Apple’s CEO held a virtual meeting with all company executives and employees.
Apple CEO Tim Cook conducted a virtual company-wide meeting addressing the current COVID-19 situation and associated plans to return to work. In a new report, Bloomberg explains details of the meeting.
During the meeting, Cook promised that Apple will continue to invest in research and development in a ” truly significant ” way, despite the current ” uncertain and stressful ” environment caused by COVID-19. The CEO said:
If we stay focused on doing what we do best, if we continue to invest, if we manage the business wisely and make decisions collaboratively, if we take care of our teams, if our teams take care of their work, I see no reason to be anything but optimistic.
Cook was asked during the meeting about potential job cuts , and reiterated that Apple is focused on the long-term future, and will make short-term changes.
Cook also noted that the introduction of new products including the iPad Pro 2020 , the MacBook Air and the iPhone SE shows that ” the company is not allowing the pandemic to stop launching its products, ” reports Bloomberg.
It is not yet known when Apple employees will be able to return to their workplaces, but he said the company will likely implement measures such as temperature controls and social distancing when employees return to work.
Apple’s retail staff have started online training and virtual meetings have increased with a view to the reopening of stores, with the tech giant planning to reopen its first store in South Korea this weekend.
According to Cook, Apple has now purchased and donated over 30 million N95 masks to healthcare professionals around the world and has shipped over two million masks that it has designed.
Jeff Williams, Apple’s Chief Operating Officer, also said that the health crisis has made Apple’s work on health products more important, including the Apple Watch. Apple’s health development work isn’t “limited on the wrist “, but now many governments are partnering with Apple to bring ECG functionality to other countries .
Finally, Cook wanted to remember the story of Apple:
When I first joined Apple in 1998, the company responded to financial challenges with the release of the original iMac. The company launched the first iPad in 2010, immediately after the Great Recession, and claimed that the current plan is to exit the COVID-19 pandemic in a similar way.
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