Meeks Sounds Alarm on Apple's Memory Costs Ahead of iPhone Launch

Veteran tech analyst Paul Meeks from Freedom Capital Markets has expressed caution about Apple's upcoming iPhone launch, which is expected to be one of the most exciting in a decade. The new foldable iPhone, codenamed V68, will reportedly start near $2,000.

However, Meeks warned that Apple's gross margins will suffer due to the memory oligopoly, with companies like Micron, SK Hynix, and Samsung controlling around 90% of market share. He pointed out that as a result, Apple has to pay more for its components, leading to increased costs and reduced profit margins.

Meeks' warning comes after Apple's CEO Tim Cook described the current memory price surge as 'a 100-year flood', with expectations of even higher costs in September. The company's Q3 FY26 gross margin guidance is at 47-48%, with a significant portion attributed to tariff refunds.

Apple posted strong June-quarter revenue and earnings, but Meeks remains concerned about the long-term impact of the memory oligopoly on Apple's margins. He suggests that investors should consider AI data-center names like CoreWeave, Applied Digital, and NVIDIA as alternatives.