Apple “Batterygate” scandal – Case
StudyArtificial Intelligence Assignment
The biggest scandal to hit Apple in recent years is undoubtedly the
‘batterygate’ of December 2017.
This started when a Reddit user reported that a software update
had reduced the performance of their iPhone but that this had
corrected itself when they replaced the battery. This post led to a lot
of press coverage, with some commentators suggesting that Apple
was trying to force users to upgrade by deliberately slowing devices
as they aged. Tim Cook issued a statement on the matter a week
after the news broke, confirming that the software was designed to
throttle performance but claiming that the intent was only to prevent
unexpected shutdowns, which could affect devices with older
batteries. The company offered a discount on battery replacements
as a gesture of goodwill for those affected.
Source: Shi (2018) “Batterygate: A Complete History of Apple
Throttling iPhones”, https://www.ifixit.com/News/11208/batterygatetimeline [accessed on 17/01/2023].