US Senators Pressure Apple to Drop Chinese Storage Chips by August 21
A group of US senators has written to Apple demanding it abandon plans to use storage chips from Chinese suppliers ChangXin Memory Technologies and Yangtze Memory Technologies, even for products sold only in China. The letter, led by Senators Jim Banks and Chuck Schumer, gives Apple an August 21 deadline to commit. The push follows Micron's lobbying against the move and comes amid a global memory shortage that has driven price increases.
A group of US senators has jointly sent a letter to Apple demanding it drop plans to purchase from Chinese storage chip makers. The senators warned that Apple should not use storage chips from ChangXin Memory Technologies Co. , Ltd. and Yangtze Memory Technologies Co. in its devices, even if such products are only sold in the Chinese market. Both companies have been placed on an updated list of Chinese military-linked enterprises by the US Department of Defense.
The senators demanded that Apple make a clear commitment by August 21 not to use chips from these suppliers in its products. The letter was led by Republican Senator Jim Banks of Indiana and Democratic Senator Chuck Schumer of New York. Earlier, US memory chip maker Micron had urged the White House to reject Apple's related plans, arguing that they would undermine the competitive position of American companies.
A global shortage of memory supply has driven memory prices sharply higher. In June 2026, Apple raised prices on all Mac, iPad, home devices, and Vision Pro products, attributing the increases to the storage chip shortage. Apple is still in negotiations with ChangXin Memory Technologies and Yangtze Memory Technologies, and no final agreement has been reached.
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