Editor's note: this episode originally aired June 21, 2022.
From phones to computers to a significant chunk of the digital economy, for better or worse, Apple is deeply ingrained in much of American life.
But New York Times reporter and Charlotte native Tripp Mickle argues that the company has gone astray. In his new book, Mickle writes that Apple took a turn for the worse after Steve Jobs’ death.
When Tim Cook became the new CEO, Apple underwent massive growth — business boomed in China, Cook “distinguished himself as a master politician who could forge global alliances” and in January of this year, Apple became the first publicly-traded company to be worth $3 trillion.
But perhaps Apple was at its true peak in past years when it launched the iPod, iPhone, MacBook Air and iPad — “each redefined its product category.” BlackBerry, for example, once dominated 43% of the smartphone market, but it was one of several companies that collapsed because of Apple’s cutting-edge innovations.
We speak to Mickle about his new book on a trillion-dollar company that has made an outsize impact on modern life.
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Tripp Mickle, reporter for The New York Times and author of "After Steve: How Apple Became a Trillion-Dollar Company and Lost Its Soul"