SILICON, USA: TECHNOLOGY MADE IN AMERICA

Ever tried to buy a computer made entirely of US parts and assembled here? You can’t. But here are 46 companies making high-quality tech products in the United States.

- SASCHA SEGAN

“Designed by Apple in California.” The tag is in every iPhone box, asserting the primacy of thousands of minds in Cupertino feverishly inventing the latest technology. But once they come up with the plans for an AirTag or an iMac, those get shipped overseas. It’s been decades since Silicon Valley, the heart of American computing, made many of its own devices.

A recent Reuters-Ipsos survey shows that Americans want to buy more USmade products, as long as they don’t have to pay more for them. The poll found that 69% of people said an item being US-made was at least somewhat important, but that 63% wouldn’t be willing to pay more than a 10% premium for something to be American-made.

Manufacturing jobs tend to be good jobs; at least, they’re better than just selling imported products. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “assemblers and fabricators” earn an average of $37,550 per year, while “retail sales workers” make $29,010.

“Our nation is falling behind its biggest competitors on research and development (R&D), manufacturing, and training. It has never been more important for us to invest in strengthening our infrastructure and competitiveness, and in creating the good-paying, union jobs of the future,” the Biden administration stated in a recent executive order.

Manufacturing is also about national autonomy, tech leaders told us. US factories are subject to US laws, and they’re physically proximate to US customers. Even when our products are made in allied countries, such as Mexico or South Korea, we lose the ability to affect everything from working conditions to consumer rights when we cross borders.