'Apple hasn't invented anything great in a while': Mark Zuckerberg
11 Jan 2025

Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg took a dig at Apple's innovation and business practices during a podcast with Joe Rogan.

He said the tech giant "hasn't really invented anything great in a while," adding, "Steve Jobs invented the iPhone and now they're just kind of sitting on it 20 years later."

The discussion also revolved around Meta's content moderation policy changes, and issues with its diversity and inclusion policies.

Zuckerberg echoes Joe Rogan's concerns about Apple
Agreement

The Apple discussion was started by Rogan, who said he wanted to switch from Apple to Android. He said he was uncomfortable being tied to a single company and slammed Apple's App Store policies.

Zuckerberg agreed with Rogan's sentiments, especially the tech giant's decision to charge a 30% fee on certain App Store transactions.

"The way they do that Apple store, where they charge people 30%," Rogan said. "That seems so insane that they can get away with doing that."

Zuckerberg criticizes Apple's restrictive rules
Restrictions

Zuckerberg slammed Apple for enforcing rules he thinks are arbitrary and restrict the capabilities of other companies to develop iPhone-compatible products.

He said these restrictions have greatly prevented anyone else from creating something that can connect to the iPhone as seamlessly as Apple's own products, such as AirPods.

"If Apple let other people use its protocol, there would probably be much better competitors to AirPods out there," Zuckerberg said.

Meta's struggles with Apple's policies
Business impact

Zuckerberg also emphasized how Apple's iOS restrictions have hurt Meta's ability to compete on hardware and slashed its advertising revenue by a huge margin. He estimated that without these "random rules," Meta could potentially double its profits.

Zuckerberg predicts Apple's downfall due to lack of innovation
Future predictions

Zuckerberg warned that Apple's strategy of favoring its own products could eventually lead to its downfall.

He noted that the tech industry is highly dynamic and companies that fail to innovate for an extended period risk being overtaken by competitors.

"If you just don't do a good job for like 10 years, eventually, you're just going to get beat by someone," he said.