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Good evening, “What were you doing when you were 14?” seems to be the question of the day. And justifiably so, given what we witnessed on a hot summer evening in Jaipur yesterday. Bihar and Rajasthan Royals opener Vaibhav Suryawanshi, all of 14, created history by becoming the youngest-ever centurion in men’s T20 cricket with a six-laden hundred off a mere 35 deliveries. Much like everyone else, I was in awe of the talent this kid possesses. While effortlessly taking on the veteran international Ishant Sharma and scoring 28 runs off that over is the obvious highlight, there was an inside-out, lofted shot over cover off another current international, Washington Sundar, that pretty much confirmed Suryawanshi’s range and ability. That shot brought up his 50 off just 17 deliveries. And then, a couple of overs later, came something even better — a six off the in-form Prasidh Krishna, where he cleared his front foot away and went at Krishna’s length delivery clean over long-off. The shot of the match, by a country mile. Oof. 📥 Before I start the edition, some of you have written to me that this newsletter is going either to your ‘Promotions’ inbox on Gmail, or to ‘Junk’ or ‘Spam’. If that is the case, please move the email from Promotions → Primary or mark it as Not Spam. On that note, let’s dive in 👇🏽
📝 The Debrief
Why Apple is going all-in on India
Last week, the Financial Times reported that tech giant Apple is seeking to double the production of its iPhones in India, and in the process, shift production of all iPhones sold in the US by the end of next year. In business strategy terms, this represents a pivot. The move comes amid U.S. President Donald Trump’s erratic and inconsistent trade war, with his so-called “reciprocal tariffs” disrupting the global economic order and also shaving a whopping $700 billion off Apple’s market capitalisation. This is undoubtedly a significant step and aligns with the Cupertino-based firm’s strategy to diversify its supply chain beyond China, where it has been assembling iPhones since 2007. Growing importance: According to an estimate by Counterpoint Research, India accounted for around 20% of iPhone production intended for the US in 2024. In absolute terms, India assembled approximately 12 million of the 60 million iPhones Apple sells in the US each year. Apple has prioritised India as a production base after initially foraying into assembling iPhones back in 2017. However, over the last three years, and particularly since the pandemic, Apple has shifted its assembly base to India, which now accounts for 15% of overall iPhone production, equivalent to around 30-40 million units, according to analyst estimates. A majority of this increase has come from the government’s production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, which has resulted in iPhones accounting for nearly 70% of India’s overall smartphone exports in January. Recently, the company was reported to have airlifted 600 tonnes of iPhones from India to the US to beat Trump’s tariff deadline. Not easy: However, it won’t come easily. Last week, The Information reported that Apple is facing difficulties shipping manufacturing equipment from China to India. The report, citing direct sources, highlighted an instance from earlier this year where Chinese authorities “refused to allow” the export of “machinery to India that Apple needed for the upcoming iPhone trial production.” The report added that the company had to use workarounds, including setting up a front company in Southeast Asia to purchase the machines before shipping them to a Foxconn-operated factory in India.
✍️ From our newsroom Sending Pakistan a message: The tragic Pahalgam attack last week, which claimed 26 lives, appears to be a calculated move by Pakistan aimed at disrupting peace in Kashmir, intensifying communal tensions in India, and destabilising the nation. By targeting the tourism-driven economic recovery, the attack threatens to foster renewed alienation if not addressed with care. While the Opposition backed the government, it voiced concerns regarding notable lapses in security and intelligence. Nevertheless, as our contributing editor Neerja Choudhary highlights here, the most profound response emerged from within Kashmir, where residents unified with the rest of India to condemn the violence through protests and symbolic acts. This incident could alter political narratives across the country, potentially benefitting the BJP in elections. However, as Choudhary notes, it also presents an opportunity for national unity, “in a country united by grief, anger, and resolve, and the leadership of the day has the chance to convert this crisis into an uplifting opportunity.”
🔎 Need to know
Hot seat: Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has secured a new term after guiding the Liberal Party to a remarkable victory. Pierre Poilievre of the Conservatives, who was once the leading candidate, acknowledged his defeat. Carney’s campaign centered largely on uniting Canada through an anti-Trump message.
Disruptions: Nearly 462 flights scheduled to take off from New Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport were delayed on Monday due to adverse weather conditions and runway repairs. This number accounted for nearly 70% of departing flights from the airport, while around 50% of arriving flights were also delayed. To the skies, at last: Amazon launched the first 27 satellites for its Project Kuiper broadband internet constellation from Florida, a move that will spark a rivalry with Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Starlink. Amazon plans to send over 3,000 such satellites into orbit as part of a $10 billion effort to provide internet access to consumers from space.
🎙️Expresso Playlist!
In today’s Playlist, I’ll recommend a fascinating episode from our in-house podcast, Our Own Devices, where Amagi CEO Baskar Subramanian joins host Nandagopal Rajan to discuss the nuts and bolts of content streaming at scale and how it has impacted consumer behaviour over the years.
✋🏽 One last thing
I’ll leave you with this fantastic excerpt from journalist Keach Hagey’s forthcoming book The Optimist in Vanity Fair that delves into OpenAI CEO Sam Altman’s political ambitions — from the Governor of California to … (I won’t tell you!)
That’s all from me today. Thank you so much for reading this edition. If you enjoy the Evening Expresso, tell your friends to subscribe to the newsletter. You can do so by signing up for the Morning Expresso. Additionally, you can reach me via email for tips, feedback, or simply to say hello! 😀 Until tomorrow, Venkat Ananth |
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