CUPERTINO, June 17 - Apple plans to raise prices on its products to offset increasing memory and storage chip costs, its chief executive officer Tim Cook told the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) in an interview.
A surge in artificial intelligence (AI)-driven demand for data centres has forced consumer electronics companies into a fierce competition for dwindling supplies of the key components, driving prices sharply higher.
Groups representing automakers, retailers, electronic firms, and others had warned earlier this month that the increasing demand for memory chips could lead to dramatic price hikes in United States consumer goods and disrupt supply chains.
"Unfortunately, price increases are unavoidable. We are doing our best to mitigate the huge increases that are being passed to us, and we have been trying to shield our customers from the increases, but the situation has become unsustainable," he told WSJ.
Cook, who will hand over the reins to John Ternus in September, did not disclose when or how much prices might rise, nor which products could be impacted.
Apple is reportedly on track to release its first foldable iPhone in September, alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max.
He added that memory and storage costs are both concerns for the company, with particular emphasis on the dynamic random-access memory market, as more supply is being allocated to high-bandwidth memory used in AI servers.
"There is less supply at a time when consumers want devices, and the memory guys are passing along huge price increases.
"We definitely need memory pricing and supply to return to reasonable levels for consumer products. That is the bottom line," Cook said.
In the interview, he indicated that Apple is prepared to use its cash reserves to boost memory supply, but offered no details.
"We are willing to use our balance sheet to help be a part of the solution. Obviously, more capacity is needed," Cook said.
He also clarified that Apple has no plans to use its cash and silicon expertise to build its own memory and storage factories.
