TL;DR
Apple is reportedly lobbying Washington for permission to buy memory chips from China’s CXMT after raising some device prices amid a global memory shortage. The episode highlights Europe’s weaker position: it has no major domestic DRAM or HBM maker and limited leverage over supply or pricing.
Apple is reportedly lobbying Washington for permission to buy memory chips from China’s CXMT, a move that underscores how the global memory shortage is pressuring even the world’s richest hardware company and exposing Europe’s weaker position in a market it largely does not control.
The report, attributed in the source material to the Financial Times and covered by technology outlets, says Apple is seeking clearance because CXMT appears on a Pentagon blacklist. The reported lobbying came two days after Apple raised prices on some Macs and iPads, blaming the global memory shortage.
The confirmed broader picture is stark: the European Union produces less than 10% of global semiconductors by value, according to cited European Commission material, and has no major producer of DRAM or HBM. Those memory markets are dominated by Samsung, SK Hynix, Micron and a small fringe of suppliers.
Counterpoint is cited as estimating that memory prices have roughly quadrupled over three quarters, with some segments rising even faster year over year. Apple still has choices: it can buy from Micron, lobby U.S. officials, or seek approval to use a Chinese supplier. Europe, by contrast, is largely a price-taker in memory.
Apple is reaching for Chinese memory. Europe doesn’t even have that option.
The shortage exposes America’s dependence — and Europe’s far more brutally. Apple has a domestic supplier, political weight, and the China option. Europe has no memory of its own, no seat at the table, no leverage on what counts.
- EU makes < 10% of the world’s semiconductors
- Effectively no DRAM, no HBM from Europe
- 3–4 memory makers worldwide — none European
- Pure price-taker: memory ~4× in 3 quarters
- ASML: EUV monopoly — no leading-edge chip without it
- Zeiss: precision optics, unrivalled worldwide
- imec · CEA-Leti · Fraunhofer: world-class research
- Infineon, NXP, STMicro: automotive · power · SiC
The shortage is a sovereignty test — Europe fails on supply but still holds the leverage in its hand. If even Apple can’t buy its way out, Europe’s answer isn’t to buy its way in, but to run two tracks: press the unique chokepoints as real leverage — and cut dependence wherever it can without Brussels: local-first, open weights, quantization, right-sized hardware. Bury the 20% dream, defend what’s yours, need less.
Europe Lacks Apple’s Options
The episode matters because memory chips are central to computers, phones, servers and AI systems. High-bandwidth memory, or HBM, is especially important for AI accelerators, and current supply is concentrated outside Europe.
For readers, the risk is not abstract. Higher memory costs can feed into device prices, cloud infrastructure costs and AI deployment budgets. If supply tightens further, companies and governments without purchase power or domestic suppliers may face delays, higher costs or weaker bargaining positions.
The source material frames Apple’s reported request as a warning signal: if Apple cannot absorb the shortage quietly, Europe’s lack of a memory champion becomes harder to ignore. That is interpretation, but it rests on a confirmed structural fact: no major European firm currently sits among the world’s leading DRAM or HBM suppliers.
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The Chips Act Target Slips
The EU Chips Act, adopted in 2023, set a goal of lifting Europe’s semiconductor market share to 20% by 2030 with about €43 billion in planned public and private investment. The source material says European Commission figures now point closer to 11.7% by 2030.
The European Court of Auditors was cited as saying in December 2025 that the 20% target was “very unlikely”. ASML is cited as estimating that reaching the target would require more than €250 billion, far above the current policy envelope.
Europe still has major semiconductor strengths. ASML dominates extreme ultraviolet lithography, Zeiss supplies advanced optics, and groups such as imec, CEA-Leti and Fraunhofer remain important research centers. European chipmakers including Infineon, NXP and STMicroelectronics are strong in automotive, power and silicon carbide chips. Those strengths do not solve the memory gap.
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Approval And Supply Still Open
It is not yet clear whether U.S. officials will approve Apple’s reported request to buy from CXMT, or what conditions would apply if permission were granted. The available source material does not confirm how much memory Apple wants to buy, for which products, or on what timetable.
It is also unclear how long the global memory shortage will last. The source material says some scarce output has been booked by large U.S. cloud and AI buyers, but allocation details across the full industry remain incomplete.
European semiconductor memory chips
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Washington’s Decision Sets The Signal
The next marker is whether Washington grants Apple permission to use CXMT memory. A decision would signal how far U.S. officials are willing to bend supply-chain restrictions when shortages hit major American companies.
For Europe, the policy question is broader than Apple. The source material argues that the bloc’s more realistic path is to use its semiconductor chokepoints, including ASML and Zeiss, while reducing demand pressure through local-first AI, open models, quantization and hardware choices that require less scarce memory.
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Key Questions
What is Apple reportedly asking Washington to approve?
Apple is reportedly seeking permission to buy memory chips from CXMT, a Chinese manufacturer listed by the Pentagon. The request has not been reported as approved.
Why does this matter for Europe?
Europe has no major DRAM or HBM supplier of its own. That leaves European firms more exposed to price spikes, shortages and allocation decisions made elsewhere.
Does Europe make any important chips?
Yes. Europe is strong in areas such as lithography equipment, optics, automotive chips, power semiconductors and research. The gap is in commodity DRAM and high-bandwidth memory.
Is the EU’s 20% chip target still realistic?
The source material cites the European Court of Auditors as saying the target is “very unlikely”. Commission figures cited there point to about 11.7% by 2030.
Could Europe quickly build its own memory industry?
The available evidence suggests that would be difficult. Advanced memory production requires large capital spending, mature yields, customers and years of manufacturing experience.
Source: Thorsten Meyer AI
