Can someone explain to me why is Apple making this type of stuff?
2) Because they have the spare cash to spin this up very quickly.
3) Because they want to help (or at a minimum, look like they're helping).
Are there any reasons why they _shouldn't_ be making this kind of stuff? Other companies also meet all 3 of those conditions, and I think we should be glad (note: I'm saying 'glad' and not 'grateful') that any of them are doing this.
These shields are easy to manufacture. They're ideal to rapidly produce, cheaply and at scale. Compared to normal shields in the industry they're no-frills, which is perfectly fine, as right now we just need volume.
Lot's of companies could do this. I'm glad Apple is giving it a go.
I caught a small glimpse of GE fading away when I worked there.
Be 'glad' when a company does something that helps society even if there are selfish motives. Be 'grateful' when a company does something that helps society when there's no obvious selfish motive.
Hope that makes sense.
They're going to make a million face shields this week, and one million per week thereafter, with the intention to produce them above US demand levels to help other nations. I'd say it qualifies as a lot more than looking like they're helping.
One notable problem during the pandemic is the shortage of personal protective equipment -- sometimes called PPE. This equipment is critical for people to prevent getting infected and infecting others. Organizations with large manufacturing capacities, such as Apple, are looking to help by leveraging their supply chains, manufacturing base, and other talents, by manufacturing PPE for medical workers or even for normal people like you!
EDIT: Octoth0rpe posted at the same exact time, lol.
Like many companies, they are looking at their skillset in terms of 'how can we use this to help in a pandemic', and every company doing that should be given credit for it.
Because contrary to the HN cliché, not all companies are solely motivated by filling shareholder pockets and being evil.
See also: The hundreds of other companies making, importing, and distributing medical supplies at their own expense.
We can now terminate this useless thread.