Apple has disclosed that its Mac mini and Mac Studio computers are experiencing supply shortages that will persist for several months, driven by higher-than-expected demand from AI developers. During Apple’s Q2 2026 earnings call, CEO Tim Cook explained that the primary constraint is the availability of advanced semiconductor nodes used to produce the machines’ system-on-chip processors, not memory.
Both machines have emerged as popular platforms for AI and agentic tools, with customer recognition of their capabilities outpacing Apple’s demand projections. The Mac mini starts at $599 for the base M4 model with 16GB of memory, with an M4 Pro version starting at $1,399. The Mac Studio starts at $1,999 for the M4 Max configuration. Cook noted the Mac mini was the top-selling desktop in China.
Apple is also seeing higher-than-expected demand for its new entry-level MacBook Neo, which contributed to a March quarter record for customers new to the Mac.
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“Both of these are amazing platforms for AI and agentic tools, and the customer recognition of that is happening faster than what we had predicted, and so we saw higher than expected demand. The primary constraint is the availability of the advanced nodes our SoCs are produced on, not memory. It’ll take several months to reach supply/demand balance.”
Tim Cook, CEO, Apple
