Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company is facing a "hundred-year flood" of rising memory-chip prices that will increase costs this September.
This surge in pricing threatens to compress Apple's gross margins during a critical production window. As memory is a fundamental component across the entire product line, these costs directly impact the bottom line of the hardware division.
During a Q3 2026 earnings call held in Cupertino, California, Cook said the supply constraints and price hikes are affecting the industry [1, 2]. He said that the company expects to spend more on memory in the September quarter than it did during the June quarter [2].
"We are fighting a hundred-year flood on memory pricing," Cook said [2]. He said that the volatility in the market is not a short-term anomaly, stating that this "100-year flood won’t be receding anytime soon" [3].
Financial data indicates the company is already reacting to these market pressures. Apple's inventory nearly doubled to $11.09 billion [1]. This accumulation suggests a strategic move to secure components amid supply constraints and price instability, a hedge against further cost increases.
Cook said that Apple is about to get "swamped" by these costs [4]. The combination of limited supply and steep price hikes has created a challenging environment for the company's procurement teams, who must balance the need for high-volume production with rising unit costs [1, 3].
While Apple has historically managed supply chain disruptions through its massive scale, the current memory market presents a systemic challenge. The company continues to navigate these constraints as it prepares for its autumn product cycle [2].
“"We are fighting a hundred-year flood on memory pricing."”
The surge in memory costs indicates a tightening global semiconductor market that could force Apple to either absorb lower profit margins or increase retail prices for consumers. By nearly doubling its inventory, Apple is attempting to lock in supply, but the persistence of these price hikes suggests that the broader industry is facing a structural shortage of memory capacity.
