You can say what you want about M$ but since Nadella is in charge they’re going forward more focused and to me it seems they come out with more software and hardware than Apple ever did. Is it as good as Apple is debatable but at least it isn’t stuck in the pipeline and it’s getting better at a fast pace. I admire Apple with their own processor approach. Further than that it seems Apple is hanging on old success like iPhone etc. Almost every year same form factors are coming out with outrageous pricing. I hope Apple will feel the pressure of their competitors and will come out with better products and will innovate at a faster pace. iPad hasn’t seen much changes, Apple Watch, iMac, MacBooks etc… all same year after year. I understand that you don’t have to fix if it isn’t broken but for a tech company it seems greedy and lazy not to change.
I also like what Nadella is doing, mostly in the software space. It's a refreshing change in attitude from the earlier regimes, and I think that change in attitude unlocked a lot of Microsoft's potential.
Their hardware, Xbox aside, isn't much to talk about, in my opinion. It serves as a vehicle to try to push the market in directions they'd like to open for their software-- similar to how Google positions Pixel. It's not affecting their bottom line very much.
Microsoft is every bit as dependent on old successes as Apple is, if not more so. The vast majority of Microsofts profits come from Windows, Office, and enterprise and servers. Azure is a growing part of the mix, just as services are a growing part of Apple's.
Microsoft's stock price is riding high on the AI hype, in particular because of their investment in OpenAI and the use of Azure as an AI training and hosting service. I think there's a lot of potential for Microsoft in that space, but I'd argue that is building on their core businesses. The Bing stuff is a fun toy, but I still think it's more hype than value at the moment. Apple is also deep into AI in ways that are more practical but less visible.
One key difference between the companies is Microsoft presents technology for technology's sake and demonstrates a lot of ideas even if they aren't what Apple would consider ready. Apple will sit on things for ages until they think it's right. Hololens and Vision Pro are a great modern example of that difference in thinking. It comes down to a difference in where they sit in the technology stack though-- Microsoft benefits from publishing ideas early because their business is largely built on creating the infrastructure others use to make their products, so inspiring others forward is more important than succeeding in their own effort. Apple is an end product manufacturer and are more interested in getting it right and maintaining a consistent experience for their users.
What Nadella has done that Ballmer failed at is he realizes that it's that partnership with others that advances Microsoft's ambitions. Gates started as an underdog, was focused on world domination, and largely succeeded. Ballmer couldn't adapt to that new world and never abandoned the old scrappy, pugilistic style. Nadella successfully made the change from faster alone to further together.
