Chinese suppliers would clamor to work with Apple because its production demands and the number of products it sold could help manufacturers build their businesses. Cook’s operations team would use their demand to Apple’s advantage, hammering suppliers for lower prices than they offered anyone else in the market. The suppliers often agreed to the onerous terms, knowing that they could learn cutting-edge manufacturing techniques from Apple’s engineers and then market those capabilities to other consumer electronics companies eager to catch up to Apple in product design. The dynamic deepened
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