Apple CEO Tim Cook told The Wall Street Journal in an exclusive interview that price increases for Apple products are 'unavoidable' due to soaring memory chip costs driven by AI demand. He did not specify which products, when, or by how much prices would rise.
Apple · The AI Memory Squeeze
Tim Cook: Apple Price Hikes Now "Unavoidable" as AI Boom Drains Memory Supply
Generative-AI data centers have soaked up the world's DRAM and NAND, sending memory prices soaring. Cook calls it a "hundred-year flood" — a swing unlike anything in his four-decade career.
~4×
DRAM & NAND prices, year over year
~15%
forecast US smartphone & PC price rise in 2026
+$270
est. iPhone hike needed to hold current margins
Where the cost lands: iPhone Pro memory bill
Estimated bill-of-materials cost per device — same component, drawn to scale
$145
DRAM
$51
NAND
Total BOM: ~$582 (17 Pro) → ~$726 (18 Pro est.)
DRAM cost nearly quadruples per phone
Why consumer devices lose the supply race
AI DATA CENTERS
Google, Microsoft, Meta & Amazon scale AI spend
→
MEMORY DIVERTED
DRAM/NAND steered to AI servers; HBM prioritized
→
PHONES & PCs
Consumer supply could fall short by up to 15%; prices rise
Memory is an oligopoly — Samsung, SK Hynix & Micron. New Siri's on-device AI needs ≥12GB RAM, adding to demand. Mac Mini already raised; iPhone 18 due Sept 2026.
The bull case
Apple's pricing power holds — loyal users accept higher costs as the price of stronger on-device AI features.
The worry
Higher premiums could push buyers to Android, raising doubts about the AI-vs-cost trade-off. Scale of hikes still undetermined.
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