Tim Cook's Last Earnings Call as Apple CEO Arrives With a Memory Squeeze and an AI Deadline

Apple reports fiscal third-quarter earnings after the bell Wednesday, and for the first time in nearly 15 years, someone other than Tim Cook will be the one steering the company through what comes next. Cook hands the CEO job to John Ternus on September 1, making this his last earnings call as chief executive. The timing is awkward in one specific way: Apple is heading into this transition while fighting a global memory chip shortage and bracing for a make-or-break AI product launch.

Analysts polled by LSEG expect Apple to report revenue of $108.65 billion and earnings per share of $1.89. That revenue figure would represent 16% growth from the $94 billion Apple posted in the same quarter a year ago. If the company hits that mark, it will be the third consecutive quarter of year-over-year revenue growth of at least 15%, a run that's helped push Apple stock up 24% so far this year as of Wednesday's close, outperforming every other megacap tech company.

A chip crunch Cook calls a "hundred-year flood"

The backdrop to all this growth is a supply problem Apple didn't create and can't fully control. Cook has described the current global memory chip shortage as a "hundred-year flood," a phrase that signals just how unusual the company considers the squeeze. Memory chips and broader manufacturing capacity are in short supply worldwide, and Apple has already responded by raising prices on Macs and iPads.

The company hasn't said publicly that iPhone prices are next, but that hasn't stopped analysts from expecting hikes as soon as this year. Given the iPhone's outsized role in Apple's revenue, any price increase there would carry far more weight than similar moves on Macs or iPads, both for Apple's bottom line and for how consumers respond heading into the holiday shopping season.

Siri's rebuild, and the AI pressure that comes with it

The other storyline hanging over this earnings call is artificial intelligence, an area where investors have grown increasingly impatient with Apple's pace. The company is preparing to launch a redesigned version of Siri in September, built using Google technology, alongside new iPhone hardware. That timing puts Apple's AI ambitions on a very public clock: a flagship product launch happening in the same month Cook officially steps down.

The stakes are real. Apple has faced persistent questions from investors and analysts about whether it's fallen behind rivals in AI, and a Siri overhaul that leans on Google's technology is as clear an acknowledgment as any that Apple needed outside help to get there. How that new Siri performs, and whether it satisfies a customer base that's watched competitors ship AI features faster, will shape perceptions of Apple's AI strategy well beyond the September launch window.

Ternus steps into the spotlight

Then there's Ternus himself. A 25-year Apple veteran who currently runs the company's hardware division, Ternus said relatively little on the previous earnings call, which took place shortly after Apple announced the CEO transition back in April. That reticence is understandable for an incoming chief executive easing into the role, but investors are looking for more this time. With Cook's tenure winding down and Ternus set to take full control in September, Wednesday's call is a chance to hear directly from the person who will actually be answering for Apple's memory shortage response, its pricing decisions, and its Siri relaunch a few months from now.

Cook has led Apple since 2011, and this earnings call closes out that chapter under genuinely tricky conditions: a supply chain crunch forcing price hikes, an AI product under real scrutiny, and a new hardware cycle arriving right as leadership changes hands. Apple's stock performance suggests investors aren't panicking. Whether that confidence holds through the September launch, and through Ternus's first quarters running the show, is the thing to watch next.

The earnings call is scheduled for 5 p.m. ET.