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Apple

also referred to as: apple computer

includes Apple Watch, Apple TV, Apple Silicon, Apple II, Apple Podcasts, Apple Pay, Apple Vision Pro, Apple Music, Apple A Series, Apple CarPlay, Apple Pencil, Apple University and 14 more

95 statements across 35 episodes · 29 bullish · 18 bearish · 13 people on the record · first statement Oct 19, 2021 by Ben Gilbert · said 959 times in 69 episodes since 2021 · across every show →

Mentions by year, the whole family

brought up most by Ben Gilbert (489), David Rosenthal (323), Morris Chang (27), Ben Thompson (22), Brendan Eich (16), Mark Zuckerberg (12), John Bathgate (12), David Senra (10)

tap a year for its mentions
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01325202120222023202420252026episodes it came up in
0013132525202120222023202420252026episodesmentions per episode
2026 40 mentions in 6 episodes 7 per episode
2025 243 mentions in 11 episodes 22 per episode
2024 240 mentions in 12 episodes 20 per episode
2023 126 mentions in 12 episodes 11 per episode
2022 274 mentions in 24 episodes 11 per episode
2021 36 mentions in 4 episodes 9 per episode

every mention, scene by scene, with the transcript →

Everything said about Apple, oldest first

Oct 19, 2021
Assertion Supported
Gilbert: Venrock was an early investor in Apple Computer
“Venrock was one of the earliest investors in none other than Apple Computer.”
Ben Gilbert Oct 19, 2021 ▶ 1:55:08 Standard Oil Part II (Extended Cut) · Acquired
Oct 19, 2021 negative
Opinion
Gilbert: Apple extracts partner profits while preserving its developer ecosystem
“Where, like, Apple's keeping the take rate where it is, they're gonna take an insane amount of the profits of the work of these partners, but they want to keep the partners around. Like, Apple's not gonna, they're like, well, we don't want to go build every ap…”
Ben Gilbert Oct 19, 2021 ▶ 2:18:45 Standard Oil Part II (Extended Cut) · Acquired
Nov 3, 2021 neutral
Insight
Johns: Major technological shifts require vertical integration rather than horizontal efficiency
“When technology changes, like, I just didn't have a concept for the smartphone. So technology was about to change quite a bit. And in that change, you really want to be vertically integrated because you're not pushing efficiency. You're pushing sort of product…”
Brinton Johns Nov 3, 2021 ▶ 1:24:05 Complexity Investing & Semiconductors with NZS Capital (Extended Cut) · Acquired
Nov 3, 2021 bullish
Opinion
Bathgate: Cadence is taking digital EDA market share from Synopsys
“We do think they're taking market share, especially in digital markets, like where they would be selling to an Intel or an Apple or an Nvidia. We think they're the share gainer, but both companies, it's like an extremely high quality duopoly.”
John Bathgate Nov 3, 2021 ▶ 1:04:25 Complexity Investing & Semiconductors with NZS Capital (Extended Cut) · Acquired
Nov 3, 2021 negative
Assertion Supported
Bathgate: Halving Apple App Store take rate costs 5% of gross profit
“What's the gross profit impact if they cut their app store you know, take rate from 30% to 15%, you know, across The board. What is that like? Five percent of gross profits. It's like meaningless to them and it would create so much value for all the, and there…”
John Bathgate Nov 3, 2021 ▶ 21:59 Complexity Investing & Semiconductors with NZS Capital (Extended Cut) · Acquired
Jan 24, 2022 positive
Assertion Supported
Apple Reversed Its Apple Music Trial Royalty Policy Within 24 Hours
“Literally within 24 hours, Apple changes its stance because of Taylor.”
David Rosenthal Jan 24, 2022 ▶ 1:20:50 Taylor Swift (Acquired’s Version) · Acquired
Feb 15, 2022
Disclosure
Eich tried to build a WebKit-based browser at Mozilla with Apple engineers
“And I actually talked at one point with Dave Hyatt about doing this. But I couldn't recruit them away from Apple, and I tried to get Hewitt as well, and it would have been a WebKit-based Mozilla browser, but it was too risky. I couldn't get the talent I needed…”
Brendan Eich Feb 15, 2022 ▶ 49:03 The Browser (with Brendan Eich, Chief Architect of Netscape + Mozilla and CEO of Brave) · Acquired
Feb 15, 2022 neutral
Assertion Partly supported
Eich: Apple Safari beat Firefox on privacy by blocking third-party cookies
“The very first Safari had private windows. It had a third party cookie blocker. Neither of these things were in Firefox at the time. Private windows came in quickly. We never shipped a third party cookie blocker in my time there.”
