Apple seeks to buy memory chips from blacklisted Chinese company
Apple has reportedly approached Chinese memory chip maker CXMT (ChangXin Memory Technologies), which is on a US trade blacklist, about purchasing DRAM chips for iPhones. The move would give Apple a low-cost alternative to Samsung and Micron, but raises potential regulatory and national security concerns given CXMT's status.
Background
- Apple has been in talks to purchase memory chips from Yangtze Memory Technologies Corp (YMTC), a Chinese flash memory maker placed on the US entity list (export blacklist) in 2022 over national security concerns.
- YMTC is a young but strategically important Chinese company that produces NAND flash (the chips used in SSDs and phone storage). Being on the entity list means US companies cannot sell it technology or equipment without government approval.
- The FT reports Apple is exploring YMTC as a supplier for iPhone memory — possibly for China-market iPhones specifically. This would reduce Apple's reliance on US/Korean suppliers like Micron, Samsung, and SK Hynix.
- The situation forces a tension: Apple wants supply-chain diversification and access to China's market, but US export controls are designed to weaken Chinese chipmakers like YMTC. Any deal would require US government approval and carry political risk.