New Delhi, Sept. 19 -- Apple Inc.'s iPhone 17 smartphones saw strong demand, and the top models sold out instantly on the first day in India as its stores opened to long queues, masking the slow pace of innovation in artificial intelligence.

People started gathering outside each of its four outlets on Friday in the country before the new generation of devices went on sale, and the crowds sustained through the day. Chief executive Tim Cook even tweeted a photograph of Apple's Mumbai storefront.

Preorders were nearly 10% more than last year, according to three analysts that Mint spoke with. One of them said the sales may surge 19% on-year in the first week itself.

Apple is poised to surpass 5 million iPhone sales this quarter, potentiall...