Tim Cook Says Apple Is Investing ‘Significantly’ in AI and Could Buy Another Company

Apple wants investors to know it’s taking bigger steps to catch up in the AI race.

The iPhone maker is “significantly growing” its investments and reallocating employees to focus on AI, CEO Tim Cook told investors on the company’s quarterly earnings call Thursday. 

“Apple has always been about taking the most advanced technologies and making them easy to use and accessible for everyone, and that’s at the heart of our AI strategy,” Cook said.

Shares climbed over 2% in after-hours trading following the call, after Apple (AAPL) reported better-than-expected earnings with record services revenue. The stock was down about 17% for 2025 through Thursday’s close, making it the only Magnificent Seven member in negative territory for the year besides Tesla (TSLA) amid worries about the company’s AI progress. 

Apple, which has lagged many of its Big Tech peers in AI, faces pressure to prove it can keep up after delaying the rollout of highly anticipated features such as an AI-enhanced Siri, disappointing investors. 

The more personalized, AI-powered version of Apple’s Siri is now expected to launch in 2026, Cook said Thursday. Apple previously suggested a more powerful Siri would come this spring.

Cook also said Apple would consider buying other companies to raise its AI capabilities—something Wall Street analysts have suggested could give Apple’s AI efforts a bigger boost. 

“We’re very open to M&A that accelerates our roadmap,” Cook said, noting Apple has already acquired around seven companies this year, though “not all AI oriented.”

Earlier this month, Wedbush analyst and longtime Apple bull Dan Ives suggested AI startup Perplexity could be a target. Apple has also reportedly held talks with ChatGPT maker OpenAI and Claude developer Anthropic about relying on their AI models instead of in-house ones.