Brendan Eich Feb 15, 2022 ▶ 37:00 The Browser (with Brendan Eich, Chief Architect of Netscape + Mozilla and CEO of Brave) · Acquired
Mar 7, 2022 negative
Opinion
Sony cannot build great software and services to differentiate its hardware
“They don't know how to build fantastic software and services that differentiate their hardware. They just make great hardware.”
Ben Gilbert Mar 7, 2022 ▶ 1:39:05 SONY (75 years of electronics history in 3 hours) · Acquired
Mar 7, 2022 bullish
Assertion Partly supported
Apple's revenue grows at 30% annually compared to Sony's 15%
“Apple is also growing their revenue twice as fast, even with the crazy high numbers that they have today at 30% per year versus Sony's 15% per year.”
Ben Gilbert Mar 7, 2022 ▶ 2:51:14 SONY (75 years of electronics history in 3 hours) · Acquired
Mar 7, 2022 bullish
Opinion
Apple built history's greatest business while Sony became relatively undifferentiated
“Apple by shifting down to just a few product lines and focusing on the integration of hardware, software, and services, not to mention pseudo monopolistic distribution channels like the app store have just built Like the greatest business in history and Sony …”
Ben Gilbert Mar 7, 2022 ▶ 2:52:03 SONY (75 years of electronics history in 3 hours) · Acquired
Mar 7, 2022 bullish
Opinion
Only Apple has the balance sheet to rival Meta in VR
“I think Meta is investing just gobs and gobs of money and talent and everything into the next five versions of the, you know, MetaQuest and everything that's gonna come after that, and I don't know, at this point I'm not sure there's a balance sheet deep enoug…”
Ben Gilbert Mar 7, 2022 ▶ 2:36:28 SONY (75 years of electronics history in 3 hours) · Acquired
Apr 6, 2022 positive
What-if
Apple Could Have Achieved Dominant PC Power Had the Apple III Succeeded
“I think if they hadn't completely flubbed the Mac three, I think they might've ended up in a very attractive power position because they did own the stack and they did own the operating system and they didn't yet own the processor, but they could eventually.”
Hamilton Helmer Apr 6, 2022 ▶ 41:39 Platforms and Power (with Hamilton Helmer and Chenyi Shi) · Acquired
Apr 20, 2022 neutral
Assertion Supported
Gilbert: NVIDIA trades at 3x Apple's P/S and 2x Microsoft's
“Nvidia has literally three times the price to sales ratio of Apple, or price to revenue as Apple, and nearly two x Microsoft.”
Ben Gilbert Apr 20, 2022 ▶ 1:24:11 Nvidia: The Machine Learning Company (2006-2022) · Acquired
Apr 20, 2022 bullish
Opinion
NVIDIA and CUDA constitute a platform on par with Apple and Microsoft
“NVIDIA is a platform, in my mind, no doubt about it. CUDA and NVIDIA and general purpose computing on GPUs is a platform, so whatever, you know, all of the stew of powers that go into making that, that go into making Apple, Microsoft, you know, and the like, G…”
David Rosenthal Apr 20, 2022 ▶ 1:53:59 Nvidia: The Machine Learning Company (2006-2022) · Acquired
Apr 20, 2022 bullish
Assertion Supported
Gilbert: NVIDIA generates a 37% operating margin, beating Apple
“Another one that I wanted to point out, it's a freaking hardware company, I know we didn't, they're not a hardware company, but they're a hardware company, with 37% operating margins, so this is even better than Apple”
Ben Gilbert Apr 20, 2022 ▶ 2:00:21 Nvidia: The Machine Learning Company (2006-2022) · Acquired
Jun 20, 2022
Assertion Supported
Rosenthal: Sequoia invested $150k in Apple and sold entirely for $6M
“Ah, Don invested a 150,000 in Apple computer in 1977. And then, 18 months later, they had an opportunity to realize one of the greatest venture returns of all time. They made a forty-X on that investment. They sold their shares for six Million dollars before t…”
David Rosenthal Jun 20, 2022 ▶ 18:24 The Playbook: Lessons from 200+ Company Stories · Acquired
Jun 20, 2022 positive
Insight
Rosenthal: Growth runway duration matters far more than annual growth rate
“It's not your growth rate in any given year that matters. Frankly, that doesn't matter at all. what matters is how many years of growth do you have left? Like that is the ultimate question. And in the case of Amazon, in the case of Apple, if you have decades …”
David Rosenthal Jun 20, 2022 ▶ 20:49 The Playbook: Lessons from 200+ Company Stories · Acquired
Jun 20, 2022 negative
Opinion
Rosenthal: Sequoia selling Apple early is investing history's biggest mistake
“I think this is probably the single biggest mistake, period, in investing history. I don't see, I don't think there's any way that it can't be, definitionally.”
