Apple spent a record $45.77 billion on research and development in its 2026 fiscal year, according to the financial statements published alongside its fourth-quarter results on 2 November. That is 32 per cent more than the $34.55 billion it spent in fiscal 2025.
In the September quarter alone, R&D spending was $11.73 billion, up from $8.87 billion a year earlier, also an increase of 32 per cent.
Over the full year, R&D was about 9.6 per cent of Apple’s $478.83 billion in net sales, compared with about 8.3 per cent the year before. Apple’s statements do not say how much of the increase relates to AI work, and the company has not given a forecast for R&D spending in fiscal 2027.
For the wider picture, see our report on Apple’s record $114.5 billion September quarter.