Cobalt Red: How the Blood of the Congo Powers Our Lives

by Siddharth Kara

Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007, and Android smartphones were launched in 2008. Since that time, billions of smartphones have been sold, and each one of them requires a few grams of refined cobalt in their batteries. A similar eruption of gadgets took place in the tablet market. Apple launched the iPad in 2010, followed soon after by Samsung’s Galaxy Tab. Billions of tablets have since been sold, each of which requires up to thirty grams of cobalt in the battery. Add in laptops, e-scooters, e-bikes, and other rechargeable consumer electronic devices, and the aggregate amount of cobalt needed from all devices, save those with four or more tires, adds up to tens of thousands of tons each year.