Free Republic

Apple heiress Laurene Powell Jobs, Google founder Eric Schmidt, and the George Soros-backed Tides Foundation are among the Democratic heavyweights bankrolling the anti-Israel charity of activist Kamau Franklin, who called Elias Rodriguez’s alleged assassination of two Israeli diplomats in Washington, D.C., a "morally righteous" act. Franklin runs Community Movement Builders, an Atlanta-based nonprofit that promotes "liberation" ideology for black Americans, Palestinians, and other groups. The organization embraces radical rhetoric in support of those causes, referring to police as "pigs" and calling the state of Israel "the result of a war crime." Last week, Franklin signed an open letter defending Rodriguez’s...

U.S. President Donald Trump on Thursday said he told Apple CEO Tim Cook that he doesn’t want the tech giant to build its products in India, taking shots at the company’s moves to diversify production away from China and urging him to pivot Stateside. “I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday,” Trump said. “I said to him, ‘my friend, I treated you very good. You’re coming here with $500 billion, but now I hear you’re building all over India.’ I don’t want you building in India.” Trump was referencing Apple’s commitment of a $500 billion investment in the...

Apple reported its highest March-quarter revenue in over two years, reaching $95 billion, as customers rushed to purchase devices ahead of potential new U.S. tariffs. As a result of the ongoing trade war with China, the tech giant announced that the majority of U.S. iPhones would come from India, while iPads and other devices would be imported from Vietnam. The Wall Street Journal reports that Apple announced a significant surge in revenue for the March quarter, driven by strong demand for iPhones and other devices as customers moved to make purchases before the introduction of new U.S. tariffs in April....

IBM will invest $150 billion in the US, including on facilities for quantum computer production, over the next five years, the latest American technology company to back the Trump administration’s push for local manufacturing. The company’s announcement on Monday follows similar pledges by tech giants such as Nvidia and Apple, both of which have said they would spend about $500 billion each in the country over the next four years. Several analysts see the spending commitments as overtures to President Trump, whose tariffs threaten to roil supply chains and raise costs for the technology industry. IBM, also a significant government...

In a strategic move driven by escalating trade tensions between the United States and China, Apple is set to transition all production of iPhones destined for the US market to India. Apple is looking to move most of its manufacturing and production out of China, with India being one of the countries where they are increasing activities. Apple is looking to move most of its manufacturing and production out of China, with India being one of the countries where they are increasing activities. According to GSM Arena, the shift comes in the wake of ongoing trade policies and tariffs imposed...

European leaders announced this week they will try to steal up to $800 million from Apple and Meta with bogus antitrust penalties under the EU’s Digital Marketing Act. This fine is what we call “sour grapes” economics. The socialist nations of Europe can’t compete in the tech space, and so they are penalizing Apple and Meta because of their superiority in cell phone services and social media applications. The issue is whether Apple and Meta should be able to bundle services on their product lines and social media platforms. The answer, of course, is yes; they built it and they...

NATIONAL CHEESE FONDUE DAY Observed annually on April 11th, National Cheese Fondue Day recognizes a food holiday many enjoy. Fondue is a dish of melted cheese or other ingredients, served in a communal pot (caquelon) over a small portable stove (réchaud). Participants then dip the bread into the cheese using long-stemmed forks. Cheese fondue consists of a blend of cheeses, wine, and seasoning. #NationalCheeseFondueDay A 1966 book published in Zurich, under the name "Kass mit Wein zu kochen" is known for having the earliest known cheese fondue recipe. It calls for grated or cut up cheese melted with wine and...

Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives slashed his price targets for Apple and Tesla over the weekend as President Trump’s tariffs threaten to disrupt both businesses. “The tariff economic Armageddon unleashed by Trump is a complete disaster for Apple given its massive China production exposure,” Ives said in a warning note over the weekend. “In our view, no U.S. tech company is more negatively impacted by these tariffs than Apple with 90% of iPhones produced and assembled in China.” Wedbush cut its price target for Apple stock by $75, down to $250 per share. Apple’s shares are down this afternoon by...

As part of Apple's iOS 18.4 update, iPhone users will have access to eight new emoji. And there is one face that everyone is already saying will be their favourite. The new emoji list includes some items that some iPhone users might find helpful including a harp, a shovel, a leafless tree and a root vegetable. The update also includes a few stranger choices, such as the purple 'splatter', a bright blue fingerprint, and the flag of Sark – a small Channel Island with a population of just 500. But it is the exhausted-looking 'face with bags under eyes' emoji...

President Donald Trump is expected to announce a $100 billion investment from Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing to bolster chip manufacturing over the next four years in the U.S, NBC has learned. The Wall Street Journal first reported the news. TSMC, which supplies semiconductors to the likes of Nvidia and Apple for artificial intelligence use, would help support the Trump administration’s efforts to make the U.S. an artificial intelligence hub. Last month, Trump announced a multibillion-dollar AI infrastructure project with Oracle , OpenAI and Softbank. Trump has repeatedly called out and accused Taiwan of stealing the U.S. chip manufacturing business and touted...

