Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer (9/12/25) – Special Kentucky Edition

Podcast: Mad Money w/ Jim Cramer
Host: Jim Cramer, CNBC
Air Date: September 12, 2025
Episode Theme:
Live from Corning’s flagship glass manufacturing plant in Harrodsburg, Kentucky, Jim Cramer hosts a special edition focused on the enduring power of American innovation, manufacturing, and the evolving supply chain partnerships between Apple and Corning. The episode features exclusive interviews with Tim Cook (CEO of Apple) and Wendell Weeks (Chairman/CEO of Corning), delving into the reshoring of high-tech manufacturing, Apple’s commitment to domestic investment, and Corning’s booming business beyond consumer electronics. Plus, Cramer’s regular segments on the week ahead, stock calls, and his signature Lightning Round.

Episode Overview

• Main Theme:
  American innovation and manufacturing resurgence, spotlighting Corning’s Kentucky facility – the new sole producer of glass for Apple’s iPhone and Apple Watch. Discussion ranges from the Apple–Corning partnership, U.S. supply chain challenges, and how these moves impact American jobs, technology leadership, and stock market dynamics.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. State of the Market & Upcoming Week (01:31–08:53)

• Market Recap:
  The S&P 500 has had five positive weeks out of the last six, defying September’s historic reputation for poor performance.
  • “Maybe today was a well-deserved breather for the bulls... We at Mad Money, however, are obviously going out with a bang as we find ourselves in Corning's Harrodsburg, Kentucky glass plant...” — Jim Cramer (01:31)
• Market Game Plan – Week Ahead:
  • Monday: Possible Paramount Skydance–Warner Brothers Discovery acquisition (hold for $20+ per share if involved).
  • Tuesday: Retail sales data; strong sales could complicate anticipated Fed interest rate cuts on Wednesday.
  • Wednesday: Cracker Barrel earnings; previous logo change backfired but potential for rebound.
  • Thursday: Olive Garden parent Darden and FedEx report; Lennar (homebuilder) also due.
  • Friday: Quiet, but volatility remains possible.

2. Stock Callers (Lightning Preview) (08:53–10:00)

• IBM: Cramer bullish, recommends adding on weakness.
• AMD: Strong leadership under Lisa Su, plenty of room in the market for both AMD and Nvidia. Buys at $158 justified.
  • “I think individual companies will continue to dominate this market even though next week could be tricky.” — Jim Cramer (08:54)

Exclusive Interview: Tim Cook (Apple) & Wendell Weeks (Corning)

The Expansion of Corning’s Kentucky Plant & Partnership with Apple

Segment Start: 12:15

• Corning’s Commitment: The Harrodsburg facility will now dedicate 100% of its production to Apple, supplying “all the cover glass for all the iPhones made in the world.” — Wendell Weeks (12:44)
• Shifting Manufacturing Back to the U.S.:
  • Cook highlights why innovation, quality, and cost can make U.S.-made products competitive:
    “We look at a lot of things when we decide who to partner with... Corning brings so much innovation to the table. The phone you’re holding is so thin and so light, but we want it to be the most durable phone ever.” — Tim Cook (13:27)
  • The new “ceramic shield” glass is 50% stronger than the prior generation, enabling lighter, more durable iPhones and watches. — Wendell Weeks (14:52)

Why Not Outsource?

• “Didn’t people just say, you know what, let's just outsource this to someplace that costs a lot less and it'll all be the same quality anyway?”
  — Jim Cramer (13:11)
• Cook’s reply: The focus is on innovation, not commoditization.

Supply Chain Localization & U.S. Semiconductor Push

• “The glass is a very key component of the iPhone... We're beginning the process this year of building system on a chips in Arizona with TSMC.”
  — Tim Cook (15:35)

Protecting Proprietary Innovation

• Apple’s material science contracts with Corning are exclusive—other companies (like Samsung) can’t get access to the same technology:
  • “Everything we do for Apple is 100% only for Apple. And so this becomes integrated right from the sand to the design. And this type of high integration makes it almost impossible to replicate.” — Wendell Weeks (17:08)
  • “We say no... If you want to work with us to innovate and you're going to develop a new to the world material, we'll be happy to work with you on that. But Apple's materials are Apple's material.” — Wendell Weeks (18:07)

Reshoring = Real Jobs

• The expansion is not symbolic; global production of iPhone and Apple Watch glass moving to Kentucky means real job creation and volume:
  • “There's an extraordinary amount of increased volume moving here now.” — Tim Cook (18:49)

The “Fight Club” of Innovation

• Cramer asks for a peek at next-generation products; Weeks jokes:
  • “First rule of dealing with Apple, it's a little like Fight Club. First rule of Fight Club is you don't talk about Fight Club.” — Wendell Weeks (19:22)
  • “…we’re not going to talk about the next generation of products we're doing for my friend here.” — Wendell Weeks (19:36)

