Topline
A top Apple executive with a reputation for helping the company cut costs has left Apple after 22 years, multiple news outlets reported Thursday, after a TikTok video of him joking about fondling “big-breasted women” earned 1.3 million views.
The Apple logo is displayed at the Apple Store June 17, 2015 on Fifth Avenue in New York City.
Key Facts
Tony Blevins—Apple’s vice president of procurement—appeared in a TikTok posted earlier this month by the popular creator Daniel Mac, whose videos involve asking the owners of expensive cars what they do for a living.
Blevins, who was driving an out-of-production Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren that can fetch six figures, told Mac in the now-viral video, “I have rich cars, play golf and fondle big-breasted women, but I take weekends and major holidays off.”
The line appears to be a reference to the 1981 film Arthur, in which an eccentric heir to a million dollar fortune says, “I race cars, I play tennis, I fondle women, but I have weekends off, and I am my own boss”—but Blevins appeared to add in the “big-breasted” line himself.
Blevins confirmed the event to Bloomberg, saying he wanted to apologize to anyone who was offended by his “mistaken attempt at humor.”
Apple did not immediately respond to Forbes’ request for comment, but confirmed to Bloomberg Thursday Blevins is no longer with the company.
Key Background
Blevins’ real job involved working with Apple’s suppliers to negotiate low prices for the parts the company uses to make its products. He was described in a 2020 Wall Street Journal feature as one of Apple’s “most important executives” who was responsible for saving the company hundreds of millions of dollars through his shrewd and sometimes sharp-elbowed tactics. Blevins was integral to Apple’s historically strong operating margins and smooth supply chains, a key component of the business. Apple opened an internal probe into the TikTok video after employees reported it to the human resources department, leading the company to remove him as leader of several hundred employees and six direct reports, Bloomberg reported, citing unnamed sources. Apple workers were reportedly frustrated by Blevins’ comments, considering other executives at the company claim to support improving diversity and women’s empowerment.
Further Reading
Top Apple Executive Is Leaving After Making Crude Remarks in TikTok Video (Bloomberg)
Jobs, Cook, Ive—Blevins? The Rise of Apple’s Cost Cutter (Wall Street Journal)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/carlieporterfield/2022/09/29/apple-executive-reportedly-leaving-company-after-making-sexual-joke-in-viral-tiktok/