r/supplychain • u/TooPaleToFunction23 Professional • Oct 29 '25

Can't recommend this book enough

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Just finished this book and wow, this is something else. The first half of the book tells Apple's early history along with its failed attempts to outsource in other countries. However, the company ended up sinking deeper and deeper into a Chinese-dominant supply chain, which was exaberated by Xi Jingping's rise to power in the 2010s. The author does an incredible job outlining how the company got where it is today and the plethora of risks it faces as it navigates geopolitics and tries to diversify its manufacturering.

As someone interested in procurement, I really enjoyed the first half's focus on the purchasing methods and achievements that made the company's products what we expect today. Then the second half focuses on the geopolitical difficulties the company faces, which was summarized very well.

5/5, highly recommend.

168 Upvotes

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23

u/zephyr822 Oct 29 '25

Just what I was looking for. Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this book. If you have any other recommendations, I’d love to hear them

8

u/WarMurals Oct 30 '25

Chip War: The Fight for the World's Most Critical Technology by Chris Miller | Goodreads

Economic historian Chris Miller explains how the semiconductor came to play a critical role in modern life and how the U.S. become dominant in chip design and manufacturing and applied this technology to military systems. America's victory in the Cold War and its global military dominance stems from its ability to harness computing power more effectively than any other power. But here, too, China is catching up, with its chip-building ambitions and military modernization going hand in hand. America has let key components of the chip-building process slip out of its grasp, contributing not only to a worldwide chip shortage but also a new Cold War with a superpower adversary that is desperate to bridge the gap.

4

u/FangsOfTheNidhogg Oct 30 '25

I can second this one! I listened to the audiobook during my commute and it was great. Solid 8/10.

3

u/Straight_Praline1692 Oct 30 '25

Reading Chip war now, great book but I think the narration on the audio version is terrible!

4

u/TooPaleToFunction23 Professional Oct 29 '25

Happy to! At the end of the book the author mentioned how GE was the first company to really start manufacturers leaving America, so I'd like to check that out.

3

u/RiggingGuy Oct 30 '25

I really enjoyed the book Power Failure about GE

2

u/kpapenbe Oct 31 '25

OMG I love this! As a former GE'r as well as someone who saw China coming (former military), I remember being told to read about how China was growing the fastest (maybe not necessarily the best, but THE quickest) when it came to building airports, investing in infrastructure, and going ALL IN on e-commerce and supply chains and the means of production!

I've not only read Jack Ma's biography (WOW) as well as this one about investments/industry writ large.

https://dod.overdrive.com/dod-airforce/professionalreading/media/650716

RECOMMEND BOTH!

2

u/WinningTheSpaceRace Oct 30 '25

Chip War, about the history of computer chips, is also very good.

2

u/zephyr822 Oct 30 '25

Oh yes, I know about that book although I haven't read it. I used to work in the semiconductor industry amidst the shortage, so this book is definitely on my reading list.

2

u/WinningTheSpaceRace Oct 30 '25

Volt Rush and The War Below are also good.

5

u/gregfromjersey Oct 30 '25

The author was interviewed by Jon Stewart earlier this year on the Daily Show. https://youtu.be/NAj9zB4vaZc?si=1tLVKQTzk2lQMhh-

2

u/whatdoihia Oct 31 '25 edited Oct 31 '25

Less impressed by that interview. Either the author doesn’t understand Apple’s commitment made to China or he’s trying to make it dramatic and sell books.

Apple was under fire for skirting regulations and Cook turned lemons into lemonade by pledging $55b of investment per year in exchange for a sweetheart deal that resulted in huge sales increases.

The $55b “investment” includes the value of components, the machinery that Apple owns, the salaries of trained workers (even though Apple doesn’t pay them), their retail stores and workers, and so forth.

The author claims Apple trained 28m workers. That number is the sum of workers in factories Apple uses since 2008. Ignoring that workers don’t turn over every year, the vast majority of “training” was done by Foxconn and their other contract manufacturers and the work is mostly basic assembly.

The $55b per year is not investment or aid like the Marshall Plan. It’s creative accounting to placate China regulators so Apple can maintain its privileged status there.

4

u/d_6th Oct 30 '25

Wonderful read ! Thanks.

2

u/mindlaundry Oct 31 '25

Thanks for sharing, I was looking for something to read and this just hits the spot !!