With the explosive growth of artificial intelligence technology, tech giants are facing unprecedented cost pressures. According to a senior analyst from Bloomberg, Apple's recent series of price adjustments are a silent accusation against the soaring costs in the backend supply chain in the AI era, and this bill may ultimately be shared by consumers.

Over the past two years, Apple has been committed to launching high-value products to lower the barrier, such as the $599 Mac mini and entry-level iPad. However, facing strict requirements for profit margins from Wall Street, and the failure of various operational teams to absorb costs over several months, Apple had to bow to the reality of the supply chain, and the affordable strategy may be temporarily put on hold.

Supply Chain Turmoil, AI Trend Becomes the "Spark" for Price Increases

The biggest behind-the-scenes factor causing hardware cost失控 is the global frenzy of AI data center construction. Major cloud computing and AI giants are fiercely purchasing NVIDIA GPUs, high-end memory, and storage devices, directly leading to tight capacity of key components and completely disrupting the traditional hardware industry's supply chain.

Facing this industry-wide cost increase, even Apple, with its strong bargaining power, cannot remain unaffected. To maintain high standards of financial performance, transferring some of the new hardware supply chain costs has become an inevitable choice for companies to continue their business profits.

iPhone Prices Not Yet Adjusted, but Overall Price Hike May Come by Year-End

In the latest round of device price adjustments, the iPhone, as the core product line, has temporarily maintained its original price, which has given many consumers a bit of relief. Analysts point out that due to its massive scale effect, the iPhone is currently still the product least affected by the recent fluctuations in bulk component prices.

However, this calm under price pressure may not last long. Industry experts predict that as the new phone release period approaches in the second half of the year and the premium of AI features becomes evident, Apple may officially raise the official price of new iPhones later this year.