When money is your god, there is only one way to be happy by some definitions (sociopathic perhaps): exploit others to have more wealth and power.
AI is a potentially powerful tool for exploitation. And that alone explains to me why there is tremendous market forces and investment behind it. The vast majority of the wealthy are not involved in investing for altruistic reasons. They may want to change and reshape the world, but not primarily to make the lives of ordinary people better or easier, that is only a side-effect at best, a disingenuous marketing slogan at worst.

Apple was late to the party to smart phones, tablets, apps, mp3 players.

I think it's very difficult to predict the winner of the market race purely on who was first or biggest in the early phase of growth.

The future of economics is people who have money will participate in the economy by owning the means of production (AI). And those without a stake are going to be excluded from further participation. The ultimate rift between rich and poor. Even the security to protect the property and safety of the rich will be automated, so even bootlicker security jobs aren't going to be available to the working class. It's about time for cops to wake up and realize what side of the rich-poor divide the economics of technology is going to force them onto.

I like the texture but they taste like finger paint.

Being tied to an online ecosystem is what made these convenient for most people.

I would like the open source equivalent. Where is a Ubuntu touch or Firefox Mobile (or netbook equivalent) that lets any group of people host the backend infrastructure for free or for a fee.

What I want is best of both offline ownership and online convenience. Fully managed laptops where I am also the administrator and policy master for the entire household.

That makes no sense because fresh peeled bananas are immediately consumed.

The major grocer chains tend to stock fruit that was picked too early. Often fruit is harvested before the season is in full swing and heavily advertised, but it is usually not fully ripe and thus a waste of your money.
Sadly, most people don't know how to buy fruit. And most stores would rather move poor quality inventory as cheaply as possible than stock fruit that might be overripe in a few days.
Even with the corners they cut, the typical store's produce tends to be more expensive than a restaurant wholesaler or farmers stand.

I need to know when it is time to make banana bread.

I have no doubt that China is serious. I've even been there a few times to work in a Shenzhen sweat shop.

But I don't agree with the philosophy driving their leadership. Which a position irrelevant to a hypothetical serious vs. not-serious axis.

I've seen enough 80's action movies in my day to also recognize that particular formula for a lazy plot.

That's why it's good practice. Plus hurricanes and storm surge too.

Also, terraforming a few square kilometers of Saharah is something we should do before we talk about a human visit to Mars.

Being rich and well-connected is the real way to have freedom in the Soviet Union, Communist China, or in many ways the capitalist West.

Evil across the board. Authoritarian one-party systems are evil. And ignorant colonizers are evil. The human race can do much better than China or the US. Aim higher

From 1952 to 1972, you needed special authorization to travel within the DDR itself beyond 100 km from your home. Later you could travel to neighboring countries (all Warsaw Pact members) with a passport and permission from your local police department.

Individual liberty is at best inconvient and at worst a threat to the state. Authoritarians oppose any idealogy that suggests that you can speak as you please to the government, work where you please, marry who you please, travel as you please, and generally puts individual rights above the needs of the state.
The people that run the world operate contrary to the optimistic propaganda that I was raised on as an American child.

Commercial speech can take a back seat if there is some public interest, health, safety, or security concern. Generally the more limited the scope the more restrictions are permissible.