Khaberni - iPhone sales and Apple service revenues performed exceptionally in the first quarter of the year, however, Mac device performance notably outperformed, supported by increased demand for artificial intelligence applications, according to "TechCrunch".
Wall Street investors expected Mac revenues to be around $8 billion, but Apple announced $8.4 billion for the second quarter ending March 28th, a record figure for a non-core sector of the company.
In addition, investors believed before the earnings announcement that Mac sales would be roughly steady compared to last year.
Yet, the company informed investors that Mac sales increased by 6% year-on-year.
The total company revenue reached $111.2 billion, up 17% from the same period last year.
Apple attributed part of the Mac sales growth to the recent launch of new products, including the well-received Mac Neo.
However, these colorful, distinctive devices were only available for sale a few weeks after pre-orders began on March 4th.
In fact, most units were shipped for delivery in mid-to-late March, and some demand may have extended into April as some models were sold out.
During the second-quarter earnings call on Thursday, Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, told analysts that customer demand for the Neo device was "exceptional" and higher than Apple expected.
He also noted that Apple recorded a record quarter in terms of new Mac customers, partly thanks to the Neo device.
Cook attributed the growth in Mac sales to using the platform to run local AI models, such as OpenClaw, which somewhat surprised Apple with Mac mini and Mac Studio running out in recent weeks.
Cook said about Mac sales: "Both are great platforms for AI and AI tools, and customer uptake is increasing faster than we expected, thus we have seen higher-than-expected demand."
He also mentioned that the Mac mini was the best-selling desktop computer in China, a market that has seen significant recent uptake of OpenClaw.
Nevertheless, Mac device revenues remained steady compared to the previous quarter, indicating that this new demand has not yet peaked.
Cook said that it would take Apple "several months" to balance supply and demand for the Mac mini and Studio models.
Alongside strong revenue expectations, Cook clarified to investors that the memory shortage crisis will not disappear, according to a report by CNBC.
He said its impact in the last quarter of the year was "minor", while it was slightly more significant in the first quarter.
Cook added, "We expect a significant rise in memory costs during the current quarter," and continued, "We believe that memory costs will increasingly impact our business", which will prompt the company to "explore a range of options."
In March, Apple announced a number of new products, including the iPhone 17e, an updated iPad Air with an M4 chip available in two sizes, 11 inches and 13 inches. It also unveiled the MacBook Neo, a low-cost laptop priced at $599, aimed at students and consumers on a budget, according to CNBC.
While device sales are always a key factor in Apple's results, Wall Street's chief concern is what can be expected from the new CEO, John Ternus.
Apple announced on April 20th that Ternus will succeed Cook, who will take over as CEO of the board on September 1st.
