Apple is trying to use CXMT, a memory maker based in China, as leverage against SK Hynix and Samsung Electronics, but it looks to have backfired, resulting in higher pricing. Apple was looking for a quote for LPDDR5X but was turned down, and the price stays above its own rates set by the Korean-based suppliers.
Apple has looked at YMTC and CXMT as potential suppliers for DRAM and was rumored to have been trying out the chips in their devices. Apple was hoping that an alternative was enough to pressure both SK Hynix and Samsung into cutting their prices, but it didn’t work as planned.
What happened next was the opposite of what Apple was expecting: increasing their prices and transitioning to high-bandwidth memory production, and looking to secure the DRAM supply worldwide. Politicians also pressured Apple not to commit to purchasing memory chips based in China.
