Apple customers may soon face higher prices for iPhones, Macs, iPads, and other devices as the company grapples with rising memory chip costs fueled by the artificial intelligence boom.
In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company plans to increase prices on some products because rising costs for memory and storage components have become impossible to absorb.
"Unfortunately, price increases are unavoidable," Cook said, adding that Apple had been working to shield customers from higher component costs but that the situation had become "unsustainable."
Cook did not specify which products would see price hikes, when they would take effect, or how large the increases might be. It remains unclear whether or not the price hikes will affect the upcoming launch of the iPhone 18.
The issue stems from an unprecedented surge in demand for memory chips used in AI data centers. Technology giants including Amazon, Google, Meta, and Microsoft, are investing hundreds of billions of dollars into AI infrastructure, consuming vast quantities of DRAM and high-bandwidth memory chips needed to train and run advanced artificial intelligence models.
That demand has tightened global supplies and driven up prices across the semiconductor industry. Manufacturers such as Samsung, Micron, and SK Hynix have increasingly prioritized production of high-performance server memory destined for AI systems rather than chips used in smartphones, tablets, and personal computers.
Apple has been warning investors about the issue for months. During the company's fiscal second-quarter earnings call in April, Cook said Apple expected "significantly higher memory costs" beginning in the June quarter and cautioned that those expenses would continue to have a growing impact on the business.
At the time, Apple was able to soften the blow by drawing on previously stockpiled inventory purchased before memory prices surged. But those supplies have gradually been depleted, increasing pressure on the company's margins.
Some estimates suggest Apple could need to raise prices substantially on certain premium products to maintain current profit margins.
Other major technology companies, including Samsung, Microsoft, Sony, and Dell, have already adjusted pricing or product configurations in response to rising memory expenses and supply constraints.
Despite the challenges, Cook said Apple has no plans to manufacture its own memory chips. Instead, the company intends to use its financial resources and supply-chain expertise to help secure future component supplies.
Cook is expected to step down as CEO in September, handing leadership to longtime Apple executive John Ternus.
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