Apple held its quarterly earnings call for the third quarter of 2026, marking the 90th and final earnings call of the Tim Cook era. Cook is set to step down as CEO on September 1st after 15 eventful years. As expected from a man who led the tech empire to unprecedented heights, the final scene featured staggering record-breaking numbers; in this single quarter, Apple generated more revenue than it did in its entire fiscal year when Cook took the helm in 2011.
By the Numbers: Sweeping Growth Across All Sectors
Apple announced quarterly revenue of $109.4 billion, an increase of 16.4% compared to the same quarter last year, nearly doubling the annual growth for Q3 results since 2022. This strong ascent is attributed to the full availability throughout the quarter of the extensive product lineup Apple launched at the beginning of 2026, such as the iPhone 17e, the M4-powered iPad Air, MacBook Pro models with M5 Pro and M5 Max chips, and the MacBook Air with the M5 chip, in addition to the resounding success of the MacBook Neo.
The results for the various sectors compared to last year are as follows:
| Sector | Q3 2026 Revenue | Annual Growth |
|---|---|---|
| iPhone | $54.25 Billion | +21.7% |
| Mac | $10.35 Billion | +28.7% |
| iPad | $6.19 Billion | -5.9% |
| Wearables | $7.88 Billion | +6.5% |
| Services | $30.74 Billion | +12.1% |
iPhone sales accounted for nearly half of Apple’s total revenue, thanks to the continued demand for the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, and iPhone Air family. The Mac sector also saw a meteoric rise of 28.7% due to new devices and high demand for the Mac mini and Mac Studio, while the services sector continued to break records with earnings exceeding $30 billion.
Passing the Torch to John Ternus and the Future of Apple
Tim Cook concluded the pre-recorded portion of the conference with an emotional farewell, thanking the shareholders and analysts who have accompanied Apple’s journey over the years. Cook emphasized that the transition to John Ternus is proceeding smoothly, expressing his great confidence in Ternus and the team’s leadership to take Apple into its next era.
Interestingly, Tim Cook’s tenure began with the birth of Siri 1.0 alongside the launch of the iPhone 4S in October 2011, and it ends today after the voice assistant has evolved into Siri AI with iOS 27. John Ternus will officially take the helm before the next financial call at the end of October.
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