Recap: Mark Zuckerberg's offensive against Apple hasn't materialized out of thin air – Meta has been locked in a years-long battle with the tech giant. A major point of contention is the 30% cut Apple takes on transactions through its App Store, which Meta sees as an arbitrary "tax." Meta has also been hamstrung by Apple's recent anti-tracking features on iOS devices, which have dealt a significant blow to its data-driven ad-targeting capabilities.
In a recent podcast interview with Joe Rogan, Zuckerberg went after rival Apple, accusing the iPhone maker of resting on its laurels and hamstringing competition with restrictive policies. "They haven't invented anything great in a while," he stated bluntly. "It's like Steve Jobs invented the iPhone, and now they're just kind of sitting on it 20 years later."
He also warned companies that don't keep pushing new boundaries "eventually you're just going to get beat by someone."
He argued that lackluster iPhone upgrades are causing people to hold onto their devices longer, putting a dent in Apple's sales. To make up for the shortfall, Zuckerberg claimed Apple is nickel-and-diming consumers and third-party developers.
"They do it by basically squeezing people...having this 30% tax on developers by getting you to buy more peripherals and things that plug into it," he said, referencing Apple's commission on in-app purchases and add-ons like AirPods.
But Zuckerberg reserved his harshest criticism for Apple's strict control over connectivity with iPhones and other devices. He groused that Apple uses security and privacy as an excuse to hamstring rivals from plugging into its ecosystem. "It's insecure because you didn't build any security into it. And then now you're using that as a justification for why only your product can connect in an easy way," he ranted.
The CEO provided a personal example – his company's struggles to get their new Ray-Ban smart glasses to integrate smoothly with iPhones. He claimed if Meta could bypass Apple's "random rules" around hardware integration, it could double their profits.
To be fair, Zuckerberg didn't lay all the blame at Apple's feet. He acknowledged the fast pace of the tech sector, saying that the good news is it's just "super dynamic" and things are constantly "getting invented." He warned that any company failing to innovate risks getting "beat by someone" else.
He also acknowledged Apple's latest headset, the Vision Pro, represented a rare new product category for the company in recent years. But he said with a dismissive shrug that he heard "it's really good for watching movies."
All in all, Zuckerberg's comments highlight the growing tensions between the two tech giants. Apple's long-standing prioritization of security and privacy has increasingly put it at odds with adtech companies like Meta that want unfettered access to user data.
Zuckerberg slams Apple for not "inventing anything great in a while"
