Tim Cook stepped down as Apple CEO on September 1st. He stated that Apple had done its best to protect customers from rising costs, but the pressure had become "unsustainable," and price increases were "inevitable." He noted that consumer prices for computer software and accessories had risen by approximately 15% year-over-year. Musk publicly agreed with Cook, calling it the "biggest price increase" he had ever seen, and shared a Wall Street Journal article suggesting that AI data center construction was triggering a "third wave of inflation." Apple has raised prices on several Mac and iPad models, and other device manufacturers such as Microsoft, HP, Dell, and Nintendo have also increased their prices.