Tim Cook’s powerful commencement address still included an iPhone plug

Apple CEO Tim Cook gave an excellent commencement speech to the 2015 graduating class at George Washington University this weekend.

While it includes some powerful points – meeting segregationist governor George Wallace, Cook’s youthful admiration for Martin Luther King Jr. and RFK, the importance of accessibility and positive action – there’s also a cheeky plug for the iPhone:

They asked me to make a standard announcement – you’ve heard this before – about silencing your phones. Those of you with an iPhone, just place it in Silent Mode. If you don’t have an iPhone, please pass it to the center aisle, Apple has a world-class recycling program…

Cook went on to powerfully argue that “equality is a right” and offered advice that is worth listening to, even if you graduated a long time ago:

You have to find your North Star. And that means choices. Some are easy. Some are hard. And some will make you question everything.

Twenty years after my visit to Washington, I met someone who made me question everything. Who upended all my assumptions in the very best way. That was Steve Jobs…

And if you’re still looking for inspiration this afternoon after you’ve watched Cook’s address, there’s always Jobs’ own striking speech at Stanford from 2005:

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➤ GW Commencement 2015 Tim Cook [George Washington University]

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