The artificial intelligence boom may be about to reach a place most consumers were not expecting: the price of their next phone or laptop. Apple (AAPL) is warning that the cost of memory chips is rising sharply as AI data centers compete for increasingly valuable semiconductor capacity. These processors are crucial parts of MacBooks, iPhones, and other consumer gadgets. This is an issue for both regular consumers and investors. Apple is able to endure reduced profit margins and absorb a portion of those increased expenses. Ultimately, however, it will ask consumers to cover more of them. While it has not implemented a significant wave of price hikes, Apple has increased the prices of several items this year. According to Reuters, these increases have helped offset rising component costs. It seems that Nvidia chips and trillion-dollar data centers are no longer the main factors in the fight for AI infrastructure. Eventually, it may alter the prices that customers pay at the Apple Store. Apple says memory costs are climbing fast Apple’s most recent financial results demonstrated how rapidly the economy is evolving. With iPhone sales breaking a September-quarter record, the business posted fiscal fourth-quarter revenue of $114.5 billion, up 12% from the same period last year. The gross margin was 47.9%. Apple now anticipates that during the Christmas quarter, that percentage will drop to between 45% and 46%. One of the main causes is rising memory chip prices. According to Reuters, as the business worked to acquire components, Apple’s obligations for manufacturing and supplier purchases rose by $33 billion to $89.7 billion. Ternus said that while Apple had secured supply, he anticipated memory costs rising into the next year. This is important because DRAM is needed to operate programs on modern computers and smartphones, whereas NAND memory is needed to store data, images, and apps. As businesses compete to increase computational power, AI data centers are using massive amounts of sophisticated memory. The pressure has become strong enough to reach companies such as Apple that are not spending anywhere near as aggressively on data centers as some of their Big Tech rivals. Apple sees a new AI pressure building behind gadget prices. Bloomberg / Getty Images The AI boom could eventually reach Apple shoppers The memory pressure is particularly intriguing because of Apple’s customer exposure. The iPhone 18 Pro already starts at $1,199 in the U.S., and the newly announced 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M6 chip starts at $1,999. Neither pricing indicates that Apple will raise prices due to memory inflation. However, they demonstrate the significance of even very small price rises. For a $1,199 phone, a 5% increase would cost about $60. On a $1,999 MacBook Pro, the same increase would cost approximately $100. More Apple: Apple’s biggest AI advantage may face new privacy challenge Apple secret new device is a challenge to Amazon Bank of America warns Apple investors because of Meta’s Muse Apple may try to avoid passing the full price increase to customers by redesigning parts, negotiating with suppliers, cutting other costs, and accepting smaller margins. Additionally, because of its size, it has buying power that smaller tech companies would not have. However, the cost is already apparent to investors. Apple shares fell after the company forecast weaker holiday-quarter margins, with Reuters reporting that higher memory costs threatened to erase more than $170 billion in market value at one point. Apple investors now have a new AI number to watch The irony is that Apple has remained relatively insulated from one of Wall Street’s biggest AI concerns. Data centers have been receiving massive investments from Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon, and Meta. Apple spent about $9 billion on capital expenditures over the past year while generating roughly $145 billion in operating cash flow. However, the same boom is still impacting the company. AI businesses need not directly compete with Apple to impact its bottom line. They simply need to fight for the same chips, production capacity, and supply chain. Because of this, gross margin is becoming a more significant indicator of the indirect cost of AI for Apple stockholders. For customers, the number to watch is simpler: device prices. Apple may be able to withstand much of the pressure if memory costs stabilize, but it will ultimately have to decide between preserving profits and shielding customers from rising costs. Apple’s most recent warning is unique because of this. Even if an iPhone customer never uses ChatGPT, owns Nvidia stock, or cares how many AI data centers Silicon Valley builds, the AI boom could still end up on their receipt. Related: Apple’s iPhone faces a $190 memory problem
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