Apple Launches $50 Million Supplier Employee Development Fund

To support expanded initiatives for people across its supply chain, Apple is partnering with the International Labor Organization, the International Organization for Migration, and education experts around the world

Apple® today announced a $50 million Supplier Employee Development Fund that will expand access to learning opportunities and skills development. The fund also includes new and expanded partnerships with leading rights advocates, universities, and nonprofits to drive Apple's ongoing work to empower supplier employees and drive improvements in knowledge of and respect for workplace rights across industries.

As part of the new $50 million commitment, and building on Apple's long history in the space, the company is working alongside supply chain partners to amplify worker voice. That includes supporting the worker rights programs created by the International Labour Organization (ILO) for people in the electronics sector, and the work the International Organization for Migration (IOM) is doing to expand rights trainings and scale its industry-leading responsible labor recruitment tools.

"We put people first in everything that we do, and we're proud to announce a new commitment to accelerate our progress and provide even more opportunities for people across our supply chain," said Sarah Chandler, Apple's senior director of Environment and Supply Chain Innovation. "Together with rights advocates and education leaders, we are continuing to drive new innovation to support people and the planet."

"At IOM, we understand that supply chain responsibility is complex, and must be driven by innovation, results, and partnerships," said Amy Pope, IOM's deputy director General for Management and Reform. "Improving people's lives must be at its core. The IOM and Apple partnership has proven results in Apple's own supply chain and paves the way for others in the industry to follow. To effect real change, we need global collaboration that engages workers, NGOs, government, and industry. Apple's new commitments will have tangible, meaningful benefits for workers around the world."

Apple is also today releasing its 16th annual People and Environment in Our Supply Chain Report , which provides a comprehensive account of how Apple and its suppliers are supporting people across the company's supply chain, transitioning to clean energy, and investing in cutting-edge technologies.

New Educational and Career Development Opportunities

Apple has offered in-person and virtual education, skill-building, and enrichment courses since 2008, providing opportunities for people in its supply chain to gain new technical and leadership skills. With the launch of the Supplier Employee Development Fund, Apple is significantly expanding the scope of these offerings, with new educational resources for people in its supply chain — and the surrounding communities — to develop the skills necessary for the jobs of today and tomorrow.

The new education initiatives will make trainings and coursework available to supplier employees around the world, with programming initially available to individuals in the US, China, India, and Vietnam. By 2023, Apple expects more than 100,000 supplier employees to participate in new learning opportunities — from leadership training and technical certifications to classes on coding, robotics, and advanced manufacturing fundamentals, including green manufacturing.

These new initiatives build on Apple's long-standing commitment to invest in the people in its supply chain and drive manufacturing best practices around the world. To date, Apple's supplier employee educational programming has reached more than 5 million people.

Expanding and Scaling Worker Rights Programs

As part of its Supplier Code of Conduct, Apple requires all suppliers to provide their employees with training on their workplace rights. To date, over 23 million people across Apple's global supply chain have received critical worker rights training.

In partnership with the IOM and the ILO — United Nations agencies that advocate for worker rights — Apple will expand this work, creating new programs, trainings, and worker feedback mechanisms that help ensure a safe, respectful work environment for people across its supply chain.

As part of its new Supplier Employee Development Fund, Apple is also announcing a variety of new and expanded partnerships with labor rights experts, organizations, and UN agencies, including:

A new partnership with the ILO to advance fundamental labor rights in electronics supply chains.
A new initiative to scale a best-in-class digital worker rights training program across Apple's supply chain.
Expanding work with the IOM to scale the Responsible Recruitment Toolkit — developed by Apple in partnership with the IOM — across Apple's supply chain, which will soon be open-sourced for companies across industries.
Developing communications platforms and driving awareness of existing independent worker hotlines for supplier employees to share feedback or concerns about their workplace.

Learn more about Apple's commitment to supporting and protecting the people and environment in its supply chain in its 2022 People and Environment in Our Supply Chain Progress Report .

