As massive anti-government protests sweep across Iran amid a brutal regime crackdown—including a near-total internet blackout, widespread civilian killings, and economic collapse — Elon Musk’s SpaceX has stepped up dramatically by making Starlink satellite internet free for users in the country. This bold move provides a critical lifeline, allowing protesters and citizens to bypass government restrictions, share evidence of atrocities, communicate with the outside world, and organize despite severe jamming attempts and severe risks (including potential execution for using unauthorized terminals).
Now, mounting pressure is building on Apple to follow Musk’s lead. With iPhones widely used in Iran (despite high costs and past import hurdles), activists, a U.S. Congressman (Rep. Buddy Carter), and others are urgently calling on the company to enable its satellite-based messaging feature — available on iPhone 14 and newer models — for Iranian users. This would allow texting without cellular or WiFi service, helping people contact family and report regime violence during the blackout. Apple’s current satellite texting is limited to select countries like the US, Canada, Mexico, and Japan, and the company has not yet responded publicly to these demands. The contrast highlights how tech giants can become pivotal in humanitarian crises, with Starlink already proving transformative—now the spotlight is on Apple to act swiftly and expand access to save lives.
Rebecca Heilweil for Fast Company:
The office of Rep. Buddy Carter, a Republican from Georgia, confirmed to Fast Company that they’d been in touch with Apple about opening up satellite messaging—which lets iPhone users send messages even when there is no wifi or cellular service—in the country, though they didn’t say what response, if any, they might have received from the company. That outreach comes after, on Wednesday, Carter called on the company to do so publicly.
Some activists have called for Apple to turn on satellite-based messaging, a service that the company is quickly rolling out. One of these calls, which as of Thursday night racked up nearly half a million views on X, reads: “During this nationwide blackout, the brutal killing of civilians has started in the past 24 hours. We urgently call on Apple to enable Satellite Messaging for users inside Iran, or confirm whether the service is already active and functioning without interference.”
“Communication is a lifeline. Lives depend on it,” the person added.
It isn’t immediately clear if this is something Apple can do, or what Apple might have already turned on in Iran.
When asked about SpaceX and Starlink, a spokesperson for the State Department [told] Fast Company on Wednesday, the administration “is committed to helping to preserve and protect the free flow of information by the most effective means to the people of Iran in the face of the Iranian regime’s brutal repression.”
MacDailyNews Take: Carter’s post on X:
Iran has gone nearly a week without access to the internet and phone calls, with thousands of protestors reportedly murdered.@Apple, the leading phone brand in the world, must enable satellite messaging for Iran so they can message family and report atrocities being committed…
— Buddy Carter (@RepBuddyCarter) January 14, 2026
Please help support MacDailyNews — and enjoy subscriber-only articles, comments, chat, and more — by subscribing to our Substack: macdailynews.substack.com. Thank you!
Support MacDailyNews at no extra cost to you by using this link to shop at Amazon.