Microsoft Wins AI Race, Apple Wins Buybacks

Apple and Microsoft both beat earnings expectations in late April, but their AI strategies diverge sharply. Apple posted $111 billion in Q2 revenue driven by iPhone and record Services, while Microsoft hit $82.89 billion with Azure growing 40% and Copilot seats up 250% year over year. Microsoft's $37 billion AI annual run rate growing 123% makes it the clear near-term AI winner, backed by a $627 billion contracted backlog. Apple counters with a $100 billion buyback and 2.5 billion installed devices, betting on gradual AI integration rather than aggressive infrastructure spending.