Apple revolutionized personal technology with the introduction of the Macintosh in 1984. Today, Apple leads the world in innovation with iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch, and Apple TV. Apple's five software platforms — iOS, iPadOS, macOS, watchOS, and tvOS — provide seamless experiences across all Apple devices and empower people with breakthrough services including the App Store, Apple Music, Apple Pay, and iCloud. Apple's more than 100,000 employees are dedicated to making the best products on earth, and to leaving the world better than we found it.

NOTE TO EDITORS: For additional information visit Apple Newsroom ( www.apple.com/newsroom ), or call Apple's Media Helpline at (408) 974-2042.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220330005327/en/

Nick Leahy
Apple
nleahy@apple.com
(408) 862-5012

Rachel Wolf Tulley
Apple
rachel_tulley@apple.com
(408) 974-0078

News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia

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AAPL

Apple announces Chief Financial Officer transition

Apple® today announced that Chief Financial Officer Luca Maestri will transition from his role on January 1, 2025. Maestri will continue to lead the Corporate Services teams, including information systems and technology, information security, and real estate and development, reporting to Apple CEO Tim Cook. As part of a planned succession, Kevan Parekh, Apple's Vice President of Financial Planning and Analysis, will become Chief Financial Officer and join the executive team.

"Luca has been an extraordinary partner in managing Apple for the long term. He has been instrumental in improving and driving the company's financial performance, engaging with shareholders, and instilling financial discipline across every part of Apple. We're fortunate that we will continue to benefit from the leadership and insight that have been the hallmark of his tenure at the company," said Tim Cook, Apple's CEO.

News Provided by Business Wire via QuoteMedia

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How to Invest in Mobile Apps (Updated 2024)

The ubiquity of mobile devices and their prominence in everyday life has led to the development of mobile apps for everything from gaming and dating to banking and stock trading.

Mobile apps began rising to prominence in 2007 with the launch of the iPhone, which heralded a new era in connectivity brought about by revolutionary touch technology. The field has grown widely from thereon out, and the diversity of today’s offerings makes investing in mobile apps an appealing prospect.

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BlackBerry Extends Partnership with Leading Managed Security Services Provider to Ensure SMBs are Set Up for Cyber Success

BlackBerry Limited (NYSE: BB; TSX: BB) and Solutions Granted today announced an extended partnership, naming the leading cybersecurity services provider a Master Managed Security Services Provider (MSSP), enabling it to better scale and meet the growing demand for cybersecurity services among small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs).

"Solutions Granted has been honored as BlackBerry MSSP Partner of the Year for North America for five consecutive years and we're excited to take our partnership to the next level by crowning them as our top Master MSSP," said Adam Enterkin , Chief Revenue Officer, Americas, BlackBerry Cybersecurity. "BlackBerry is dedicated to increasing its focus on MSSP partners to ensure they're set up for success. Endpoints are proliferating, and so are the cyberattacks against them. Our extended partnership with Solutions Granted will help hundreds of small and mid-size businesses continuously adapt to an ever-changing threat landscape."

As a 'Master MSSP', Solutions Granted will be better positioned to help its own partners to deliver Managed Detection and Response (MDR) and other Managed Security Services to their mid-market and SMB clients. In partnership with BlackBerry and heavily leveraging the Cylance® AI-powered portfolio, Solutions Granted helps thousands of clients secure their environments and prevent attacks. By working with Solutions Granted, MSSPs and managed service providers (MSPs) can offer industry leading managed security, without making the significant investment of building out their own security operations center (SOC).

CylanceENDPOINT™ is among the solutions it helps managed service providers (MSPs) deploy to clients, either as individual managed services or integrated into a SOC-as-a-service offering.

"BlackBerry's support for our business model provides the flexibility we need to continue to meet customer demand and provide the best possible product support for their business needs," said Michael E. Crean , Chief Executive Officer, Solutions Granted. "We value the investment BlackBerry is making in our partnership and know this will go a long way in setting up our customers for success."

To learn more about BlackBerry MSSP Partners, visit blackberry.com/us/en/partners/mssp-partners .

About BlackBerry

BlackBerry (NYSE: BB; TSX: BB) provides intelligent security software and services to enterprises and governments around the world. The company secures more than 500M endpoints including over 215M vehicles. Based in Waterloo, Ontario , the company leverages AI and machine learning to deliver innovative solutions in the areas of cybersecurity, safety and data privacy solutions, and is a leader in the areas of endpoint management, endpoint security, encryption, and embedded systems. BlackBerry's vision is clear - to secure a connected future you can trust.

