Apple Defies Big Tech AI Spending Spree with Strong Growth

Apple's latest quarterly results show that it is growing without incurring an enormous AI infrastructure bill, unlike its tech rivals. Revenue jumped 16% to $109.4 billion in the June quarter, fueled by a 22% rebound in iPhone sales and 29% growth from the Mac.

Earnings per share rose 29% to $2.02, beating Wall Street's forecast. However, Apple's stock price sank over 9% in early trading on Friday as investors looked past the strong quarter to slowing growth, tighter supply, and another hit to margins from soaring memory costs.

Apple's gross margin is expected to drop due to rising memory costs, which will squeeze its economics. The company relies on a mix of on-device processing, its own servers, and third-party cloud capacity rather than building a vast public-cloud network like its rivals.