The most brilliant move in corporate history?

6 hours ago

Apple avoided massive spending on AI infrastructure unlike its rivals (Amazon, Google, Microsoft, Meta), which collectively spent $650 billion.
Apple's capital budget remains modest at $14 billion, focusing on hardware tooling cycles rather than AI data centers.
Hyperscalers (Amazon, Google, etc.) are now spending 94% of their operating cash flows on AI infrastructure, leading to negative free cash flows and increased debt.
AI services currently generate only $35 billion in revenue, a small fraction of the infrastructure spending, with unclear business models for consumers.
Apple licensed Google’s Gemini for AI capabilities instead of building its own model, saving billions and maintaining flexibility.
Apple’s M5 chip enables local AI processing on devices, eliminating the need for expensive data centers.
Apple leverages its 2 billion devices as a distributed AI network, a strategy unmatched by server farms.
Apple conducted $90.7 billion in stock buybacks, while competitors reduced buybacks by 74% from their peak.
Apple’s strategy focuses on owning the customer rather than the infrastructure, positioning it uniquely in the AI revolution.

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