Apple CEO Cook speaks strongly, hitting the U.S. weak point.

He said, "We stick to manufacturing in China not because Chinese factories are 'cheap,' but because no one else can replace them! The precision manufacturing engineers that cannot be gathered in the U.S., China can fill several football fields with just one province!"

The reason why Cook's remarks are called strong words is because they tear open a popular political narrative in the U.S. political arena, directly pointing out the harsh reality of industrial hollowing and the breakdown of the engineer dividend. His statement is not only a commercial consideration, but also an expression of helplessness about the fact that "Made in USA" cannot return in the short term under the global division of labor.

"Engineer dividend" is the real moat: the reason often misunderstood as "staying in China" is not cheap labor, but a high-quality engineer group. Cook's statement about "filling several football fields" refers not only to quantity (China's annual number of science and engineering graduates far exceeds that of other countries), but also to density. In the Pearl River Delta, it may be possible to find top engineers for all links such as mobile phone camera modules, metal frames, and flexible circuit boards within a few hours' drive. This industrial cluster's accumulated experience is irreplicable.

Accurate strike on the U.S. weakness: this statement directly points to the difficulties in the U.S. even if Apple wants to move production lines back to the U.S., it will face a talent gap (a severe aging of skilled workers and engineers proficient in precision manufacturing) and a missing supply chain (even making a single screw may require import). Cook's implied message is: it's not a problem of factory and machinery, but a human issue, and cultivating this generation of engineers requires at least 20 years.

This actually highlights that the core competitiveness of modern manufacturing is no longer simply land or tariffs, but an integrated industrial ecosystem and talent reserves.

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1859777065173068/

Statement: This article represents the personal views of the author.