Apple has seen demand for its iPhone reach new heights with sales growth in China outpacing all other regions.
Overall, sales of Apple products grew 17% to $111bn (£81bn) in the first three months of the year, compared to the same quarter a year ago, the company said in financial results released Thursday. Sales in China were up by 28% compared to a year ago.
Tim Cook, Apple’s outgoing chief executive, said that recent demand for the iPhone had been “extraordinary”, making the iPhone 17 the “most popular launch in [Apple’s] history.”
Despite continued iPhone success, sales of Apple’s other products, including the Mac computer and wearable devices like the Apple Watch, remained relatively flat.
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However, Cook told financial analysts on a call to discuss the company’s performance that the new Macbook Neo was seeing “off the charts” demand. He said the quarter set a record for new Mac buyers thanks to the Neo, which is sold at a significantly lower price than other Mac laptop computers.
Beyond current products, Cook said Apple Intelligence, the company’s artificial intelligence (AI) product, will be updated later this year, and included as part of its Siri voice-assistant.
“This is not AI as a standalone feature, but AI as an essential and intuitive part of our devices,” Cook said. He added that Apple’s angle on AI is to be “respectful of user privacy”, something that he said made it clear why Apple platforms were “the best places to experience AI”.
