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Apple’s diversity policies and partnership with Openi will become fire from conservative organizations at his annual shareholder meeting, as the iPhone manufacturer is held against corporate activism after the election of Donald Trump as the US President.
Investors in a $ 3.7tn company will vote on Tuesday about a proposal from a national public policy research center trying to force Apple to abolish its diversity, equality and involvement policies (DEI). A conservative non-profit group claims that the recent judgments of the Supreme Court in the United States are leaving a company exposed to potential lawsuits around Policy Dei.
Separate shareholder resolution requires a report on how Apple Provides an “ethical” artificial intelligence strategy. The proposal warns that Apple’s partnership with Openi could create privacy of data and security risks.
The voting on two shareholder proposals comes because contracts in AI space come under two -sided supervision, and as corporate peers such as Meta and Google Drop progressive policies, while they make an overture to a new American administration.
Apple opposes both proposals. It is unlikely that it will pass, mainly because its largest shareholders – Black and Vanguard – have distanced themselves from the political activism of shareholders.
Such proposals can have an effect. In January, Costco shareholders predominantly rejected a similar Dei proposal from the NCPPR. Nineteen Republican state prosecutors, then wrote to the company, urging her to end politics.
Apple Tim Cook Executive Director has Trump -directed Over many years, he stood out on his inauguration. The company is exposed to political tensions between Washington and Beijing, and major technological companies also hope that the President could force the EU to give up regulatory implementation.
The NCPPR proposal on Tuesday targets Apple’s “supplier diversity”, his general practice of promotion and employment, employment of vice presidents for the involvement and diversity and donations of the Dei support organizations.
The iPhone Committee said that the proposal “was inappropriately trying to limit Apple’s ability to manage his own ordinary business operations, people and teams and business strategies.”
Meta, Google, Amazon, Walmart, McDonald’s and Target are among US companies who have returned Dei policies in the face of hostility from Trump’s administration and reinforced conservative movement.
Although the proposals of shareholders are inexplicable, they can force companies to answer political questions. 2022, a proposal for Apple, which requires a racial capital audit, was adopted with the support of the majority shareholder, which prompted the company to publish new disclosure of diversity.
Meanwhile, a shareholder movement that targets Apple’s relationship with Opera echoes with criticism that has leveled Trump’s expense that reduces Tsar costs Elon Musk, who is also an antagonist EXECUTIVE Director Sam Altman.
If the data collected by opening of personal privacy or the material protected by copyright, then it could be the risk of Apple shareholders, said the national legal and political center in its petition.
“The proposal is not focused on any problems with Apple Intelligence,” said the Apple Committee, referring to new AI features for mobile devices, in the application last month in response to a proposal. “Instead, it focuses its criticism on the Openi, a Chatgpt developer, an independent service that Apple users can decide to approach.”
In December, Microsoft faced three shareholder proposals related to AI at his annual meeting. No one was adopted, but the one who submitted the NLPC who was similar to Apple’s proposal received 36 percent support from Microsoft shareholders.
The technological giant based in Seattlu was sued in January for allegedly detecting data on clients from Linkedin, one of his branches, for training AI program. NLPC said the lawsuit shows that we are “proven right.”
Apple’s proposal for the NLPC is likely to face the skepticism of investors, said Jamie Bonham, head of the manager of the Neri asset manager Nee Investments, who has about $ 12.5 billion under the management.
Apple, he said, has no history of privacy like some of his rivals. “I don’t know that Apple is a particularly appropriate target for that,” Bonham said about AI proposal, but he added that he did not decide that the company would vote on AGM.
Additional Cristine Criddle Reporting in San Francisco