David Rosenthal Jun 20, 2022 ▶ 17:17 The Playbook: Lessons from 200+ Company Stories · Acquired
Nov 15, 2022 bullish
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Qualcomm Is Developing a Direct Competitor to Apple's M-Series Chips
“They already make Snapdragons for the high-end Android phones, and soon they'll be able to make a competitor to Apple's M series chips for laptops and desktops and maybe even servers.”
Ben Gilbert Nov 15, 2022 ▶ 2:02:07 Qualcomm · Acquired
Nov 15, 2022 neutral
Assertion Supported
Apple Paid Qualcomm $4.5B in 2019 for Six-Year Patent Licenses
“Apple also paid four billion, now switching over to the licensing side of the house to secure the patent licenses over the next six years. I think it was four and a half billion dollars for a six year deal.”
Ben Gilbert Nov 15, 2022 ▶ 2:00:03 Qualcomm · Acquired
Nov 15, 2022 negative
Assertion Partly supported
Qualcomm Contractually Forced Apple to Vocally Condemn WiMAX Under Penalty
“Qualcomm asked Apple to speak out against WiMAX, which is a competing technology. They were like, we need you to vocally Speak out that our competitor is a bad piece of technology. They also stipulated that if Apple ever used a competing supplier and keep in m…”
Ben Gilbert Nov 15, 2022 ▶ 1:54:17 Qualcomm · Acquired
Dec 6, 2022 bullish
Opinion
Thompson: Apple's privacy changes enhanced Meta's long-term ad moat
“The Apple changes were very devastating, and they're structurally devastating, and so they deserve a significant haircut on their valuation because of that, but I also think they were moat-enhancing in the long run, where I question whether any other company i…”
Ben Thompson Dec 6, 2022 ▶ 1:34:12 Stratechery (with Ben Thompson) · Acquired
Dec 19, 2022 negative
Opinion
Rosenthal: Apple has been a terrible steward of the podcasting industry
“Apple has been such a terrible steward of this industry.”
David Rosenthal Dec 19, 2022 ▶ 1:04:26 Holiday Special 2022 · Acquired
Mar 29, 2023 positive
Assertion Supported
Steve Jobs Personally Approved Every Single Apple Advertisement in Weekly Meetings
“Every Wednesday at like three o'clock or I forgot the time, they had like a three hour meeting. He would approve, have to approve every single piece of advertising marketing that went out for Apple. There's not a fucking billboard in Kentucky that went out wit…”
David Senra Mar 29, 2023 ▶ 2:18:36 Sessions: David Senra (Founders Podcast) · Acquired
Mar 29, 2023 neutral
Assertion Supported
Steve Jobs Ripped Off Edwin Land's Tech and Liberal Arts Line
“Like when we used to watch the presentations that Steve would give, where he's like, oh, we're building at the intersection of technology and liberal... Arts. He put it up on the screen. He ripped that off wholesale. It is literally Edwin Land said that exact …”
David Senra Mar 29, 2023 ▶ 25:47 Sessions: David Senra (Founders Podcast) · Acquired
Mar 29, 2023 negative
Opinion
Senra: There was no working with Steve Jobs, only working for him
“I think the difference is from, like, a founder's perspective, like, there is no working with Steve Jobs. It's working for.”
David Senra Mar 29, 2023 ▶ 2:25:14 Sessions: David Senra (Founders Podcast) · Acquired
Apr 26, 2023 neutral
Disclosure
Lasky: thatgamecompany rejected an Apple Arcade deal over strict exclusivity demands
“Apple wanted us in the arcade. We couldn't do it because we want it to be cross-platform, right? And they wanted exclusives.”
Mitch Lasky Apr 26, 2023 ▶ 1:10:02 Benchmark’s Mitch Lasky and Blake Robbins on The Art of Business in Gaming · Acquired
May 30, 2023
What-if
Without Lockheed in Silicon Valley, Apple Would Not Exist
“No Lockheed, no Woz in Silicon Valley, no Apple.”
Ben Gilbert May 30, 2023 ▶ 1:16:17 Lockheed Martin (Audio) · Acquired
Jun 27, 2023 neutral
Assertion Supported
Porsche Generates a 29% Gross Margin Compared to Apple's 43%
“Porsche is a 29% gross margin. Apple's a 43% gross margin.”
Ben Gilbert Jun 27, 2023 ▶ 3:08:58 Porsche (with Doug DeMuro) · Acquired
Jul 25, 2023 positive
Assertion Supported
Tim Cook Joined Nike's Board in 2005, Launching Nike+ iPod
“Tim joins Nike's board. I believe in, like, late 2005 he joined the board. He immediately starts helping Nike into understanding how to use digital technology to transform their business. And in 2006, they launched the Nike Plus iPod.”
Ben Gilbert Jul 25, 2023 ▶ 2:51:55 Nike (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 25, 2023 neutral
Assertion Contradicted
Nike Held Its IPO the Same Week as Apple in 1980
“So, Nike IPOs, the second week of December in 1980, the same week as Apple.”
