Apple is a multinational technology company which supports Israel and US imperialism. Apple has offices (which it plans to expand) in Cambridge and is among the corporate and university behemoths buying up real estate and driving up housing and living costs in the city, driving out working-class community members who are no longer able to afford to continue living there.

Support for Israel

Apple has poured hundreds of millions of dollars into the Israeli economy through its repeated acquisitions of Israeli tech companies including: Anobit (2011), PrimeSense (2013), LinX (2015), Emotient (2016), RealFace (2017), and Camerai (2020). After buying these companies, Apple integrates the technologies they have developed into Apple products. For example, Apple's 2017 acquisition of RealFace allowed Apple to integrate RealFace's facial recognition software into Apple products, including the iPhone X.

Apple maintains a research and development facility in Herzliya (North Tel Aviv), Israel. The facility opened in 2015 and Apple recently signed a new lease to expand the premises in order "afford its engineers more work space." Business Insider reported in 2016  that Apple was developing hardware for its (at that time forthcoming) iPhone 8 at the Herzliya facility.

Support for US Imperialism

Apple has worked with the Pentagon to develop wearable military devices for the US military, as part of a consortium called "FlexTech Alliance" (announced in 2015) that includes companies and universities. According to a news report, "The consortium is composed of well over 100 organizations, with key partners including Apple, Boeing, GE, GM, Lockheed Martin, Motorola Mobility, and Qualcomm, among many others. Partnering universities include Cornell, Harvard, Stanford, NYU, and MIT, also among many others." A DoD press release states that the aim of the "FlexTech Alliance" initiative is to "accelerate military technology development cycles and focus on critical Department of Defense needs while also creating new commercial opportunities…backed by companies as diverse as Apple and Lockheed Martin and major research universities including Stanford and MIT," the FlexTech alliance "represents the next chapter in the long-standing public-private partnerships between the Pentagon and tech community."

Driving Displacement in Cambridge, MA

Apple has offices in Kendall Square and is planning to expand its physical presence in Kendall the coming years. According to the Boston Globe, Apple employs 200 people in Massachusetts as of April 2021 and "plans to add several hundred jobs in Massachusetts by 2026." Through its expansion and the housing needs of its highly paid workforce, Apple contributes to driving up housing and living costs in Cambridge, and driving out working-class community members, disproportionately Black and Brown, who are not able to compete with tech employees for limited housing.

(Image source: here)

8 links

1. Association/Collaboration – MIT

Apple and MIT are both members of the Pentagon-funded consortium FlexTech Alliance, announced in 2015. A DoD press release states that the aim of the initiative is to "accelerate military technology development cycles and focus on critical Department of Defense needs while also creating new commercial opportunities." The DoD press release also states that "backed by companies as diverse as Apple and Lockheed Martin and major research universities including Stanford and MIT," the FlexTech alliance "represents the next chapter in the long-standing public-private partnerships between the Pentagon and tech community."

2. Association/Collaboration – Harvard University

Apple and Harvard are both members of the Pentagon-funded consortium FlexTech Alliance, announced in 2015. A DoD press release states that the aim of the initiative is to "accelerate military technology development cycles and focus on critical Department of Defense needs while also creating new commercial opportunities," and that the FlexTech alliance "represents the next chapter in the long-standing public-private partnerships between the Pentagon and tech community."

3. Association/Collaboration – Boeing

Apple and Boeing are both members of the Pentagon-funded consortium FlexTech Alliance, announced in 2015. A DoD press release states that the aim of the initiative is to "accelerate military technology development cycles and focus on critical Department of Defense needs while also creating new commercial opportunities,” and that the FlexTech alliance "represents the next chapter in the long-standing public-private partnerships between the Pentagon and tech community."

4. Association/Collaboration – Lockheed Martin

Apple and Lockheed Martin are both members of the Pentagon-funded consortium FlexTech Alliance, announced in 2015. A DoD press release states that the aim of the FlexTech Alliance is to "accelerate military technology development cycles and focus on critical Department of Defense needs while also creating new commercial opportunities." The DoD press release further notes that "backed by companies as diverse as Apple and Lockheed Martin and major research universities including Stanford and MIT," the FlexTech alliance "represents the next chapter in the long-standing public-private partnerships between the Pentagon and tech community."

5. Association/Collaboration – General Electric

Apple and General Electric are both members of the Pentagon-funded consortium FlexTech Alliance, announced in 2015. A DoD press release states that the aim of the initiative is to "accelerate military technology development cycles and focus on critical Department of Defense needs while also creating new commercial opportunities,” and that the FlexTech alliance "represents the next chapter in the long-standing public-private partnerships between the Pentagon and tech community."

6. Association/Collaboration – Wellesley College

Apple is one of eight corporations and organizations which Wellesley College highlights on a webpage entitled "Recruiting at Wellesley."

7. Financial Support – Tatelman Family Foundation

As of fiscal year 2011, The Susan and Barry Tatelman Foundation held shares in Apple valued at $12,150 (fair market value). The Susan and Barry Tatelman Foundation stopped reporting corporate share holdings on its financials after FY11, so it is unclear whether the foundation still holds shares in Apple or has since sold them.

8. Association/Collaboration – Tufts University

Tufts University hosted Apple to present to Tufts students at its 2021 Art & Design Career Fair.

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