Apple to raise prices as AI boom pushes up chip costs

Apple plans to raise the prices of its products as the cost of the memory chips it uses has surged, the technology giant's boss has said.Tim Cook, Apple's outgoing chief executive, told the Wall Street Journal (WSJ) that price increases were "unavoidable" as the situation around memory chips had become "unsustainable".He did not say when prices would rise or which products would be affected. It is also unclear whether the price hikes will affect the iPhone 18, which is expected to be launched in September.Memory chips are essential components in smart devices like mobile phones, but the boom in Artificial Intelligence (AI) has driven up their prices in recent months.Later, US President Donald Trump said that Apple had agreed to work with chipmaker Intel to make its chips in the US."I decided to help Intel because we need to design and build our Chips right here in America," he wrote in a post on his social media platform Truth Social.The BBC has contacted Apple and Intel for comment.In August last year, the Trump administration announced that the federal government would take a 10% stake in Intel.