David Rosenthal Jul 25, 2023 ▶ 2:07:46 Nike (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 30, 2023 positive
Insight
Investors need significant participation in a few top market leaders
“What everybody has learned is that everybody needs some significant participation in the 12 companies that do better than everybody else. And you need two or three of them at least.”
Charlie Munger Oct 30, 2023 ▶ 41:13 Charlie Munger (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 30, 2023 bullish
Assertion Supported
Berkshire Hathaway bought Apple when its valuation fell to 10x earnings
“Yeah, well, it got cheap. It got it did about 10 times or anything more.”
Charlie Munger Oct 30, 2023 ▶ 42:12 Charlie Munger (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 30, 2023 negative
Opinion
Munger prefers investing in consumer brand power over semiconductor foundries
“Well, I don't like that as well as I like something with a real consumer brand of its own like Apple.”
Charlie Munger Oct 30, 2023 ▶ 44:49 Charlie Munger (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 30, 2023 neutral
Disclosure
Berkshire Hathaway invested $30 billion into Apple, not hundreds of billions
“We didn't put hundreds of billions, but we put a thirty billion into it.”
Charlie Munger Oct 30, 2023 ▶ 41:58 Charlie Munger (Audio) · Acquired
Nov 27, 2023 neutral
Assertion Supported
Apple Pay takes 15 basis points, roughly matching Visa's revenue cut
“So on a Apple Pay transaction, I'm pretty sure Apple makes about as much as Visa does, because they stack an extra 15 basis points on top of the other three fees that we talked about.”
Ben Gilbert Nov 27, 2023 ▶ 3:25:42 Visa (Audio) · Acquired
Dec 18, 2023
Insight
Gilbert: Young professionals should learn end-to-end individual economic production
“When you're a young person, you should try to become singularly productive. And I mean productive in the economic sense. That you are able to soup to nuts within your control, make something of economic value, and put it in the world in a way that you own the …”
Ben Gilbert Dec 18, 2023 ▶ 1:45:01 Holiday Special 2023 (Audio) · Acquired
Jan 22, 2024 neutral
Assertion Supported
Genentech was the largest venture-backed IPO until Apple's debut
“They go public and it is, I believe the largest venture backed IPO ever at that time. Until it's eclipsed two months later when Apple goes public.”
David Rosenthal Jan 22, 2024 ▶ 1:18:41 Novo Nordisk (Ozempic) · Acquired
Apr 22, 2024
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Apple matched Microsoft's marketing spend for the launch of Excel
“And so I'm not sure this has ever been publicly disclosed before, but Apple spent just as much marketing Excel as Microsoft did. They matched Microsoft's marketing spend with their own campaign for it and split the bill.”
Ben Gilbert Apr 22, 2024 ▶ 2:29:59 Microsoft Volume I: The Complete History and Strategy of founding through Windows 95 (Audio) · Acquired
Apr 22, 2024 neutral
Assertion Supported
Apple's 1985 intellectual property license covered all future versions of Windows
“Apple does do a deal to license a lot of quote unquote their intellectual property, which of course came from Xerox, to Microsoft. Apple, I think, was under the impression that it was just for Windows one point oh, but the actual terms of the agreement are thi…”
Ben Gilbert Apr 22, 2024 ▶ 2:39:01 Microsoft Volume I: The Complete History and Strategy of founding through Windows 95 (Audio) · Acquired
Apr 22, 2024 neutral
Assertion Supported
Apple licensing Microsoft BASIC in 1977 was their first commercial deal
“And that's the first deal that happens between the companies. I mean, there's so many deals done both directions, commercial deals, equity deals, legal disputes in both directions. And this is the very first time that they do something together.”
Ben Gilbert Apr 22, 2024 ▶ 1:10:00 Microsoft Volume I: The Complete History and Strategy of founding through Windows 95 (Audio) · Acquired
Apr 22, 2024
Assertion Supported
The first version of Microsoft Excel was built for the Macintosh
“Far and away, the first thing to point out is the first version of Microsoft Excel was for the Mac.”
Ben Gilbert Apr 22, 2024 ▶ 2:26:28 Microsoft Volume I: The Complete History and Strategy of founding through Windows 95 (Audio) · Acquired
Apr 22, 2024
Assertion Supported
Steve Jobs showed Bill Gates the Mac project in 1981
“Steve Jobs Shows Bill Gates the Mac project in 1981. Three years before it ships. And Microsoft and Apple signed an agreement to work together on applications for it in 1982.”
David Rosenthal Apr 22, 2024 ▶ 2:31:41 Microsoft Volume I: The Complete History and Strategy of founding through Windows 95 (Audio) · Acquired
Apr 22, 2024
Assertion Partly supported
Microsoft licensed BASIC to Apple for $31,000 over eight years
“So like the Apple deal is 31,000 dollars for eight years. Of access for Apple, for the Apple II to Microsoft's BASIC.”
