It's been a rare good week for Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) bulls. A $100 billion U.S. manufacturing splash earned CEO Tim Cook some political goodwill and helped clear tariff fog — yet Wedbush’s Dan Ives has a stark warning for the iPhone maker.
- Track AAPL stock, here. ‘s stunning absence from is detrimental.
What Happened: Big tech is zipping around the AI track like an F1 car in Monza, Ives says. Apple, however, is “on a park bench drinking lemonade.”
With 2.4 billion iOS devices in play, Apple should be leading the AI charge. Instead, the smartphone innovator has a “black cloud” over its stock, Ives says. An “invisible AI strategy” has essentially created a “Blackberry Moment” for Cook, he added.
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Three Things Cook Must Do — Fast
To avoid being left in the digital dust, Ives lays out a three-part rescue plan:
- Buy Perplexity — The AI search engine is "a drop in the bucket" at $30 billion, but could supercharge Siri and reposition Apple in the AI space.
- Hire Real AI Talent — Apple's management team needs a shake-up. "Back to the Future" vibes won't cut it anymore.
- Partner With Google Gemini — OpenAI isn't the answer, Ives insists. Despite regulatory hurdles, making way for Alphabet Inc‘s (NASDAQ:GOOGL) (NASDAQ:GOOG) Google Gemini’s deep integration could be Apple's best bet.
Ives still sees Apple as an Outperform with a $270 target, but warns that time is not on Cook's side. "It's time to take some big shots," he says — or risk being benched forever.
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