Apple is to raise prices in response to rising memory chip costs driven by the AI boom, Apple chief executive Tim Cook has said.
"Unfortunately, price increases are unavoidable," Cook told the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday.
The entire industry has been struggling for months with a shortage of memory chip capacity caused by the large-scale construction of data centres for artificial intelligence, sending prices sharply higher.
Cook gave no details on when prices would rise, by how much or for which products. The next major product unveiling is expected in autumn, as usual, with the new iPhone generation.
Apple currently sells the iPhone 17 from $799 in the US or €949 in Europe and the better-equipped iPhone 17 Pro from $1,099 or €1,299. According to the financial news service Bloomberg, Apple plans to expand its model range this year with a foldable iPhone.
Apple has until now been able to keep device prices largely stable for customers, in part thanks to long-term supply contracts. Cook said Apple was doing its best to absorb the "huge" cost increases and avoid passing them on to customers, but that this was no longer sustainably possible.
Apple had already mentioned in recent months that rising memory costs could require countermeasures, leaving the door open for price increases.
Some PC manufacturers and games console makers have already raised their prices. Other major electronics companies have also recently indicated that the rise in memory chip costs had reached a scale that could not be absorbed without higher prices for customers.
Chip companies are expanding their capacities - but this is a lengthy process in the industry. In addition, memory types needed for data centres could be given priority.
China, meanwhile, has large state-subsidized memory chip producers - but US companies are likely to face strict restrictions on working with them. Asked whether rules on this should be relaxed, Cook told the Wall Street Journal that in his view all options should be considered. "I think we should look at all supply."
