AI Chip Costs Force Xbox to Raise Prices After PlayStation as GTA VI Release Looms

Microsoft raised Xbox Series X prices by $150 to $749 this week, blaming soaring memory chip costs. The hike follows Sony's earlier PlayStation 5 price increase and lands months before Grand Theft Auto VI's November 19 launch.

Xbox's Series S rose 25% to $499, a steeper increase than Sony's $100 PlayStation 5 hike in March. Analysts say demand for artificial intelligence (AI) memory chips is squeezing console margins industrywide.

Rising Memory Costs Squeeze Hardware Margins

Microsoft's increase pushes the premium Xbox Series X to $749, up from $599. The base Series S now costs $499, up from $399.

Sony raised PlayStation 5 prices by $100 in March, citing global economic pressures. The console now retails at $649.99 in the US.

Piers Harding-Rolls of Ampere Analysis linked that increase to surging demand for random-access memory (RAM). Both consoles rely on RAM for short-term memory.

"With no sign of prices easing largely due to demand for AI infrastructure, Sony will have made the move to protect its slim hardware margins."

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