Apple’s Tim Cook Warned of ‘Economic Apocalypse’ Over Taiwan Chip Links

A New York Times investigation has revealed that U.S. federal officials are sounding the alarm over Silicon Valley’s dependence on Taiwan. National security officials warned leaders at Apple, AMD, and Qualcomm that a Chinese blockade of the island could bring the U.S. tech industry “to its knees.”

What’s the big deal with Taiwan? The island produces 90 percent of the world’s high-end chips. While Taiwan has operated as a self-governing democracy and global semiconductor powerhouse for decades, Beijing continues to claim the island as a breakaway province that must eventually be reunited with mainland China.

Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent described the situation as a potential “economic apocalypse,” overstating that a failure in Taiwan would trigger the largest economic crisis since the Great Depression.

During a classified July 2023 briefing, CIA Director William J. Burns and Intelligence Director Avril Haines met with tech titans to warn that China’s military spending suggests a move on Taiwan by 2027. According to those familiar with the meeting, Apple CEO Tim Cook told officials afterward that he now “sleeps with one eye open.” That definitely will mess up your Apple Watch sleep score, Tim.

Despite the warnings, shifting production has been a catch-22 due to U.S. chips being 25 percent more expensive. However, recent arm-twisting from the Trump administration, which included the threat of 100 percent tariffs, has forced a change. Last summer, Tim Cook visited the Oval Office and promised to invest another $100 billion in the United States, supporting new domestic plants being built by TSMC in Arizona.

While the U.S. is on track to spend $200 billion on plants by 2030, the industry still struggles to balance profit margins with the reality that, if Taiwan is lost, the global economy would flounder.