BlackBerry. Intelligent Security. Everywhere.

For more information, visit BlackBerry.com and follow @BlackBerry.

Trademarks, including but not limited to BlackBerry and EMBLEM Design are the trademarks or registered trademarks of BlackBerry Limited, and the exclusive rights to such trademarks are expressly reserved. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners. BlackBerry is not responsible for any third-party products or services.

About Solutions Granted Inc.

Solutions Granted is a Master Managed Security Services Provider (Master MSSP). They offer cybersecurity solutions to North American MSPs and MSSPs and are committed to delivering solutions without requiring minimums, commitments, or long-term contracts. They proudly offer many security layers as well as a 24x7 U.S.-based Security Operations Center (SOC). Over the past several years, Solutions Granted has emerged as a clear leader in the channel, by winning countless awards including the CRN Security 100 list, Top 100 MSSP List, Top Global MSSP List, and BlackBerry MSSP Partner of the Year. Learn more at https://www.SolutionsGranted.com

Media Contacts:

BlackBerry Media Relations

+1 (519) 597-7273

mediarelations@BlackBerry.com

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SOURCE BlackBerry Limited

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Mobile Investing in Australia

After lagging behind for a prolonged period, Australia's tech sector is ramping up at an accelerated pace. The tech sector is now equivalent to 8.5 percent of the country's GDP as of the end of 2021, an increase of 26 percent since the onset of COVID-19 through June 2021 and a massive 79 percent increase over the past five years. Tech contributes AU$167 billion to the Australian economy, trailing only the mining (AU$205 billion) and financial/insurance (AU$169 billion) sectors.

Australia's characteristically resilient economy — which had not experienced a recession in nearly 30 years prior to COVID-19 lockdowns — has provided a sturdy backdrop for its growing tech sector. The growth in the tech sector’s contribution to the GDP has outpaced average growth of other industries by more than 400 percent, a gain partly attributable to accelerated digital technology adoption during the pandemic.

This dramatic expansion is largely in response to Australia's need to catch up to the rest of the world and assert itself in the global tech marketplace. Should the tech sector continue to grow at its current rate it will eventually surpass the relative GDP contribution of the long dominant mining sector. This will also complete the process of bringing Australia more in line with other western economies such as the UK, and notably Canada, which is comparable to Australia in terms of its dominant mining and agricultural industries.

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Apple Inc. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (Unaudited) (In millions, except number of shares, which are reflected in thousands, and per-share amounts)

	Three Months Ended					Nine Months Ended
	June 29, 2024		July 1, 2023			June 29, 2024		July 1, 2023
Net sales:
Products	$	61,564	$	60,584		$	224,908	$	230,901
Services		24,213		21,213			71,197		62,886
Total net sales ⁽¹⁾		85,777		81,797			296,105		293,787
Cost of sales:
Products		39,803		39,136			140,667		146,696
Services		6,296		6,248			18,634		18,370
Total cost of sales		46,099		45,384			159,301		165,066
Gross margin		39,678		36,413			136,804		128,721

Operating expenses:
Research and development		8,006		7,442			23,605		22,608
Selling, general and administrative		6,320		5,973			19,574		18,781
Total operating expenses		14,326		13,415			43,179		41,389

Operating income		25,352		22,998			93,625		87,332
Other income/(expense), net		142		(265	)		250		(594	)
Income before provision for income taxes		25,494		22,733			93,875		86,738
Provision for income taxes		4,046		2,852			14,875		12,699
Net income	$	21,448	$	19,881		$	79,000	$	74,039

Earnings per share:
Basic	$	1.40	$	1.27		$	5.13	$	4.69
Diluted	$	1.40	$	1.26		$	5.11	$	4.67
Shares used in computing earnings per share:
Basic		15,287,521		15,697,614			15,401,047		15,792,497
Diluted		15,348,175		15,775,021			15,463,175		15,859,263

