Apple has released the 10-K it filed with the US SEC (Securities & Exchange Commission), giving its financial records for 2012. There are a few notable figures in the filing – which you can read here – including its 12,400 new hires, and plans to open.
But perhaps most interesting of all is Apples increase in R&D (Research & Development) spending, up to $3.4bn (£2.1bn). Thats up by $1bn on last year – by far the biggest growth of R&D in the companys history.
Apple has released a lot of products in 2012 – the iPad mini, iPhone 5, iPad mini, as well as new MacBooks and Apples first in-house processor, the A6. That probably accounts for most of this growth in spending, but does it suggest that we can expect to see more Apple launches in the near future? 
Its particularly interesting in light of the criticism Apple has received this year for failing to innovate. Perhaps its got something up its sleeve yet, but its clear that, at least in terms of engineering, development and innovation is still a priority.
