Overview
- On Friday, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said the Trump administration is “not in favor” of Apple sourcing memory from Chinese firms CXMT and YMTC and that he delivered that message directly to the company.
- Apple has been testing DRAM from CXMT and exploring NAND from YMTC as a fast way to ease AI‑driven memory shortages and high prices, with some non‑U.S. PC makers already using CXMT parts for devices sold outside the United States.
- YMTC is on the Commerce Department’s Entity List and both YMTC and CXMT appear on the Pentagon’s Section 1260H roster, creating legal and political barriers to broad U.S. commercial ties with those suppliers.
- U.S. export rules mean Apple can buy off‑the‑shelf chips from those firms without a license but would likely need a Commerce Department license to share product details for any customized memory designs.
- Bipartisan senators and U.S. memory maker Micron have lobbied Apple to abandon the Chinese suppliers and set an Aug. 21 deadline for a response, a push that could keep prices high for devices while accelerating federal and corporate efforts to expand U.S. memory capacity.