Close Menu
    White House Tariffs Could Triple iPhone Price to $3,500, Threatening AI Progress
    Futurology

    White House Tariffs Could Triple iPhone Price to $3,500, Threatening AI Progress

    Share.
    View 27 Comments

    27 Comments

    1. chrisdh79 on

      From the article: Now that we’ve had the new Trump Tariffs for a few days, analysts are starting to weigh in on how these will affect consumers. One specific product that Wedbush believes will be hit hard is the iPhone. The firm believes that the iPhone cost would rise from $1,000 to $3,500, and that would slow down AI progress – not that Apple is making much progress on AI anyways.

      This week, President Trump announced tariffs on virtually every country in the world, including a pair of islands that are only inhabited by Penguins. Of course, notably absent from this list are Russia and North Korea. The US is enforcing a 34% tariff on Chinese goods, effective April 5. Of course, China wasn’t going to be quiet about tariffs and decided to retaliate with a 34% tariff on the US, which brings the total tariff rate to 54% against the US by China.

      The tariffs on China are really going to hit hard. While many tech companies, including Apple, Samsung, and Google, have moved their factories to other countries in Asia – like Vietnam – they still purchase a lot of components from China. Which is going to raise the price of different tech products, including smartphones.

      Wedbush has also said that they believe this is the worst crisis for tech companies in 25 years – essentially since the dot-com bust. That’s pretty incredible, since we’ve gone through the great recession and COVID since then. They are also noting that unlike the 1980s tariffs, they are now affecting tech, the AI revolution and the global industry pretty hard.

      The tariffs on China and Taiwan will likely raise costs by 40-50%. That’s a bit high for companies to swallow the difference and let it eat into its profit margin. So your Pixel 9 Pro, which currently costs $999, could end up costing $1,499 in a year or two if these tariffs stick and don’t increase. They likely will increase as the US and China continue to spar.

    3. flushed_nuts on

      Weird, grifter in chief specifically said the tariffs would be good. And, end the transgender fentanyl dealers. I’m confused..

    4. fibonaccisprials on

      Even if the iPhone was manufactured in the ” land of the free ” difference in wages would also mean huge increases in tech products for USA citizens.. Stock pile iPhones the 2nd market will be huge.

    5. SpongeJeigh on

      Aren’t iPhones made for like $50? If manufacturing price goes up to $75 for apple. Does it make sense they would sell for $3500. No, no it does not.

    6. lssong99 on

      Cook will have a 1 million dinner with Trump and then Apple will be excluded from any tariff on iPhone.

    7. Mahdouken on

      Buying an iPhone has nothing to do with AI progress. Say users don’t buy an iPhone, they’ll buy another product. You can access “AI” via the web.

    8. Ma7moud_Ra4ad on

      While the immediate future may see price increases due to tariffs, there’s a chance that prices could stabilize or even decrease over time. The key lies in how companies adapt to the new market conditions. Increased domestic manufacturing and investment in automation could lead to more efficient production processes, potentially lowering costs in the long run. Moreover, as competition grows and supply chains become more diversified, we could see better pricing options. It won’t happen overnight, but with strategic investments and innovation, the tech market could eventually offer more affordable options while maintaining high quality.

    9. CurrencyUser on

      Curious what threaten AI progress means and how it will hurt me? This just seems like it will hurt Trump and Reps in 26

    10. AmazingPatt on

      yall dont have phone comment from blizzard . is about to take a whole new meaning lol

    11. yepsayorte on

      People have been telling Apple to get out of China for a decade now. Everyone but Tim could see that both geopolitical tensions and China’s demographic collapse would soon make China a terrible place to build anything. Tim is a fool. The smart money left China years ago.

      China was a moment and the moment has passed.

    13. TheStigianKing on

      What a dumb headline. It reads as if it’s trying to imply the price of an iPhone can hinder AI progress. It’s missing the word, “and”.

    14. davidbernhardt on

      Except it won’t. There’s very little market for a $3500 iPhone, so Apple would have to vastly lower the price and it would eat into their profits while they figure out how to manufacture it without China. Otherwise they’d chalk up whatever new generation of iPhone as a sales failure.

    15. spidey2064 on

      The Apple zombies would still pay that amount regardless so it will be fine. Price gouging is that brands M.O. lol

    16. Kevin2355 on

      So you’re telling me apple is going to have to build it here instead of abusing workers? I’m cool with this.

      Also no you don’t need a phone like this

    17. farmdve on

      I don’t think people that buy iPhones have even the slightest care how much it costs, even if they can’t afford it.

    19. Three_Licks on

      >Threatening AI Progress

      Huh? Apples implementation of AI on the iphone is a joke. Outside of that, how does this threaten AI?

    20. TrueCryptographer982 on

      WTF do they have to do with each other. Sir is about grade 2 stupid so she’s not close to AI.

    23. esuardi on

      A lot of hobby projects can now use AI via a simple query on the web. I’m 100% sure any OpenAI like opensource projects are going to get targeted (like they have) and a lot of cheap 3rd party apps (not from iPhone) will pop up in droves. Only way Apple stays good in the US is if the Orange Turd’s tarriffs stop or they bend the knee, which would ruin the anonimity of said phone carrier.

    24. plumber_craic on

      This headline has the same energy as calling the PC a “hard drive” and assuming it’s turned off if the screen isn’t on.

    25. Upbeat_Parking_7794 on

      Only in the US.  The rest of the world may retain the previous prices or even receive a discount, as Apple may need to offset reduced sales in the US and possibly China.

    26. FlapJackson420 on

      I’m pretty sure a $3,500 phone ain’t stopping Sam, Elon, and all of DeepMind. Lol what a stupid title

    27. Riptide360 on

      South Korea’s Samsung and Google would be smart to take advantage of Apple’s unfortunate situation by aggressively going after adoption. Trump’s policies are a disaster.