Apple is positioning itself to earn money from the AI boom through more than one route. It can sell devices that run AI, collect fees when customers subscribe to AI apps, and offer paid access to expanded versions of its own features.
The approach allows Apple to participate in the market without matching the infrastructure spending of some competitors. Its earnings call also showed how prominently the company now talks about AI as a reason to buy hardware and use its services.
AI is becoming part of Apple’s sales story
Apple posted its best-ever fiscal year for revenue and earnings per share. In the fourth quarter, iPhone revenue rose 17.5% from a year earlier to a September quarter record of $57.6 billion. Mac revenue climbed 24% to $10.8 billion, its highest level in four years.
The company has not disclosed how much of that growth came from AI demand or higher prices. But executives described AI as a potential driver of future sales. CFO Kevan Parekh said it could contribute to revenue growth through product upgrades, third-party apps and partnerships, as well as Apple’s own opportunities.
Apple mentioned AI and Apple Intelligence 45 times on the earnings call, according to financial research platform AlphaSense. That was more than on the call following the company’s unveiling of the technology and its plans for a revamped Siri in June 2024.
With more than 2.5 billion active devices, Apple has a large audience for AI services, including those built by other companies. That reach supports its role as a gateway between consumers and AI tools, even when Apple did not create the model behind a feature.
A mixed approach to AI infrastructure
Apple’s AI strategy combines processing on users’ devices, its own servers and outside technology. Siri AI uses models developed with Google’s Gemini technology, and Apple reportedly plans to let people choose among outside AI providers for tools such as writing assistance and image generation.
The company’s capital spending last quarter was $2.2 billion, compared with $77.3 billion at Amazon and $51.4 billion at Alphabet. Those are companywide capital expenditure totals, not AI-only figures, and they leave out some AI expenses. Even with that caveat, Apple’s capital spending remains a fraction of its peers’.
Apple is also increasing investment in research and development. Operating expenses rose 21% to $19.2 billion, including as the company increased R&D spending on AI. Costs for cloud-based Siri AI will be recorded in services cost of sales, and could rise as use grows. Parekh said it is too early to predict how many requests will need servers rather than on-device processing.
This balance matters because some AI tasks can run locally, while others rely on servers. Apple can sell hardware that handles more activity on the device, while using server-side models for features that need them. The eventual cost will depend in part on how customers use the services.
Subscriptions and devices offer different revenue paths
Siri AI is only beginning to reach customers. Apple launched the revamped assistant in beta for US English users in September and expanded it to French, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Spanish in October.
Features that rely on server-side models, including Siri AI and intelligent photo editing, will have usage limits. CEO John Ternus said customers who need more capacity “will be able to purchase expanded access in the future.” He compared the possibility with iCloud, which began with storage tiers and has since added capabilities and features.
Apple can also earn from customers who choose its computers to run AI locally. Ternus said the Mac is “having an AI moment all its own.” Gap uses Mac Mini computers to run AI for loss prevention across hundreds of stores, avoiding cloud token costs for those tasks. Christie’s uses local models on Mac Studio computers to improve workflows, including pricing estimates.
For businesses like these, buying Apple hardware can be a way to run certain AI tasks without paying a cloud provider for every request. Mac Mini and Mac Studio also appeal to developers and hobbyists looking for a way to run models locally.
App Store fees extend Apple’s reach
Apple can collect revenue when customers subscribe to AI apps from other companies through the App Store. The Wall Street Journal reported that Apple was on pace to bring in more than $1 billion in App Store fees from generative AI apps in 2026, according to analytics firm AppMagic.
That income depends on subscriptions being paid through Apple’s system. The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI has begun directing potential subscribers to its website instead, bypassing Apple’s commissions. This shows the limit of a strategy built partly on other companies’ services: those providers may try to avoid the fees.
Apple’s position gives it several ways to benefit as AI use grows. It can sell devices, collect subscription fees on third-party apps and potentially charge for expanded access to its own server-based features. The company does not need to build every model to participate in the market, though its revenue and costs will depend on how customers and AI providers choose to use its ecosystem.