Apple (AAPL) is preparing to ship a foldable iPhone priced around $2,000 later this year, and Citi (C) thinks volumes will reach into the millions almost immediately.

The rest of the market is still pretending this is a curiosity product. It is not.

According to Citi analyst Atif Malik, Apple will introduce the foldable iPhone at its fall event alongside the next Pro models.

Shipments could hit about 8 million units in 2026 and climb toward 20 million in 2027. That is roughly 3% of total iPhone volume next year, at a price point that is nearly double today’s flagship phones.

Apple stock has lagged AI leaders, weighed down by trade tension headlines and a long running narrative that the company is out of innovation ideas. The foldable iPhone directly challenges that narrative.

The disruption behind the news: iPhone Fold is a distraction from Apple changing its revenue model.

At $2,000, Apple does not need mass adoption for this product to matter.

Eight million units at that price equals $16 billion in revenue.

That is before accessories, AppleCare, or higher margin services usage from a wealthier user base. For context, that is roughly the annual revenue of a Fortune 100 company, created by a single niche device line.

The real disruption is psychological. Apple has trained consumers to see $1,200 as the ceiling for a phone. A foldable iPhone breaks that ceiling permanently. Once Apple establishes a $2,000 anchor price, future Pro models at $1,300 to $1,500 feel reasonable. That gives Apple room to offset rising component costs without sparking backlash.

This also changes upgrade behavior. More than one third of US iPhone buyers already hold onto their phones for three years or more. Foldables are not about speeding up upgrades for everyone. They are about pulling forward upgrades from the most valuable users. The top 10 to 15 percent of Apple’s base drives a disproportionate share of profit. These users buy early, buy high storage tiers, and subscribe to services. Apple is targeting them directly.

Competition should be worried. Samsung and Chinese OEMs have spent years normalizing foldables, eating the R and D risk and supply chain pain. Apple gets to enter once yields are acceptable and pricing power is proven. That is classic Apple. The difference this time is scale. When Apple moves even cautiously, the supply chain moves with it.

What to watch next

First, watch pricing discipline. If Apple holds the line at around $2,000 and still ships millions, the entire premium smartphone market reprices upward over the next 24 months.

Second, watch capacity. Citi’s 20 million unit estimate for 2027 implies Apple believes foldables can reach roughly one in ten iPhone Pro buyers. That would force competitors to either accept lower margins or retreat from the high end.

Third, watch services attachment. A foldable iPhone paired with AI powered Siri using Google Gemini models is not just a hardware play. It is a bet that larger screens and longer daily usage unlock more subscription revenue per user.

This is Apple reminding the market how it actually grows. Not by chasing trends, but by redefining what people are willing to pay. If the foldable iPhone works, $2,000 phones become normal, and everyone else is stuck selling yesterday’s products at yesterday’s prices.

Apple (AAPL) has a Disruption Score of 2.

Click here to learn how we calculate the Disruption Score.