Apple CEO Tim Cook Says Products Will Get More Expensive as Memory Chip Prices Rise

[The Financial News] Apple has signaled that it will eventually raise product prices as it struggles to absorb the sharp rise in memory semiconductor costs.
On the 18th local time, Tim Cook, who is set to step down as Apple CEO, told The Wall Street Journal (WSJ) in an interview that the situation surrounding memory chips had become "unmanageable" and that "a price increase is inevitable."
He did not specify when the increase would take effect or which products would be affected.
It remains unclear whether the price of the iPhone 18 series, scheduled for release in September, will also go up.
Driven by the recent AI boom, demand for memory semiconductors, a core component in smart devices, has surged and prices have jumped sharply. In particular, RAM, once among the cheapest core components in computers, has more than doubled since October 2025. In addition, the Iran war has disrupted the supply chain for helium, an essential gas used in semiconductor manufacturing, pushing overall chip production costs even higher.
Cook stressed that Apple has done everything it can to ease the enormous cost burden passed on to the company and protect customers, but has now reached its limit. "Consumer demand for devices is strong, while supply is tight, and memory makers are raising prices significantly," he said. "For consumer products, memory prices and supply need to return to reasonable levels."
Cook, who was appointed Apple CEO before the death of his predecessor Steve Jobs, has led the company for the past 15 years and is expected to hand over the top job to John Ternus in September.
Market research firm Omdia forecast that rising cost pressures will push the global average selling price of smartphones up by about 20% year on year in 2026, hitting a record high.
Omdia smartphone market analyst Choo Le Suan said Apple's new iPhone is expected to undergo major specification upgrades to support new AI features. He added that the iPhone 18 could cost up to $150 more than the iPhone 17. He also noted that most smartphone brands are already raising prices, cutting promotions, or downgrading specifications to protect profitability. "This is not a temporary spike," he said. "It is a new pricing reality in which high inflation has become the norm."
Meanwhile, Apple posted a 17% year-on-year increase in device revenue in the first quarter, helped by the strong performance of the iPhone 17 series launched last September and robust demand in China.
However, the company has already begun making de facto price adjustments, including discontinuing the base entry-level option for the Mac mini, its small desktop computer, earlier this year and raising the starting price by about $200.

jjyoon@fnnews.com Yoon Jae-joon Reporter