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Adam Tooze: How Apple Became the World’s Largest Company

The tech giant crossed a major threshold this past week with a $3 trillion valuation.

By , a deputy editor at Foreign Policy.
The Apple logo is seen on a window of the company's store in Bangkok.
The Apple logo is seen on a window of the company's store in Bangkok.
The Apple logo is seen on a window of the company’s store in Bangkok on March 5, 2021. MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP via Getty Images

Apple reached a valuation of $3 trillion this past week, making it the first company to ever cross that threshold (it crossed that line last year but only briefly). As a designer and manufacturer of technology products, Apple has become ubiquitous in our culture. But the company is also worthy of consideration as a macroeconomic and political actor in its own right.

Cameron Abadi is a deputy editor at Foreign Policy. Twitter: @CameronAbadi

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