Apple to supply 170,000 MacBook Neos to DepEd

MANILA — Apple has reached a landmark deal with the Department of Education, supplying 170,000 MacBook Neo laptops to students and educators across the country. 

Apple CEO John Ternus confirmed the agreement during the company’s Q4 2026 quarterly financial call, spotlighting the Philippine academic sector as a key driver for international classroom adoption.

The contract marks Apple’s largest institutional education deal for Macs to date. It is also the company’s largest institutional rollout for its budget-friendly laptop line since its global debut earlier this year.   

Education Secretary Sonny Angara praised the partnership, saying the modernization initiative is a critical investment in national education standards.

“Investing in our teachers is investing in the future of our learners,” Angara said in an official statement, quoted by Apple.

“DepEd is keeping President Marcos’s priority on education at the forefront by ensuring that our front-liners are equipped and future-ready.”

The DepEd’s laptop procurement has been hounded by controversy in the past, with allegations that thousands of laptops meant for teachers were underpowered while also being overpriced. 

The MacBook Neo, meanwhile, has been reviewed as more than adequate for most computing tasks, short of demanding professional work. 

It is Apple’s most affordable laptop line and is powered by Apple’s A18 Pro chip, offers all-day battery life, quiet fanless aluminum construction, and built-in hardware security. Native productivity apps come standard, eliminating the need for costly third-party software licenses, Apple said. 

Apple said the massive shipment demonstrates strong institutional demand for affordable macOS hardware in emerging markets.    

Integrated into the DepEd Computerization Program (DCP), the hardware will be distributed across more than 16,400 public K-12 schools nationwide. The rollout equips teaching staff, non-teaching personnel, and students with reliable technology designed to simplify administrative workloads, streamline lesson preparation, and foster interactive learning in public classrooms.

Apple added that, beyond hardware, participating Filipino educators will receive continuous professional support through the online Apple Education Community platform. Local teachers have already published more than 70 custom lesson plans on the network, aligned directly with the Philippine elementary and secondary school curriculum.

For Cupertino-based Apple, the Philippine expansion establishes a strategic foothold in Southeast Asian public education.