Apple will raise the prices of some of its core products, CEO Tim Cook has suggested, amid rising costs and shortages of key computer chips.
The surging cost of memory and storage chips “has become unsustainable” and “unfortunately, price increases are unavoidable”, Cook reportedly told The Wall Street Journal.
“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 reportedly said.
“… There’s 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’s the bottom line.”
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Cook, who will step down from his position in September, supposedly did not comment on when Apple would raise prices, or for which products.
Many consumer electronics companies, including Apple, have already raised the prices of some products, due to a spike in demand for memory chips largely caused by companies buying up stock for use in artificial intelligence.
Apple increased the starting prices of its premium iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max models in Australia in 2025, before Samsung made similar pricing changes to its flagship smartphone line in early 2026.
When Apple introduced its cheaper MacBook Neo in March, it also raised the prices of its more expensive laptops, before it later increased the price of its Mac Mini desktop computer in May.
New Apple products that could cost more
Apple is expected to unveil its first foldable iPhone this September, which many analysts believe will be the company’s most expensive iPhone model to date.
While Apple’s current iPhone 17 Pro line starts at $1,999 in Australia, the company’s first foldable iPhone is expected to cost upwards of around $2,800 locally.
While some of that cost will be attributed to features such as the device’s larger screen and advanced hinge mechanism, rising memory costs are expected to impact pricing.
Apple is also expected to introduce iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max models in September, but will reportedly not unveil its cheaper iPhone 18 devices (and potentially a second-generation iPhone Air) until early 2027, in a shift from its typical annual product schedule.
The company is then expected to release a second-generation foldable iPhone and a redesigned standard iPhone for the device’s 20th anniversary in September 2027, according to reports.
That redesigned device will reportedly have a curved screen that wraps around the edges of the phone, according to Bloomberg.
AI for wallets – and AirPods
Apple’s increasing implementation of AI features is also set to cost consumers more if they wish to have access to the company’s most powerful AI models.
When Apple unveiled the much-delayed AI revamp of its personal assistant Siri at WWDC earlier this month, the firm revealed that while devices which support its Apple Intelligence software will get most of its new AI features, only some will support the company’s most powerful on-device models.
To use the more powerful AI models – which features such as enable advanced dictation and custom voices for Siri – consumers will need to have an iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone Air, or newer.
Elsewhere, iPads will require Apple’s M4 chip or later and at least 12GB of unified memory to run the more advanced models.
Mac computers will need an M3 chip or later and at least 12GB of unified memory, and the more advanced AI models also won’t run on the first edition of Apple’s Vision Pro augmented reality headset.
Apple said it would also place daily usage limits on AI features such as image generation, as they require greater processing by “powerful server models”.
Users with iCloud+ subscriptions would get “increased access” to such features, the company said.
Apple’s first AI-focused wearable product will reportedly be a new version of its AirPods in-ear headphones, which are expected to have cameras which can feed information about a user’s surroundings to Siri.
According to a Bloomberg report, “The goal is to let users ask Siri questions about objects and the surrounding environment.
“Someone looking at a collection of ingredients, for example, could ask what to make for dinner.”
* This story first appeared on Information Age. You can read the original here.