David Rosenthal Apr 22, 2024 ▶ 1:10:34 Microsoft Volume I: The Complete History and Strategy of founding through Windows 95 (Audio) · Acquired
Apr 22, 2024 neutral
Assertion Supported
Microsoft announced Windows in 1983 prior to the Mac's launch
“Starting in 1983, they're like, we gotta Do our own graphical operating system, or at least user interface, and this is the origins of the Windows product, and they actually announced it in November of 1983 before the Mac ends up shipping, which their partner …”
David Rosenthal Apr 22, 2024 ▶ 2:36:15 Microsoft Volume I: The Complete History and Strategy of founding through Windows 95 (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024 neutral
What-if
Gilbert: Microsoft's 1997 Office commitment and investment saved Apple from bankruptcy
“Which, by the way, saved Apple. The company would have been completely out of business because it was so existentially important to anyone using an Apple computer to use Office that if Office, you know, Microsoft decides, oh, we're gonna stop developing Office…”
Ben Gilbert Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 45:38 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024 positive
Insight
Gilbert: iPhone shifted mobile from cheap embedded systems to full computers
“The mobile industry to this point had been, how do I make the cheapest possible phone? It's certainly not a scaled down version of a Mac, which is what the iPhone was. So that was a completely different paradigm. This is a tiny computer, not a kind of crappy e…”
Ben Gilbert Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 3:10:33 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024
Assertion Supported
Gilbert: Apple makes around $20 billion annually from Google default search
“The rumors are that Apple makes something on the order of twenty billion dollars a year today in 2024 from Google as being the front door to Google, sending all of the iPhone search traffic to Google.”
Ben Gilbert Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 2:41:47 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024 neutral
Opinion
Rosenthal: Microsoft's Real Mobile Competitor Was Android, Not Apple's iPhone
“Microsoft's competitor was not Apple and the iPhone, it was Android.”
David Rosenthal Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 3:16:39 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024 negative
Insight
Gilbert: iPads failed to replace PCs, whereas smartphones largely succeeded
“The iPad was not the PC of the future. It had its place, but it did not in any way replace PCs And it turns out that Apple scaling up the iPhone metaphor was good for tablets, but that never was gonna take over most PC use cases today. In fact, the phone has f…”
Ben Gilbert Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 3:26:09 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024 positive
Opinion
Gilbert: iPhone launch was the most spectacular demo since Engelbart
“The iPhone comes out. It's the most spectacular technology demo since The mother of all demos, the old Doug Engelbart one way back in the day.”
Ben Gilbert Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 3:09:05 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024
Insight
Gilbert: Large external ecosystem dependencies make technology resets much harder
“The more externalities you have depending on you, the more difficult it is to reset, and usually a next generation technology requires you to hit a big reset button.”
Ben Gilbert Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 4:35:02 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024 neutral
Assertion Partly supported
Rosenthal: Mac Accounts for 8% of the PC Market in 2024
“Even today, in twenty-twenty-four, Mac sales are eight percent of the market.”
David Rosenthal Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 2:30:06 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Jul 22, 2024 negative
Opinion
Gilbert: Windows Phone Lost When Verizon Backed Motorola Droid Over Microsoft
“I think the biggest moment when the door really shut is when Verizon freaked out after the Apple and AT&T deal and said, we need an answer, and they decided that answer was Droid, and they put like a gajillion dollars behind the Droid advertising campaign.”
Ben Gilbert Jul 22, 2024 ▶ 3:17:08 Microsoft Volume II: The Complete History and Strategy of the Ballmer Years (Audio) · Acquired
Sep 18, 2024 positive
Opinion
Zuckerberg: Meta might be twice as profitable if it owned the platform
“I, it's hard to exactly estimate it, but I think we might be, like, twice as profitable if we own the platform or something.”
