Apple COO Sabih Khan acknowledged shipping delays for the new iPhone Duo during the company's fiscal fourth-quarter earnings call on Monday, stating it is 'hard to predict when supply and demand will be in balance.' Customers who did not secure preorders are seeing delivery times stretch into next year, while Verizon has been apologizing to its customers for the delays by offering gift cards. Earlier, the Financial Times reported that demand for the Duo was 'nothing short of extraordinary,' after the device sold out on Apple's website within hours of going on sale, pushing delivery dates into next year. Apple CEO John Ternus noted the early response from reviewers and customers has been 'thrilled,' and the company is working to get the product into customers' hands as quickly as possible. To address supply constraints, Apple is deepening its partnership with Perryman, a titanium producer for supplying materials for the new foldable device. The delays are notable given Apple's reputation for a highly efficient supply chain, but the company is not alone in facing supply pressures. Soaring demand for memory chips from the AI industry has driven up component costs for hardware makers across the board, threatening to push device prices higher. Apple, too, has raised prices on a number of products, Khan noted on the call, adding that those decisions were made 'reluctantly.'