Apple Seeks Trump Administration Approval to Buy Chips from Blacklisted Chinese Firm

Apple is lobbying the Trump administration to obtain authorization for purchasing memory chips from ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT), a Chinese company listed on the Pentagon’s blacklist, according to sources cited by the Financial Times.

The Financial Times report, citing informed sources, indicates that Apple has approached the White House seeking approval to proceed with this purchase as part of efforts to ease the financial strain caused by the continuous rise in memory chip prices.

This situation highlights the dilemma faced by major U.S. technology firms, caught between escalating chip costs and Washington’s security restrictions on Chinese companies.

Sources further revealed that Apple initiated contact with the U.S. Department of Commerce over a month ago and has also communicated with other administration officials and allied parties in Washington.

During the Biden administration, the Department of Defense designated CXMT, one of China’s largest memory chip manufacturers, as a Chinese military company. Subsequently, a multi-agency committee approved adding CXMT to the Commerce Department’s entity list last year.

Under these restrictions, U.S. companies are prohibited from shipping goods, software, or technology to entities on the list without a license, which is typically denied.

In a related development, Apple raised prices for its iPad and MacBook devices on Thursday, citing an inability to absorb the increased costs of memory and storage chips amid growing demand driven by the expansion of data centers in the artificial intelligence sector.