Amazon Exec’s AirPod Gaffe Is More Gross Than You Think

Amazon Exec’s AirPod Gaffe Is More Gross Than You Think

One of the more popular takeaways from Amazon’s big hardware event Thursday was Dave Limp, the company’s Senior Vice President of Devices and Services, caught wearing an Apple AirPod during an interview.

How could a company representative who just moments earlier announced an AirPod competitor be caught in such a gaffe? It turns out he was just using Bloomberg’s equipment so he could actually hear the interviewer’s questions.

Many assumed the mistake was the fault of an off-screen corporate handler not doing their job properly. Being shown using your competitor’s product after revealing your company’s alternative is not a great look, there’s no doubt about that. But it turns out this isn’t a case of corporate executives being clueless, or public relations personnel dropping the ball.

However, tech analyst Carolina Milanesi, who was interviewed by Bloomberg right after Dave Limp, pointed out that the AirPod, which she was also required to wear, was used by the camera crew to provide a direct feed to the interviewer’s questions.

It’s not hard to imagine that Amazon’s PR team requested an invisible earpiece for Limp once they realised what gear Bloomberg’s crew was using, but the interview was undoubtedly scheduled well in advance, and given the demand for Limp’s attention after all of Amazon’s reveals yesterday, there presumably was no time to set him up with an alternative.

It’s a case of poor timing more than anything; not an embarrassing gaffe for Amazon by any stretch of the imagination. More embarrassing might actually be the fact that Bloomberg requires guests to share the same AirPod? I don’t care how many boxes of alcohol wipes you go through, if it’s something that’s been in someone else’s ear, it’s not going anywhere near mine. Does Clorox make disinfecting cotton swabs soaked in bleach?