Apple Inc. (AAPL) stock is heading for a third-straight week of gains after climbing more than 4% on Wednesday, outperforming the Nasdaq’s 0.6% gain as Wall Street responded to signs that the company’s artificial intelligence strategy is beginning to take shape.

Apple Opens Wider Access To AI-Powered Siri With iOS 27 Beta 

The rally followed the public beta release of iOS 27, which offered developers and users an early look at a redesigned Siri built around large-language-model technology. The public beta allows regular users, not just developers, to try Apple’s new Siri for the first time. With billions of Apple devices worldwide, the wider release gives the company a major test of its AI technology.

The upgraded assistant moves beyond traditional voice commands by adding large language model capabilities. Siri can now use information stored across a user’s device, including messages, images and emails, while also understanding screen content and answering broader knowledge-based questions.

The tech giant aims to make Siri function more like modern AI chatbots while keeping it connected to Apple’s operating system. Apple’s Siri upgrade enters a crowded market that includes rivals such as Microsoft (MSFT) and its AI-powered products. The final version of iOS 27 is expected to arrive in September.

edged up marginally overnight, ahead of Thursday.

Analyst Sees Broader Opportunity

Deepwater Asset Management’s Gene Munster took to X to highlight the iOS 27 Beta rollout. “The new Siri AI in iOS 27 public beta released yesterday gives investors concrete evidence that Apple finally has the AI chops it’s long been missing. This is the same setup that fueled Google’s sharp rerating in April 2025,” he said. “After using the beta for a day, I can attest it’s like having a new phone.”

Last month, Munster also weighed in on Apple’s stock slide after updates at the company’s annual worldwide developers’ conference failed to stoke any investor optimism. He attributed the weakness to the lack of a timeline for Siri. “Apple doesn’t seem willing to be on the hook for a specific date, which leaves the bigger question unanswered: Can Apple deliver AI that people actually want?” he posted on X.

Adding momentum to Apple’s latest software rollout, the Cyberspace Administration of China officially  Apple Intelligence for local deployment following key filings for local model integration. Morgan Stanley analyst Erik Woodring described the regulatory development as “a key catalyst that should level the AI playing field in China,” as local brands have moved quickly to integrate artificial intelligence tools into their devices, creating pressure on Apple to deliver similar features in one of its most important markets.

Broadcom Chip Partnership Adds Infrastructure Support

Apple’s AI plans also gained support from its  partnership with Broadcom (AVGO). The multiyear agreement, north of $30 billion, is expected to help Apple develop specialized chips and strengthen its AI infrastructure.

Morningstar analyst William Kerwin called the deal the ultimate "AI cherry on top,” and added that Apple’s move into custom silicon aligns with its broader AI ambitions. Specialized processors could be deployed in Apple’s private data centers to support Private Cloud Compute, enabling the company to improve performance and manage costs more effectively than relying solely on commercially available graphics processors.

What AAPL Retail Traders Are Saying 

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around the stock improved to ‘bullish’ from ‘neutral’ territory the previous day, with a 107% jump in message volume over the past week.

A user said, “what the naysayers on this board do not understand is the over 2.5 billion active devices is over a qtr of the worlds population, and they [are] not leaving the the Apple ECO[ecosystem], in fact it's growing.”

Another user said, “See now they go AI chip shopping. Thats the smart play imo. While the valuations are depressed.”

AAPL stock has gained 20% year-to-date.