Mark Zuckerberg Sep 18, 2024 ▶ 55:31 The Mark Zuckerberg Interview · Acquired
Sep 18, 2024 neutral
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Zuckerberg: Apple will be Meta's primary rival in ideological platform war
“I think Apple will have a place for sure. I expect them to be our primary competitor, and I think it will not be Just a product competition. I think it's like a, in some ways, very deeply values driven and ideological competition around what the future of the …”
Mark Zuckerberg Sep 18, 2024 ▶ 1:10:34 The Mark Zuckerberg Interview · Acquired
Sep 18, 2024 neutral
Insight
Zuckerberg: Meta's shipping culture is the opposite of Apple's polished approach
“I think in a lot of ways we're like the opposite of Apple, and clearly their stuff has worked really well too, right? But I mean, they take this approach, it's like, we're gonna take a, like, a long time, we're gonna polish it, we're gonna put it out and maybe…”
Mark Zuckerberg Sep 18, 2024 ▶ 26:04 The Mark Zuckerberg Interview · Acquired
Sep 30, 2024 negative
Disclosure
Zuckerberg: Meta might be twice as profitable if it owned mobile platforms
“You know, we did this calculation or estimate at some point where it's like, how much money do we lose from our core family of apps to the various, like, taxes that the platforms have to, like, when they tell us we can't run the ad business the way that we thi…”
Mark Zuckerberg Sep 30, 2024 ▶ 2:03:05 Acquired LIVE from Chase Center (with Daniel Ek, Emily Chang, Jensen Huang and Mark Zuckerberg) · Acquired
Sep 30, 2024 neutral
Opinion
Zuckerberg: Meta's shipping philosophy is the opposite of Apple's long-cycle polish
“I think in a lot of ways we're like the opposite of Apple, and clearly their stuff has worked really well too, right? But I mean, they take this approach, it's like, we're gonna take a, like, a long time, we're gonna polish it, we're gonna put it out and maybe…”
Mark Zuckerberg Sep 30, 2024 ▶ 1:34:21 Acquired LIVE from Chase Center (with Daniel Ek, Emily Chang, Jensen Huang and Mark Zuckerberg) · Acquired
Sep 30, 2024 bullish
Disclosure
Zuckerberg: Goal for next 10-15 years is building winning open platforms
“Part of my goal for the next 1015 years, the next generation of platforms, is to build the next generation of open platforms and have the open platforms win. And I think that that's going to lead to a much more vibrant tech industry.”
Mark Zuckerberg Sep 30, 2024 ▶ 2:17:56 Acquired LIVE from Chase Center (with Daniel Ek, Emily Chang, Jensen Huang and Mark Zuckerberg) · Acquired
Sep 30, 2024 negative
Prediction Not checkable as stated
Zuckerberg: Apple is Meta's primary competitor in ideological open-vs-closed race
“I expect them to be our primary competitor, and I think it will not be Just a product competition. I think it's like a, in some ways, very deeply values driven and ideological competition around what the future of the tech industry should be”
Mark Zuckerberg Sep 30, 2024 ▶ 2:18:23 Acquired LIVE from Chase Center (with Daniel Ek, Emily Chang, Jensen Huang and Mark Zuckerberg) · Acquired
Oct 28, 2024 negative
Opinion
Gilbert: Apple's ATT was net value destructive rather than captured by Apple
“And what ended up actually happening from ATT? It's been value destructive. Overall, because I don't think the amount of money that has shifted away from Facebook has been captured by Apple.”
Ben Gilbert Oct 28, 2024 ▶ 5:10:39 Meta (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 28, 2024 negative
Assertion Supported
Gilbert: Meta CFO Projected $10 Billion Impact From Apple's ATT in 2022
“The CFO kind of casually says in a response to someone, oh, we think that the, Impact from ATT to our ad business will end up costing us on the order of ten billion dollars for twenty-twenty-two.”
Ben Gilbert Oct 28, 2024 ▶ 5:06:39 Meta (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 28, 2024
Assertion Not publicly verifiable
Zuckerberg Pitched Steve Jobs on Integrating Facebook's Platform Directly Into iOS
“The next year, in 2008, when the iPhone SDK was launching and people were building apps, Mark and Facebook actually go to Apple and meet with Steve, and they pitch Steve on exactly what you were just talking about, Ben. Like, hey, how about you let us bring ou…”
David Rosenthal Oct 28, 2024 ▶ 5:02:55 Meta (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 28, 2024
Assertion Partly supported
Gilbert: Mobile app updates took two weeks for review in 2012
“And at this point in time, there was approximately a two-week delay between pushing an update and it being reviewed and accepted.”
Ben Gilbert Oct 28, 2024 ▶ 3:24:57 Meta (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 28, 2024 neutral
Assertion Supported
Gilbert: Apple acquired SoundJam and turned its codebase into iTunes
“It got acquired by Apple, and then eventually they, I think, built off the same code base and turned it into iTunes.”
Ben Gilbert Oct 28, 2024 ▶ 20:34 Meta (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 28, 2024 positive
Insight
Rosenthal: Great companies retain homegrown or long-tenured senior executives
“This is almost always true, really is true in every great company that I can think of. The core senior most executive team are all people who came up in the company Or have been there for a very, very long time. It's not a whole bunch of mercenaries there at t…”
David Rosenthal Oct 28, 2024 ▶ 5:56:50 Meta (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 28, 2024 neutral
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Matching iPhone Cash Flows Would Leave Reality Labs Net Negative Until 2035
“Well, I did that napkin math, and if twenty-twenty-four, This year was Apple's 2007, so you just take all the iPhone's cash flows and you start the clock right now. Meta's cumulative cash flows from Reality Labs would be net negative until at least 2035.”
