for iPhones made in India or shipped from India". Apple and Foxlink did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The incident is the latest problem to hit Apple suppliers in India, from where it is increasingly ramping up manufacturing and exports. Employees said the Foxlink factory makes charging cables used in iPhones, but it was not immediately clear if Apple has other suppliers for the cables in India.

Here's an update on technology-related holdings in Jim Cramer's Charitable Trust, the portfolio we use at the CNBC Investing Club. Jim ran through the 35 stocks during the Club's inaugural Annual Meeting, an in-person event Saturday in New York City. Big picture, we think AMD shares will continue to increase in value as its leadership over Intel is further cemented. But sentiment is improving, with AMD shares climbing around 21% year to date. As a subscriber to the CNBC Investing Club with Jim Cramer, you will receive a trade alert before Jim makes a trade.

☆ Apple supplier unlikely to resume full India operations for two months after massive fire
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Reuters —Most of the fire safety equipment at Apple supplier Foxlink’s facility in southern India was not functional, a government official told Reuters on Tuesday, a day after a massive blaze forced production to be halted. Foxlink was engulfed in a massive fire on Monday that led part of the building to collapse. A second source familiar with the developments said that Foxlink was a key supplier for Apple in India, and “there could be potential supply chain disruptions for iPhones made in India, or shipped from India”. Last year, the data indicates Foxlink exported around 7 million USB-C to lightening cables from India, and in January shipped 1.6 million units. The incident is the latest problem to hit Apple suppliers in India, from where it is increasingly ramping up manufacturing and exports.

☆ Apple analyst Kuo says low-end VR headset to launch in 2025
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Todd Haselton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Apple CEO Tim Cook presents the new iPhone 14 at an Apple event at their headquarters in Cupertino, California, U.S. September 7, 2022. Top Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo said in a blog post on Friday that Apple plans to release "low-end" and "high-end" second-generation augmented reality/mixed reality headsets in 2025. Apple has not yet announced or even acknowledged the existence of plans to launch a virtual reality headset. The first model is expected to cost about $3,000 according to Bloomberg, which means Kuo's report of a future "low-end" model could signal that a more affordable version is on the way. It sells, for example, the high-end Apple Watch Ultra but also more affordable Apple Watch and Apple Watch SE series devices.

☆ Apple reportedly made a big breakthrough on a secret non-invasive blood glucose monitor project that originally was part of a 'fake' startup
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Lakshmi Varanasi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Apple had a breakthrough on a revolutionary blood glucose monitor, according to Bloomberg. It's a monitor that can continually measure a person's blood glucose levels without as much as a skin prick, according to Bloomberg. Instead, Apple's monitor will use optical absorption spectroscopy, a measurement process that relies on wavelengths of light to ultimately determine glucose levels, Bloomberg said. The project is part of the company's Exploratory Design Group, XDG, which is reportedly one of the most undercover initiatives at the company, Bloomberg reported. Before E5 was incorporated into XDG, it was reportedly operating under a startup called Avolonte Health LLC, Bloomberg reported.

☆ Nvidia vs. TSMC: Wall Street pros name their favorite stock as chip battle heats up
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has dumped most of its stake in TSMC, just months after buying the Taiwanese chipmaker's stock. TSMC TSMC, meanwhile, is sometimes seen as a barometer of the strength of the U.S. consumer, with Apple among its biggest customers. This is a Game of Thrones battle and AI is here to stay with Nvidia a great play on that front. TSMC is a global chip recovery play that is well positioned with Nvidia in the left lane of innovation," he told CNBC Pro. "TSMC is the short-term play with Nvidia more of the longer-term AI bet."

☆ Apple faces obstacles in move to boost India manufacturing - FT
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 14 (Reuters) - Apple Inc (AAPL.O) is facing challenges as it tries to increase production in India, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the iPhone maker's operations. This 50% 'yield' does not meet Apple's goal for zero defects, FT reported, adding that the company's process of expanding in India has been slow in part due to challenges in logistics, tariffs and infrastructure. Apple and Tata Group did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Apple has bet big on India since it began iPhone assembly in the country in 2017 through Wistron Corp (3231.TW) and later Foxconn, in line with the Indian government's push for local manufacturing. Last month, India's trade minister said that Apple wants India to account for up to 25% of its production from about 5 - 7% currently.

☆ Big Tech Didn’t Quite Clear the Bar
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Dan Gallagher | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Shares of Apple, based in Cupertino, Calif., dropped in after-hours trading after its earnings report. Big tech just closed out a rough year. Apple , Amazon.com and Google parent Alphabet Inc. all reported December quarter results Thursday afternoon that showed the effects of the weakening global economy across most of the companies’ diverse business lines. These include online advertising, cloud-computing services, e-commerce and tech gadgets such as smartphones, laptops and smartwatches. These are big businesses, totaling nearly $1.2 trillion in revenue for the three companies in 2022.

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