Feb 25 (Reuters) - Apple shareholders voted to keep the tech giant's diversity, equity and inclusion policies on Tuesday, a win for management which had opposed efforts by a conservative group to scrap the program. The vote at the iPhone maker's annual meeting was seen as a test of shareholder views about the value of DEI programs, which many companies added or beefed up starting in 2020 amid the Black Lives Matter movement.

Far-left filmmaker Michael Moore has complained that America is going to lose the incredible talents of millions of illegal aliens. In a Substack post on Tuesday, Moore said that Trump’s mass deportations may result in the U.S. losing someone who could find a cure for cancer or stop an asteroid from hitting earth. “Who’s really being removed by ICE tonight?” he wrote. “The child who would’ve discovered the cure for cancer in 2046? The 9th-grade nerd who would’ve stopped that Astroid [sic] that’s gonna hit us in 2032?” Moore used the example of Apple CEO Steve Jobs, the son of...

Tulsi Gabbard, the director of US National Intelligence, says she was not informed in advance about the UK government's demand to be able to access Apple customers' encrypted data from anywhere in the world. Earlier this year, the UK government asked for the right to see the data, which currently not even Apple can access. The tech giant last week took the unprecedented step of removing its highest level data security tool from customers in the UK. In a letter, Ms Gabbard said she was seeking further information from the FBI and other US agencies and said, if the reports...

Somewhere, "1984" author George Orwell is smiling. War is peace. Freedom is slavery. And on MSNBC this morning: discrimination creates a "level playing field." On Wednesday's edition of MSNBC's Way Too Early, host Ali Vitali invited Lauren Leader to discuss the vote by Apple shareholders not to abandon the company's DEI programs. [snip] Leader went Orwellian when at the end of the segment she said: "Diversity is what this country was built on. And most Americans do understand that it should be a level playing field for all."Get the rest of the story and view the video here.

KEY TAKEAWAYSApple announced plans to spend more than $500 billion in the U.S. over the next four years on a swath of investments, including hiring 20,000 new workers to make artificial intelligence servers in a new Texas-based factory. Apple said the 250,000-square foot Texas factory will support its Apple Intelligence AI model and will open in 2026. Apple said the $500 billion investment plan marks its largest-ever spend commitment, and includes creating a manufacturing academy and doubling the size of its US advanced manufacturing fund. Apple (AAPL) announced on Monday plans to spend more than $500 billion in the U.S....

Apple's iPhone voice-to-text feature is in hot water ... with users doing a double-take after noticing it sometimes swaps out the word "racist" for "Trump." TMZ’s got the receipts -- we tested it ourselves after a TikTok called it out -- with a user saying "racist" into the voice-to-text, and boom, "Trump" flashes up for a hot second before switching to the correct word. he issue's been replicated multiple times, though the word "Trump" didn't pop up every single time when the user repeated "racist" in the same message. With repeated tests showing the same issue, this doesn’t look like...

Apple will 'spend and invest' $500b in America, hiring 20,000 new workers into research and development roles over the next four years as part of its 'largest-ever spend commitment', the company revealed today. The Silicon Valley tech giant pledged to 'build on Apple's long history of investing in American innovation and advanced high-skilled manufacturing' after President Donald Trump pushed companies to shift their manufacturing back home. Apple said the investment would help support 'a wide range of initiatives that focus on artificial intelligence, silicon engineering, and skills development for students and workers across the country'. 'We are bullish on the...

Shortly after Apple's CEO met with President Donald Trump last week, it announced a $500 billion investment in the United States through infrastructure, factories, and other facilities. The announcement detailed the investment into several initiatives, including opening a new advanced manufacturing facility with partners in Texas, doubling its U.S. Advanced Manufacturing Fund, and establishing a new manufacturing academy in Michigan. Apple CEO Tim Cook said the investment comes because the company has confidence in the country's future. “We are bullish on the future of American innovation, and we’re proud to build on our long-standing U.S. investments with this $500 billion...

Apple (AAPL) announced Monday that it will spend and invest more than $500 billion in the US over the next four years, including plans to build a new manufacturing factory, double its advanced manufacturing fund, and hire 20,000 people. "We are bullish on the future of American innovation, and we're proud to build on our long-standing U.S. investments with this $500 billion commitment to our country’s future,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said in a statement. "From doubling our Advanced Manufacturing Fund, to building advanced technology in Texas, we’re thrilled to expand our support for American manufacturing. And we’ll keep working...

The government now has access to its citizens messages and camera roll. This is the biggest breach of privacy Western civilisation has ever seen. Britain is in big trouble.