Ben Gilbert Oct 28, 2024 ▶ 5:17:02 Meta (Audio) · Acquired
Nov 18, 2024
Assertion Supported
Ben Gilbert: Apple and Tiffany lead retail with $5,500 and $3,000 sales per foot
“Costco is 1800 dollars a foot. They are trying to maximize their dollar per foot. Walmart is about 600. Target is about 450 dollars. And then these, like, crazy businesses, just to compare it to the all-time greatest, Tiffany is 3000 dollars a foot for jewelry…”
Ben Gilbert Nov 18, 2024 ▶ 2:44:42 IKEA (Audio) · Acquired
Jan 21, 2025 positive
Assertion Supported
Rosenthal: Apple Silicon traces from ARM and DEC through Intel and P.A. Semi
“Lineage of all of Apple Silicon, probably the most valuable, defensible part of Apple today in terms of technology, was Armandec to Intel to PA Semi to Apple.”
David Rosenthal Jan 21, 2025 ▶ 1:13:27 TSMC · Acquired
Jan 21, 2025 positive
Assertion Supported
TSMC invested $9 billion and 6,000 workers to build Apple's dedicated fab
“And for TSMC, it meant an initial investment of nine billion dollars, Fabs are expensive to build, and devoting 6000 employees to building a dedicated plant for Apple in just 11 months.”
Ben Gilbert Jan 21, 2025 ▶ 1:39:59 TSMC · Acquired
Jan 21, 2025 neutral
Assertion Supported
Apple's early iPhones relied on off-the-shelf Samsung processors
“They weren't designing their own chips. They just used an off-the-shelf Samsung chip.”
Ben Gilbert Jan 21, 2025 ▶ 1:33:34 TSMC · Acquired
Jan 21, 2025 positive
Assertion Supported
Morris Chang returned from retirement at 78 to secure Apple's business
“Morris Chang is Founded TSMC at age 56, retired at 74, then came back at age 78, inked the deal to make all of Apple's chips”
David Rosenthal Jan 21, 2025 ▶ 2:56 TSMC · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 neutral
Disclosure
Chang: TSMC did not include Apple in 28nm capex expansion
“Because when we figured a very big market for 28 and therefore when we planned to increase vastly our capital spending, we didn't have Apple in mind. We didn't include Apple. Apple came strictly as a present surprise.”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:20:08 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 negative
Assertion Supported
Chang: Apple placed initial 16nm chip orders with Samsung over TSMC
“I mean, it was a real shock when I heard that Apple had placed their first orders of 16 with Samsung.”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:52:00 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 bullish
Disclosure
Chang: TSMC matched Intel in technology and beat it in manufacturing in 2011
“Technology. At that time, we thought we were almost at par with Intel. Almost. In fact, I thought we were, I think I thought we were at par with Intel at that time. Manufacturing. I thought we were better than Intel. And customer trust. We thought that our cus…”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:40:18 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 positive
Assertion Supported
Chang: TSMC launched 16nm six months later and won most Apple orders
“We developed, we had our own 16 about half a year later, and most of Apple's 60 nanometer requirements still belonged to us.”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:54:38 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 neutral
What-if
Rosenthal: Without ARM, Intel probably would make all iPhone chips
“Like, if ARM hadn't become such a viable CPU architecture platform, and Apple hadn't standardized, you know, their Apple Silicon on ARM, Probably Intel would be making all of the chips that go into your iPhone, all the leading edge chips that go into your iPho…”
David Rosenthal Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 2:26:04 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 neutral
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Chang: Apple was not actively considering Intel foundry in 2010
“No, Apple Was not actively considering intel. That came later.”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:16:34 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 neutral
Disclosure
Chang: TSMC R&D could not develop two nodes concurrently in 2010
“The point is that back then, R&D did not have enough resources to do two notes at the same time. Later we did. Later we did.”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:19:21 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 negative
What-if
Chang: Eliminating TSMC's dividend for Apple would have crashed the stock
“About one-third of our investors, shareholders, are very seriously interested in the dividends. So if we do what the Jeff Williams said, oh, a stock is going to drop like hell, you know.”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:32:07 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 neutral
Insight
Chang: Apple rejects unprompted supplier pitches until they are ready
“Apple is a very close mouthed company. If you try to talk with, if you offer, you know, your service, I mean, they will just tell you to go away, you know. They will come to see you when they are ready, you That's what I knew about Apple, even then, and I knew…”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:09:47 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025 neutral
Disclosure
Chang: TSMC funded Apple ramp via debt and filled half their requested volume
“What we first did our financial planning and we decided not to cut dividend. We decided not to sell new stock. We decided to just borrow. And I mean, this was also with consultation with Goldman Sachs, you know, we chose following. How much? I looked at the nu…”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:24:45 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Jan 27, 2025
Assertion Not checkable as stated
Chang: Apple's initial TSMC pitch proposed a 40% gross margin
“He did say that we will let you have a 40% gross margin, and I think, well, I didn't say anything. I didn't answer him. I didn't respond to that, but our margin at that time was already 45%, and I was trying to put it up to 50%.”
