(Illustration: Bob Al-Greene)
“Designed by Apple in California.” The tag is in every iPhone box, asserting the primacy of thousands of minds in Cupertino feverishly inventing the latest technology. But once they come up with the plans for an AirTag or an iMac, those get shipped overseas. It’s been decades since Silicon Valley, the heart of American computing, made many of its own devices.
A recent Reuters-Ipsos survey shows that Americans want to buy more US-made products, as long as they don’t have to pay more for them. The poll found that 69% of people said an item being US-made was at least somewhat important, but that 63% wouldn’t be willing to pay more than a 10% premium for something to be American-made.