The $600 Billion U.S. Investment Plan

• Apple’s total investment in American manufacturing/supply chain to reach $600 billion, touching 9,000 suppliers and supporting 450,000 U.S. jobs.
  • “We do business with 9,000 different partners across the US... in all 50 states.” — Tim Cook (26:25)

Economic Rationale

• Cramer presses Cook on whether this is a shareholder-driven or political move.
• “It's absolutely in the best interest of the shareholder. I think it's also in the best interest of the employees and America.” — Tim Cook (28:35)

Social Compact of Manufacturing & Skills

• Weeks describes Corning’s view that operating plants in small communities is a long-term “social contract.”
  • “When we dedicate a plant in a community, we view that as a social contract... When you walk around the factory, you'll meet people who their third generation Corning employees in this factory. But what the people today are doing has nothing to do with what their grandfather did.” — Wendell Weeks (24:47)

Strength of U.S. Manufacturing

• “This can be a low cost platform as well as an innovative platform. We've already proven it in fiber optics... But like we're doing here, it takes innovation.” — Wendell Weeks (30:46)

Revitalizing American Communities

• Cook discusses the ripple effect of manufacturing plants in small towns, and Apple's new manufacturing academy in Detroit to train future workforces.
  • “It's a virtuous cycle to create a hub of activity. And we're doing that across America in 79 different factories now.” — Tim Cook (31:51)

Corning’s Broader Business: Data Centers & Solar (33:53–42:11)

Specialty Glass & Fiber Optic Expansion

• Corning’s Data Center Boom:
  • “Our fastest growing business right now”—data center networking. — Wendell Weeks (35:07)
  • A single, massive Meta data center (the “Big Link L.A. campus”) will require “8 million miles of fiber... enough to go around the equator 320 times.” — Wendell Weeks (36:40)
• Optical Fiber’s Advantages Over Copper:
  • “If we could bring glass to the backplane of the server... it would be more power efficient... and lead to lower cost.” — Wendell Weeks (37:37)

Diversification & Investment Impact

• Growth is secular, tied to AI, scaling networks, and coming innovations in energy, like solar:
  • “Our new solar business... largest American-made ingot wafer plant right in Michigan... going to triple our run rate.” — Wendell Weeks (39:14)

Business Philosophy & Tariffs

• Corning is largely unaffected by tariffs thanks to its customer-proximate, innovation-driven model:
  • “90% of our U.S. revenue is created by U.S. origin products. Only 1% of what we sell in the United States we make in China.” — Wendell Weeks (40:35)

The Lightning Round (42:18–46:09)

Cramer rapidly answers stockholder questions:

• OpenDoor: Sell (“don’t want to be in a meme stock”)
• Terra Wolf: “Kaput,” move on to higher quality names.
• Hubbell: Hold, don’t chase (“wait for it to come down a bit”)
• Lumentum: Sell half, take profits.
• Summit Therapeutics: Negative news, get out; doesn’t expect a comeback.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “When you dedicate a plant in a community, we view that as a social contract.”
  — Wendell Weeks (24:47)
• “We do business with 9,000 different partners across the US... 450,000 jobs collectively across that footprint.”
  — Tim Cook (26:25)
• “This can be a low cost platform as well as an innovative platform. We've already proven it...”
  — Wendell Weeks (30:46)
• “It takes innovation. And that's what Tim and I are doing together.”
  — Wendell Weeks (31:05)
• “[Apple's shift to US manufacturing is] absolutely in the best interest of the shareholder...”
  — Tim Cook (28:35)
• “First Rule of Fight Club... you don't talk about Fight Club.”
  — Wendell Weeks (19:22, joking about Apple secrecy)

Timestamps for Key Segments

• Market Recap & Game Plan: 01:31–08:53
• Stock Questions: 08:53–10:00
• Exclusive Interview (Apple & Corning): 12:15–22:58, 22:58–33:42 (part 2)
• Corning’s Business Beyond Apple: 33:53–42:11
• Lightning Round: 42:18–46:09

Tone & Style

Cramer’s signature blend of energy—evangelical about American manufacturing, bullish (yet pragmatic) on stocks, and effortlessly colloquial. Both Cook and Weeks are measured and candid, emphasizing long-term vision, innovation, and social responsibility without political grandstanding.

Summary Conclusion

Jim Cramer’s Mad Money episode from Harrodsburg, Kentucky, is a celebration of America’s manufacturing resurgence, candidly exposing the scale, motivation, and economic benefits behind Apple and Corning’s deepening partnership. It’s also a reassurance to investors that both innovation and practicality drive these decisions, not just policy or geopolitics. Corning’s trajectory into data centers and clean energy underscores the broader durability of American industrial leadership—making this episode a must-listen for anyone interested in the intersection of Main Street, Wall Street, and Silicon Valley.