Apple has announced a price hike in India for several of its products, including MacBooks, iPads, Apple TV and HomePod devices, as rising global memory chip costs driven by artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure increase manufacturing expenses. iPhone prices remain unchanged.

The revised prices are now reflected on Apple’s India online store and come amid a global surge in demand for DRAM and NAND flash memory, essential components used in laptops, tablets and other consumer electronics.

MacBook Prices See Sharp Increase

Among the biggest revisions, the 13-inch MacBook Air (M5) now starts at ₹1,49,900, up from ₹1,19,900. The 15-inch MacBook Air (M5) has increased from ₹1,44,900 to ₹1,74,900.

Meanwhile, the 14-inch MacBook Pro now starts at ₹2,39,900, compared to its earlier price of ₹1,69,900. Premium MacBook Pro models equipped with the M5 Max chip have also witnessed price increases of up to ₹1 lakh.

iPad Prices Also Revised

Apple has also increased prices across several iPad models. The entry-level 11-inch iPad now starts at ₹49,900, up from ₹34,900, while the 11-inch iPad Air has risen from ₹59,900 to ₹74,900. The 11-inch iPad Pro now starts at ₹1,19,900, compared with ₹99,900 earlier.

Apple TV and Home Pod devices have also become more expensive, although the company has not revised prices for iPhones, Apple Watches or AirPods.

Why Has Apple Increased Prices?

According to Reuters, Apple attributed the revision to rising costs of memory components such as DRAM and NAND flash storage.

The rapid expansion of AI data centres has significantly increased demand for advanced memory chips, tightening global supply and driving up component prices. Industry analysts say manufacturers across the consumer electronics sector are facing higher production costs as AI infrastructure investment continues to accelerate.

Why iPhone Prices Remain Unchanged

Despite the latest revision, Apple has kept iPhone prices in India unchanged. Analysts believe the company may be waiting until the launch of its next-generation iPhone lineup before making any pricing changes to its smartphones. However, continued increases in semiconductor costs could influence future pricing decisions.

AI Boom Reshaping Consumer Electronics

The price hike in India highlights the wider impact of the AI boom on the technology industry. As companies invest billions of dollars in AI infrastructure and data centres, demand for high-performance memory chips has surged, increasing manufacturing costs for laptops, tablets and other electronic devices.

The development reflects a broader trend where AI is beginning to influence not only software innovation but also the pricing of consumer hardware worldwide.

The next technological revolution may not arrive through a single invention. Instead, it could emerge from a collection of breakthroughs that reshape how people access energy, healthcare, food and essential resources.

That is the picture painted by the World Economic Forum’s Top 10 Emerging Technologies Report 2026, produced in collaboration with scientific publisher Frontiers. The report identifies a new generation of technologies that are moving from laboratories into practical applications and could begin influencing everyday life within the next three to five years.

What makes this year’s list particularly striking is a common thread connecting many of the innovations. They are designed to make critical resources—whether electricity, medicines or industrial materials—more accessible, more efficient and less dependent on geography or large centralized systems.

Emerging Technologies 2026 Are Bringing Energy Closer to People

For more than a century, electricity has largely travelled in one direction—from power stations to homes and businesses. That model may soon begin to change.

One of the technologies highlighted in the report is Everything-to-Grid Energy, or X-to-Grid. The concept allows buildings, electric vehicles, factories and even data centres to send stored electricity back into the grid during periods of high demand. Instead of acting solely as consumers, these assets become active participants in energy generation and storage.

Combined with the rapid growth of renewable energy, such systems could make electricity networks more resilient and reduce waste.

Another energy-related breakthrough is Direct Lithium Extraction, which dramatically shortens the time required to recover lithium from brine sources. Lithium is a critical component of electric vehicle batteries and energy storage systems. Faster and more sustainable extraction methods could strengthen supply chains while reducing environmental impacts.

Meanwhile, Passive Radiative Cooling Materials offer a low-energy response to rising temperatures. These materials cool buildings by reflecting sunlight and releasing heat into the atmosphere, reducing the need for conventional air-conditioning systems. In a warming world, such innovations could become increasingly important.

Emerging Technologies 2026 Could Transform Healthcare

Healthcare is another field undergoing rapid transformation.

Among the technologies attracting attention are Personalized mRNA Cancer Vaccines, which are designed around the unique genetic mutations present in an individual patient’s tumour. Unlike conventional treatments, these vaccines train the immune system to recognise and attack specific cancer cells, potentially reducing the likelihood of recurrence.

Researchers are also making progress with Exosome Drug Delivery, a technique that uses naturally occurring particles produced by cells to transport medicines directly to targeted areas of the body. Scientists believe this approach could eventually help deliver treatments to difficult-to-reach locations, including parts of the brain.

The report further highlights Quantum Simulation for Drug Discovery, which uses advanced computational models to understand molecular interactions with unprecedented precision. If successful at scale, such systems could shorten drug development timelines and reduce costs, accelerating the arrival of new therapies.