Morris Chang Jan 27, 2025 ▶ 1:14:19 TSMC founder Morris Chang · Acquired
Feb 24, 2025 positive
Assertion Supported
Apple ships more watches annually than the entire Swiss watch industry
“Apple alone ships way more Apple watches every year than the entire Swiss watch industry.”
David Rosenthal Feb 24, 2025 ▶ 4:16:54 Rolex (Audio) · Acquired
Jun 2, 2025 negative
Opinion
Ballmer: Apple services is just iPhone monetization, not a new platform
“It's an additional monetization model, but it's not a new locomotive. A locomotive is a, the business that can pull the cabooses and the locomotive remains the phone. You know, the services business go away pretty quick if the phone volume fell apart.”
Steve Ballmer Jun 2, 2025 ▶ 1:34:05 The Steve Ballmer Interview · Acquired
Jun 30, 2025 positive
Assertion Supported
Alphabet generates more net income than any other U.S. company
“Google, and I should say Alphabet today, generates more net income or profit than any other U.S. Company. More than Apple, Microsoft, Exxon Mobil, JPMorgan Chase, Berkshire Hathaway.”
Ben Gilbert Jun 30, 2025 ▶ 2:01 Google Part I: Origins of Search. How the Best Business in Human History Happened (Audio) · Acquired
Aug 26, 2025 neutral
Assertion Supported
Steve Jobs Lawsuit Threats Kept Pinch-to-Zoom Off Early Android Devices
“So Steve Jobs threatens to sue Google over implementation of multi-touch gestures. And so, as a result, Android for several years doesn't have things like pinch to zoom or the sort of swipe operating system UI navigation gestures, and I'm pretty sure if you re…”
David Rosenthal Aug 26, 2025 ▶ 2:46:16 Google Part II: Alphabet (Audio) · Acquired
Aug 26, 2025 neutral
Assertion Supported
Google Pays Apple $20 Billion Annually to Remain the Default Search Engine
“This is why Google pays Apple twenty billion dollars a year.”
David Rosenthal Aug 26, 2025 ▶ 2:21:07 Google Part II: Alphabet (Audio) · Acquired
Aug 26, 2025 bearish
What-if
Microsoft Would Have Won Mobile OS Licensing Without Google Buying Android
“If they don't buy Android and they don't get started basically in the month that they did, this market belongs to Microsoft.”
Ben Gilbert Aug 26, 2025 ▶ 2:38:01 Google Part II: Alphabet (Audio) · Acquired
Aug 26, 2025 neutral
Assertion Supported
The Original iPhone Relied on Built-In Google Maps and YouTube Apps
“There are two apps that launch in the very first version of the iPhone. Remember, it didn't have an app store. It was not open to third-party developers. There is a YouTube app and a Maps app, both of which are Google services. Now, the apps are written by App…”
Ben Gilbert Aug 26, 2025 ▶ 2:41:37 Google Part II: Alphabet (Audio) · Acquired
Oct 6, 2025 neutral
Opinion
US Antitrust Search Remedies Against Google Are Immaterial
“The judge first ruled that Google was a monopoly in internet search, and then did not come up with any material remedies. I mean, there are some, But I would call them immaterial. They did not need to spin off Chrome, and they did not need to stop sending tens…”
Ben Gilbert Oct 6, 2025 ▶ 3:15:33 Google Part III: The AI Company. Google is amazingly well-positioned... will they win in AI? (Audio) · Acquired
Mar 5, 2026 positive
Assertion Supported
The Brad Pitt Formula 1 Movie Grossed $630 Million Worldwide
“Which grossed six hundred and thirty million dollars worldwide at the box office. The highest amount, not only for a racing film, for any sports movie ever, and The highest grossing box office movie of Brad Pitt's entire career.”
David Rosenthal Mar 5, 2026 ▶ 3:28:44 Formula 1: Fast cars, celebrities, and B2B software (Audio) · Acquired
Aug 10, 2026 positive
Assertion Supported
Pixar's IPO made Steve Jobs a billionaire, creating more wealth than Apple
“Pixar closes its first day of trading, At a one and a half billion dollar market cap, this is how big a hit Toy Story was and how much it was in the public consciousness. This is how Steve Jobs becomes a billionaire... He didn't make anywhere near that kind of…”
David Rosenthal Aug 10, 2026 ▶ 2:20:59 Disney: The Renaissance and the Empire · Acquired
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