Part 10/16:
Another critical point centered on manufacturing—Apple’s reliance on third-party factories, predominantly in China, for product assembly. Although Apple excels at miniaturization and integration, it lacks in-house manufacturing capacity, raising questions about whether it should rebuild its factories domestically to gain tighter control and accelerate innovation.
Tesla’s manufacturing approach is used as a model—highlighting the benefits of vertical integration, iterative design, and shortened feedback loops—something Apple might consider if it wants to reassert control in AI hardware and software development.