Together, these technologies point towards a future in which medicine becomes increasingly personalised, predictive and precise.

Emerging Technologies 2026 Aim to Tackle Climate and Resource Challenges

Many of the technologies featured in the report are aimed at addressing environmental pressures and resource constraints.

One example is PFAS Destruction, designed to eliminate so-called “forever chemicals” that can persist in water supplies and ecosystems for decades. Traditional treatment methods often struggle to break down these substances, but emerging approaches are showing promising results.

Another notable innovation is Precision Fermentation, which uses microorganisms such as yeast and bacteria to produce ingredients, chemicals and materials more efficiently than conventional manufacturing methods. The technology has applications across food production, pharmaceuticals and industrial manufacturing while requiring fewer natural resources.

Such advances reflect a growing effort to decouple economic growth from resource-intensive production systems.

Emerging Technologies 2026 Reveal the Next Frontier of AI and Computing

Artificial intelligence continues to evolve beyond today’s machine-learning models.

The report highlights World Models, a new class of AI systems capable of building sophisticated representations of physical environments. By combining multiple forms of data, these systems may help machines better predict outcomes, plan actions and interact with the real world. Applications could range from robotics and autonomous vehicles to industrial automation.

At the same time, advances in quantum computing are forcing researchers to rethink cybersecurity.

One response is Lattice-Based Cryptography, a form of encryption designed to remain secure even against future quantum computers. As quantum machines become more powerful, such technologies may play a crucial role in protecting financial systems, government infrastructure and personal data.

A Future That Is More Local, Personal and Resilient

Viewed individually, each of these technologies addresses a specific challenge. Together, however, they reveal a broader trend.

Energy generation is becoming more distributed. Healthcare is becoming more personalised. Manufacturing is becoming more efficient. Critical resources are moving closer to the people who need them.

The World Economic Forum notes that scientific breakthroughs alone are not enough. Infrastructure, regulation, investment and public trust will ultimately determine whether these innovations achieve widespread adoption. Technologies that perform well in laboratories often face significant hurdles when scaled to real-world conditions.

Yet the report offers a glimpse of a future that looks markedly different from today’s systems—one where energy, healthcare and essential resources are more accessible, adaptable and resilient.

The coming decade may reveal whether these emerging technologies remain promising experiments or become the foundations of everyday life.

While concerns about AI-driven job disruption persist among young people in India, the country’s expanding digital workforce and rising investments are also opening up significant opportunities particularly in building AI-driven startups and participating in a rapidly evolving AI economy. India has been ranked 13th globally for AI-economy readiness in the QS World Future Skills Index 2027, highlighting its strengths while pointing to challenges that could shape its future trajectory.

India Gains Ground in the Global AI Race

The report, which evaluates 89 countries on their readiness to develop and apply skills in an AI-driven economy, underscores India’s rapid progress while flagging critical gaps in workforce preparedness. India also ranks first in South Asia and among lower-middle-income countries, reflecting its structural advantage despite persistent challenges.

“The size of India’s digital workforce is rapidly attaining a scale that few other countries can match. It already possesses the world’s largest IT workforce, and the largest number of tertiary-educated individuals in the world. These ingredients give India the potential to be the fastest-growing economy in the world over the next decade”, said, QS President, Nunzio Quacquarelli.

India’s rise is driven by the scale of its digital ecosystem. With the world’s largest IT workforce, about 5.8 million professionals and a substantial pool of graduates, the country is emerging as a significant player in the global AI landscape. This momentum is also visible at the city level, with Bengaluru ranking second in Asia’s AI-native cluster standings, behind Beijing, and 15th globally among the world’s top startup ecosystems, with a total ecosystem value of $153 billion.

Scale Without Skill? The Emerging AI Divide

Despite strong economic fundamentals reflected in a perfect economic capacity score of 100, and a fifth-place global ranking in the “Future of Work” category, India’s AI trajectory is increasingly defined by a widening skills gap. While AI investments reached $90 billion by early 2026 and could add up to $500 billion to the economy by 2030, the risk of uneven distribution of these gains remains high.

This emerging AI divide is most visible in the gap between industry demand and workforce readiness. India ranks 18th in skills alignment but drops sharply to 73rd in human capital, raising concerns over the quality and consistency of graduates. As automation accelerates, this imbalance could shape the country’s economic future. A key challenge lies in balancing AI-augmented jobs with AI-driven automation, as a larger share of India’s workforce remains vulnerable to displacement rather than productivity gains.

The Gap That Will Shape India’s AI Future

Sectors such as business process outsourcing and call centres face rising exposure to automation. While some may lag behind like in agriculture. Closing this divide will require systemic reform. Beyond upskilling, there is an urgent need for lifelong learning and closer alignment between education policy, industry demand, and institutional frameworks. With rapid stronger collaboration between academia and employers, and reforms like National Education Policy 2020 India can reach its AI ambitions.

As AI reshapes global economies, both the challenge and opportunity for India lies in whether it can convert its vast human capital into a skilled, future-ready workforce capable of sustaining long-term growth.