Apple’s outgoing Chief Executive Officer, Tim Cook, has warned that rising memory chip costs have made price increases for the company’s products “unavoidable”, signalling that consumers may soon have to pay more for iPhones and other Apple devices.
In an interview, Cook said Apple had tried to shield customers from mounting costs but could no longer absorb the financial pressure caused by soaring memory prices and supply shortages.
“We’re doing our best to mitigate the huge increases that are being passed to us, and we’ve been trying to shield our customers from the increases, but the situation has become unsustainable,” Cook told the WSJ.
Although Cook did not specify when Apple would implement the price increases or identify which products would be affected, the remarks have fuelled speculation that the anticipated iPhone 18 lineup, expected to launch in September, could carry higher price tags.
Memory chips are critical components in smartphones and other electronic devices. However, the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies has significantly increased demand for advanced computing hardware, pushing memory prices sharply higher.
“There’s less supply at a time when consumers want devices and the memory guys are passing along huge price increases,” Cook said.
“We definitely need memory pricing and supply to return to reasonable levels for consumer products. That’s the bottom line.”
Cook, who is set to step down in September after 15 years as Apple’s chief executive, will be succeeded by John Ternus.
Industry data show that the price of RAM, traditionally among the least expensive computer components, has more than doubled since October 2025.
Beyond AI-driven demand, geopolitical tensions have compounded supply constraints. The war in Iran has disrupted the global supply of helium, a gas essential to semiconductor manufacturing, further increasing production costs across the technology sector.
Research firm Omdia projects that the average global selling price of smartphones will rise by approximately 20 per cent in 2026, reaching an all-time high.
According to Omdia’s smartphone market analyst, Chiew Le Xuan, Apple’s next generation of devices could become substantially more expensive.
“Apple’s new phones are likely to cost up to $150 more than the iPhone 17s, as the firm is expected to upgrade their specifications to support new AI features,” Chiew told the BBC.
He added that the wider smartphone industry has already begun adjusting to the new economic realities.
“Most smartphone brands have already raised prices, pulled back on promotions or cut specifications to protect their profit margins in response to rising costs,” he said.
“This is the new pricing reality, not a temporary spike.”
The concerns extend beyond Apple.
In an exclusive interview with the BBC earlier this month, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) declined to rule out raising its own prices as inflation continues to push up manufacturing costs. TSMC produces many of the world’s most advanced chips designed by companies including Apple, Nvidia and AMD.
Earlier this year, Samsung also warned that shortages in memory chip supplies would likely make electronic devices more expensive.
The impact of rising costs is already being felt by consumers. In April, Sony increased the price of its PlayStation 5 consoles by £90 in the United Kingdom and $100 in the United States, citing “continued pressures in the global economic landscape”.
Nintendo subsequently announced that it would raise the price of its Switch 2 console from September due to “changes in market conditions”.
Despite the prospect of higher prices, demand for Apple’s products has remained strong.
The iPhone 17 lineup has performed well since its launch last September, with Apple reporting a 17 per cent increase in device sales during the first three months of 2026 compared with the same period a year earlier, buoyed by robust demand in China.
Apple has already taken steps that reflect the changing cost environment. Earlier this year, the company discontinued the entry-level version of its Mac Mini compact computer, effectively increasing the product’s starting price by around $200 (£150).
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