Donald Trump is never shy about standing up for American workers.
This week, he made it loud and clear to one of the world’s biggest companies: Apple should be building its iPhones right here in the United States, not over in India.
At a business event in Doha, Qatar, President Trump shared that he had a “little problem” with Apple CEO Tim Cook.
What was the problem?
Trump said he told Cook flat out, “I don’t want you building in India. Build them in the USA.”
Trump’s message was pretty simple: American companies should invest in America first.
Right now, Apple’s been shifting a lot of its manufacturing away from China and into India.
According to the Hindustan Times, about 20% of all iPhones are already made in India, with more on the way. Last year alone, Apple assembled $22 billion worth of iPhones in India, a 60% jump from the year before.
Why the big move to India?
Well, Apple wants to avoid the headaches of doing business in China—things like tariffs, trade disputes, and, let’s be honest, a government that isn’t exactly friendly to freedom or free markets.
India, on the other hand, has been rolling out the red carpet for Apple, offering incentives and cutting deals to bring in more jobs.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi even made Apple’s success in India part of his “Make in India” campaign to boost local manufacturing.
But Trump says enough is enough.
He pointed out that India still slaps sky-high tariffs on American-made products. He even claimed India offered to drop those tariffs as part of ongoing trade talks, though India hasn’t confirmed that yet.
For Trump, this isn’t just about iPhones—it’s about a bigger vision for the country.
“We’ve treated Apple very good. They built in China for years. Now they’re running off to India? I’m not okay with that,” Trump told the crowd in Doha.
From Trump’s point of view, it’s common sense.
Why should Apple send American technology, jobs, and billions of dollars overseas when those same investments could create good-paying jobs right here at home?
Especially when the U.S. has given Apple plenty of tax breaks and market advantages over the years.
Some in the tech world say Trump’s tough talk could backfire, making it harder for American companies to compete globally.
Others say the U.S. simply doesn’t have the infrastructure or cheap labor to assemble iPhones at the scale Apple needs.
A columnist from India Today even speculated that Trump’s remarks were just a “negotiation tactic” to pressure India into better trade deals.
Some Indian commentators accused Trump of trying to hold back India’s rise as a global tech power.
But supporters of Trump’s America-first approach see it differently. They say it’s about time someone told Big Tech to put their money where their mouth is.
Apple, like other giant corporations, is quick to market itself as an American company when it benefits them—but when it comes to manufacturing? They’d rather send those jobs to the cheapest bidder.
Folks in the heartland know this story all too well.
How many towns have been hollowed out after factories shut down and moved overseas? How many families have seen good jobs replaced by part-time gigs or unemployment?
Will Apple listen? Hard to say.
So far, neither Apple nor Tim Cook has responded publicly to Trump’s comments, and India’s leaders have stayed pretty quiet, too.
But one thing’s for sure: Trump is setting the stage for a bigger fight over where American companies build their products—and who benefits from those decisions.
This article was written with the assistance of AI. Please verify information and consult additional sources as needed.
