Apple raises Mac and iPad prices amid AI‑driven memory chip shortage

Apple announced sweeping price increases for most Mac and iPad models, citing an unprecedented surge in DRAM and NAND costs driven by the rapid expansion of AI data‑center workloads. The company said the memory shortage is a “hundred‑year flood,” and the hikes raise device prices by roughly 15‑25 %, pushing Apple’s shares down about 5‑6 % after the news. To blunt the cost pressure, Apple has asked the U.S. government for a licence to buy RAM chips from China’s ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), a supplier on the U.S. defence blacklist because of alleged links to the People’s Liberation Army. Approval would let Apple tap a new source of memory while the broader industry faces what analysts call “RAMageddon,” a global shortage that is also inflating prices for consoles, PCs and other consumer electronics.