Apple is raising prices on iPads and MacBooks, and it is pointing at the chips inside them. According to The Guardian, the company blamed the cost of chips amid the broader AI boom for the increases.
The pressure appears to center on memory. Telegraph India reports that surging prices for DRAM and NAND chips — the components that handle a device's working memory and storage — have forced Apple to pass higher costs on to buyers. Notably, the same report says iPhone prices are being kept unchanged, suggesting Apple is absorbing or deflecting the squeeze unevenly across its lineup.
The cost crunch may also reshape Apple's own silicon. According to reporting summarized by MSN, Apple is planning to launch only a standard M6 chip and skip the M6 Pro and M6 Max versions — a move that would break a long-running pattern in the Apple Silicon family as the company shifts faster toward AI.
There are signs of strain in Apple's supply chain too. Memeburn reports that Apple is exploring Intel and Samsung as chip partners, testing its heavy reliance on Taiwan's TSMC as AI demand strains capacity.
Taken together, the sources describe a single squeeze with several faces: pricier memory, a possibly trimmed chip roadmap, and a hunt for alternative suppliers.
Why it matters: the global scramble for AI computing power is now reaching ordinary shoppers, pushing up the price of everyday laptops and tablets — a sign that the AI boom's costs are no longer confined to data centers.