Quick Read
Global smartphone shipments fell 11% in Q2 2026, the lowest since 2013, costing Apple its global market share crown to Samsung.
AI-driven memory and storage shortages raised iPhone production costs while Samsung’s AI-powered Galaxy S26 surged to capture 24% of global shipments.
With iPhone generating $85 billion of Apple’s $144 billion in quarterly revenue, its Gemini-powered Siri launch carries enormous stakes.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Apple didn’t make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
In the second quarter of this year, smartphone sales dropped more than at any time in the last thirteen years. Prominent research from Counterpoint uses the term “shipments.” In a new report, its researchers wrote, “Global smartphone shipments tumbled 11% YoY in Q2 2026, reaching the lowest second-quarter levels since 2013.” Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) also lost the market share crown to arch-rival Samsung. This happens just as Apple is about to launch its new AI product.
For investors, the extent to which earnings are based on the iPhone makes this very bad news. A shortage of memory storage hurt the supply of crucial technology. Additionally, DRAM and NAND prices have risen sharply due to AI demand. AI is supposed to save Apple. At the same time, it has increased the cost of building the iPhone. In fact, some of these shortages led Apple to raise the prices of Macs and iPads recently. At the time, Apple management said, “The rapid expansion of AI data centers has created an extraordinary surge in demand for memory and storage.”
Brett Jordan / Wikimedia Commons
Samsung surged to the lead in global market share. Its shipments were 24% of all global shipments in the second quarter. This was up from 20% in the same quarter a year ago. Apple’s share rose from 17% to 29% over the same period.
Its new Galaxy S26 series largely drove Samsung’s success. It is a high-end product given its price, making it an iPhone competitor. Counterpoint said that its AI functions help drive sales.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Apple didn’t make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
Apple is at one of the most important inflection points in its recent history. After falling behind in AI features late last year, it is about to release versions of Siri and Apple Intelligence powered by Google’s Gemini. Many industry observers think Apple got away with a low price for this. It will pay $1 billion a year. Of course, Google gets massive distribution in a market with brutal competition from products like OpenAI’s and Microsoft’s (NASDAQ: MSFT) Co-Pilot.
How much is at stake for the iPhone as it tries to claim a position in AI-powered products? Almost everything. In the most recent quarter, Apple had revenue of $143.8 billion, of which $85.3 billion was from the iPhone.
Act now: the analyst who called NVIDIA in 2010 just named his top 10 AI stocks — and Apple didn’t make the cut. Grab the names FREE today.
Contact editorial@247wallst.com for any questions or corrections.