Apple has agreed to DRAM pricing at $2 per Gb in the new year, up from $1.50 today. With spiking demand and supply struggling to catch up, things will get worse before they get better.

Former Apple CEO Tim Cook called the AI-driven RAM shortages a "100-year flood" that would inevitably lead to product price increases. Those increases came for nearly every existing product but the iPhone, until a $100 increase spread across the iPhone lineup in September.

A social media post from @SemiconductorsX shared supply chain data suggesting things will only worsen. Apple already pays $1.50 per Gb of DRAM, and was quoted for 2027 memory from Samsung at $2.00 per Gb. A Digitimes report says Apple has taken that deal. At $2.00 per Gb, prices will no doubt have to be raised again in 2027.

The report suggests demand will go up 36.2% while supply will only rise 19.3%. The gap between supply and demand will increase from -8.1% in 2026 to -13.6% in 2027. That gap will likely remain through at least the first half of 2028.