The Chip-pocalypse Comes For Apple

Tim Cook announced that Apple will need to increase prices across its products, citing the unsustainable surge in memory and storage chip costs, driven by AI server demand. The company is trying to mitigate these increases for consumers but suggests that higher costs are inevitable. The price hikes could affect upcoming products like the iPhone 18 and existing lines such as Max and iPads. The core issue stems from the high demand for DRAM and NAND chips, which are crucial for a variety of devices, including AI servers. Apple is exploring ways to address the supply shortages, including leveraging its cash reserves to potentially help boost memory supply, but is unwilling to build its own factories.

Renowned AI researcher Noam Shazeer, known for his pivotal work on Transformers—the architecture behind most modern language models—has left Google to join OpenAI as a lead in architecture research. His departure underscores the intense competition in AI talent and signals OpenAI’s efforts to enhance its model development. Shazeer has been involved in major AI advancements and has a controversial background related to lawsuits over AI chatbots. His move may impact the development trajectory of Google’s Gemini and open up new possibilities for OpenAI in innovating AI architectures.

Midjourney, famous for AI-generated art, has unveiled its first hardware product: a full-body ultrasound scanner called the Midjourney Scanner. This device uses ultrasonic sensors to create detailed images of the body's internal composition, comparable to MRI quality. The scanner aims to be a fast, safe, and non-invasive alternative for body scans, initially to be used in a luxury spa setting in San Francisco, with plans to expand into medical applications pending FDA approval. The device uses water-based ultrasonic waves to generate internal images, potentially revolutionizing preventative healthcare and body diagnostics.

An increasing number of businesses are using Kalshi, a prediction market platform, to hedge against real-world risks, from political outcomes to financial contingencies. The platform has seen massive growth, with institutional trading volume increasing by 800% since November 2025, and now serves major Wall Street firms and small businesses alike. Companies are trades to hedge risks like commodity prices, political events, or sports outcomes, with some innovators using prediction markets to manage specific business risks more flexibly and cheaper than traditional insurance and derivatives markets. Recent innovations include margin trading and perpetual contracts, expanding the range of assets and risks that can be covered.