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Mark Zuckerberg Slams Apple for Lack of Innovation, Squeezing People for Profit—Is He Wrong?

Joey Frenette

Published: January 20, 2025 12:20 pm

Meta Platforms (NASDAQ:META) top boss, Mark Zuckerberg, has always been quite the vocal critic of iPhone maker and long-time tech rival Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL). With the iPhone maker sagging into a correction to start 2025 over numerous concerns (China woes and Apple Intelligence’s failure to spark increased demand), it seems like as good a time as any to rub salt in the wounds of a firm that investors tend to turn away from at the beginning of most years.

In a recent sit down on Joe Rogan’s podcast, Zuckerberg had a lot of negative things to say about Apple, going as far as to slam the Cupertino-based giant for a “lack of innovation” and that it was “squeezing people” for money.

Indeed, this isn’t the first time Zuckerberg has slammed Apple, and it probably won’t be the last. While Apple bears and recent sellers of the stock may have similar views as Zuckerberg, I do think that such comments are not only overblown but wrong in some instances.

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Apple has no shortage of innovations

Apple may never be able to land a home run in the same way it did with the iPhone. That’s a high bar to pass. Recently, the company warned investors that its future products may never be as profitable as the iPhone.

Of course, it’s really hard to tell if a future innovation—think a pair of Apple augmented reality (AR) glasses—can stack up against the legendary iPhone. To some, AR glasses are the ultimate successor of smartphones. That said, we’re still a few years away from a lightweight, compact, practical, and perhaps most importantly, good-looking pair of AR glasses that’d cause us to leave our phones at home. Even if Apple seizes the AR opportunity at hand, topping the success of the iPhone is going to be hard to do.

Just because it’s going to be hard to find the next big seller after the iPhone doesn’t mean Apple isn’t going to give its best shot.

Indeed, innovating on the cutting edge is hard. And, at times, there can be big bumps (and the odd stumble) along the way. Though it may feel like it’s been a long time since we’ve had a brand-new gadget for the masses from Apple (the Apple Vision Pro seems like more of a niche product for a fortunate few), I do think it’s wrong to say the firm is lacking on the front of innovation.

Don’t discount the innovation you can’t see

When you compare every new innovation delivered by Apple to the iPhone, then sure, pretty much everything will look comparatively lacking.

Many of the most remarkable innovations are going on behind the scenes. Take the clinical Hearing Aid feature of the AirPods Pro 2. It’s a true innovation for many who are hard of hearing. And it could eliminate the stigma associated with having a hearing aid. Indeed, unlike other hearing aids on the market, AirPods just look cool. And though the hearing aid market may not be headed to zero overnight at the hands of AirPods, I do think that each iteration of the earbud could make it that much more disruptive.

Of course, these innovations target a nice market and may not be able to power shares of a more than $3 trillion company higher. However, as time progresses, I’d look for these more minor innovations to help contribute to a much larger one. Indeed, every AR advancement for Vision Pro could translate well once Apple has the know-how to shrink the form factor down to a pair of glasses.

Undoubtedly, Zuckerberg may view his own firm, Meta Platforms, as more innovative and more willing to take risks to control the platform of the future (the metaverse). With a pair of smart glasses already on the market, it certainly seems like Meta is ahead of its long-time rival. However, I think that only time will tell which company comes out as the better innovator.

Does being slow to market mean lacking in innovation?

Apple may be slower to market with its innovations than rivals (especially of late when it comes to AI and AR glasses), but being first does not necessarily mean being more innovative. I view being a first-mover to a nascent market as akin to being the first to show your hand in a game of cards. Is it such a good idea? History suggests it’s not, given Apple’s profound success in not being the first to market new gadgets like the smartphone.

Either way, it’s more about playing the long game rather than being the first to break new ground. Running past the finish line in first place means very little if it means the runner-up or third-place finisher releases a markedly better product.

If mixed-reality devices and hyper-personalized on-device AI wind up being a “winner takes most” type of market, perhaps the timing is less important than having the very best innovations at a price point that’s somewhat reasonable.

While the Vision Pro is far too expensive for most ($3,500 is way too hefty), I wouldn’t go as far as to say Apple is “squeezing” its users for profit. The device cost billions in R&D and while it may not yet be worth the sticker price for some, I do think it’s unfair to judge any firm on the first version of any new product.

With a rumored pair of smart glasses on the horizon (rumored for 2026 or 2027) and plenty of updates of Apple Intelligence and Siri around the corner, perhaps Apple will really have the opportunity to show the world it still has innovation in its veins.