⁽¹⁾ Net sales by reportable segment:
Americas	$	37,678	$	35,383		$	125,381	$	122,445
Europe		21,884		20,205			76,404		71,831
Greater China		14,728		15,758			51,919		57,475
Japan		5,097		4,821			19,126		18,752
Rest of Asia Pacific		6,390		5,630			23,275		23,284
Total net sales	$	85,777	$	81,797		$	296,105	$	293,787

⁽¹⁾ Net sales by category:
iPhone	$	39,296	$	39,669		$	154,961	$	156,778
Mac		7,009		6,840			22,240		21,743
iPad		7,162		5,791			19,744		21,857
Wearables, Home and Accessories		8,097		8,284			27,963		30,523
Services		24,213		21,213			71,197		62,886
Total net sales	$	85,777	$	81,797		$	296,105	$	293,787

Apple Inc. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (Unaudited) (In millions, except number of shares, which are reflected in thousands, and par value)

	June 29, 2024			September 30, 2023
ASSETS:
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$	25,565		$	29,965
Marketable securities		36,236			31,590
Accounts receivable, net		22,795			29,508
Vendor non-trade receivables		20,377			31,477
Inventories		6,165			6,331
Other current assets		14,297			14,695
Total current assets		125,435			143,566

Non-current assets:
Marketable securities		91,240			100,544
Property, plant and equipment, net		44,502			43,715
Other non-current assets		70,435			64,758
Total non-current assets		206,177			209,017
Total assets	$	331,612		$	352,583

LIABILITIES AND SHAREHOLDERS' EQUITY:
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	$	47,574		$	62,611
Other current liabilities		60,889			58,829
Deferred revenue		8,053			8,061
Commercial paper		2,994			5,985
Term debt		12,114			9,822
Total current liabilities		131,624			145,308

Non-current liabilities:
Term debt		86,196			95,281
Other non-current liabilities		47,084			49,848
Total non-current liabilities		133,280			145,129
Total liabilities		264,904			290,437

Commitments and contingencies

Shareholders' equity:
Common stock and additional paid-in capital, $0.00001 par value: 50,400,000 shares authorized; 15,222,259 and 15,550,061 shares issued and outstanding, respectively		79,850			73,812
Accumulated deficit		(4,726	)		(214	)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss		(8,416	)		(11,452	)
Total shareholders' equity		66,708			62,146
Total liabilities and shareholders' equity	$	331,612		$	352,583

Apple Inc. CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (Unaudited) (In millions)

	Nine Months Ended
	June 29, 2024			July 1, 2023
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning balances	$	30,737		$	24,977

Operating activities:
Net income		79,000			74,039
Adjustments to reconcile net income to cash generated by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization		8,534			8,866
Share-based compensation expense		8,830			8,208
Other		(1,964	)		(1,651	)
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable, net		6,697			7,609
Vendor non-trade receivables		11,100			13,111
Inventories		41			(2,570	)
Other current and non-current assets		(5,626	)		(4,863	)
Accounts payable		(15,171	)		(16,790	)
Other current and non-current liabilities		2			2,986
Cash generated by operating activities		91,443			88,945

Investing activities:
Purchases of marketable securities		(38,074	)		(20,956	)
Proceeds from maturities of marketable securities		39,838			27,857
Proceeds from sales of marketable securities		7,382			3,959
Payments for acquisition of property, plant and equipment		(6,539	)		(8,796	)
Other		(1,117	)		(753	)
Cash generated by investing activities		1,490			1,311

Financing activities:
Payments for taxes related to net share settlement of equity awards		(5,163	)		(5,119	)
Payments for dividends and dividend equivalents		(11,430	)		(11,267	)
Repurchases of common stock		(69,866	)		(56,547	)
Proceeds from issuance of term debt, net		—			5,228
Repayments of term debt		(7,400	)		(11,151	)
Repayments of commercial paper, net		(2,985	)		(5,971	)
Other		(191	)		(508	)
Cash used in financing activities		(97,035	)		(85,335	)

Increase/(Decrease) in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash		(4,102	)		4,921
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, ending balances	$	26,635		$	29,898

Supplemental cash flow disclosure:
Cash paid for income taxes, net	$	19,230		$	7,020

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