Apple Asks Trump for Clearance to Buy From Blacklisted Chinese Chipmaker

Apple is seeking U.S. government approval to purchase DRAM memory chips from ChangXin Memory Technologies, a Chinese company on the Pentagon's military-support blacklist. Memory components represent double-digit percentages of device manufacturing costs. CXMT's chips are materially cheaper than Samsung or SK Hynix equivalents. The request, reported 27 June 2026, illustrates the tension between restricting Chinese semiconductor development and accommodating corporate cost pressure.