There's a lot of factors why it might have been that person's fallback even though it might have been your first choice. The product, the culture, the location, salary, WFH, options, benefits, etc.

I knew a guy who would passed up working for Apple for a relatively unknown non-FAAANG company.

People have their reasons. It's not that everyone working for Apple is lesser than. It's more that this guy had his own reasons.

To each his or her own.