苹果CEO蒂姆·库克及其高管向特朗普政府进行游说，计划在美国以外销售的苹果产品中使用中国企业长鑫存储和长江存储的芯片，以降低成本。[1]库克已向特朗普及商务部长卢特尼克、财政部长贝森特介绍了这一计划。[1]
美国主要存储芯片供应商美光科技对此提出强烈反对。[1]美光CEO桑杰·梅赫罗特拉已向卢特尼克及其他政府官员警告，允许中国公司向美国科技企业销售产品可能摧毁美国本土产业。[1]
存储芯片价格在过去一年已上涨至原来的四倍，预计还将进一步上涨。[1]美光计划在美国投入2500亿美元以提升产能。[1]特朗普政府面临两难困境：一方面，降低存储芯片采购成本有助于苹果降低消费者价格；另一方面，保护美国本土产业扩大产能也是政府目标。[1]
Apple CEO Tim Cook has launched a lobbying campaign with the Trump administration to incorporate memory chips from Chinese suppliers Yangtze Memory Technologies and Changxin Memory into products sold outside the United States, a move aimed at reducing production costs [1]. Cook and other Apple executives have pitched the plan to President Trump, Commerce Secretary Lutnick, and Treasury Secretary Bessent [1].
The proposal has drawn sharp opposition from Micron Technology, a major U.S. memory chip supplier [1]. Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra has warned government officials that permitting Chinese companies to supply components to American technology firms could devastate the domestic semiconductor industry [1]. The dispute has placed Trump in a difficult position between his economic objectives of lowering consumer prices and bolstering U.S. chipmaking capacity [1].
The pricing dispute underlies much of the tension. Memory chip costs have surged to four times their previous levels over the past year and are expected to rise further [1]. Apple has challenged Micron's profit margins, questioning whether its gross margins exceeding 80 percent constitute price gouging [1]. Meanwhile, Micron has announced plans to invest $250 billion to expand U.S. production capacity [1]. Micron recently committed $250 million through a "Trump Account" initiative to support long-term savings programs for children and families [1]. Cook has previously sought tariff exemptions through personal appeals to Trump, including presenting him with a plaque in the Oval Office [1].
