News from the IT community on October 23: At around 22:33 on October 22, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck Baqing County, Nagqu City, Tibet, causing significant casualties. Apple's new CEO, John Ternus ( John Ternus ), posted on Weibo today announcing that the company will donate to support the organizations conducting rescue work in the area.
The earthquake disaster in Naqu City is heartbreaking. Apple Donations will be made to support organizations carrying out rescue work locally to provide assistance to the affected communities. heartbreaking to see the damage from the earthquake in Apple will make a donation to support organizations responding on the ground.
IT has learned that yesterday, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake occurred in Baqing County, Nagqu City, Tibet. Surveillance footage shows that the cameras shook violently, items inside the houses fell to the ground, and people rushed outdoors to seek safety.
According to CCTV News, as of 4:30 today, disaster relief supplies allocated at the central, autonomous region, city, and county levels have gradually arrived at the disaster areas. These supplies include 1,000 sets of prefabricated houses, 3,239 tents, 2,821 folding beds, 4,280 quilts, 200 stoves, 100 mattresses, 2,000 sets of cotton-padded clothes and trousers, 1,760 military overcoats, 4 generators, 1,000 hand-cranked solar-powered flashlights, 1,000 head-mounted outdoor lighting lamps, and 694 Tibetan robes.
For further reading: John Ternus officially took over as Apple's CEO from Tim Cook on September 1, 2026, and also joined the Apple Board of Directors; Cook was then appointed as the Executive Chairman of the Board. Ternus is 51 years old this year, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania, and joined Apple in 2001. He has held various positions including member of the product design team, Vice President of Hardware Engineering, and Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering. Prior to that, he was responsible for overseeing the hardware engineering work for products such as iPhone, iPad, Mac, and AirPods.
Cook served as Apple's CEO for 15 years, during which time Apple launched two entirely new product categories: Apple Watch and AirPods. The company's market value grew from approximately $350 billion to around $4 trillion. Upon taking office, Ternus faced challenges such as enhancing the competitiveness of products in the field of artificial intelligence and addressing supply chain issues.
This is not the first time Apple has announced donations in response to disasters in China. After the 6.2 magnitude earthquake in Jishishan County, Linxia Prefecture, Gansu Province in December 2023, then Apple CEO Tim Cook issued a statement expressing his intention to donate to support local rescue and reconstruction efforts; in 2014 following the Lushan earthquake in Yunnan, Apple donated a total of 10 million RMB to the China Poverty Alleviation Foundation and Mercy China; and in 2013 after the Ya'an earthquake, Apple donated 50 million RMB and provided Apple equipment to some schools in the affected areas.
In August 2026, after a disaster caused by a mudslide on the Nepalese side in Jilong County, Shigatse City, Tibet, Cook also stated that Apple would donate to support local rescue efforts and post-disaster reconstruction work.
According to the official determination of the China Earthquake Network, a magnitude 7.0 earthquake occurred at 22:33 on October 22 in Baqing County, Nagqu City, Tibet (latitude 32.40 degrees north, longitude 93.79 degrees east), with a focal depth of 10 kilometers. Following the earthquake, the Office of the State Council's Earthquake Relief Command and the Ministry of Emergency Management activated a national earthquake disaster emergency response level four, which was later upgraded to level three, and dispatched working groups to the affected area for guidance.
As of the morning of October 23, the earthquake has caused 16 deaths and dozens of injuries. Rescue efforts are ongoing, including the search and rescue of survivors, treatment of the wounded, and the relocation of affected civilians.
