It's price matched with the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 4 that's a direct form factor competitor. There are some more mid market competitors but they're not on their own out there at 1800 USD.
The most expensive iPhone is $1699, which is a 14 pro max with a whopping 1 TB of storage. With 128gb it’s only $1099.
I agree, seems pretty aggressive.
Does the iphone doubles in size and lets you carry around a minitablet? If not it's a pointless comparison.
A 1000$ iphone is closer to a 300$ pixel 6 than the pixel fold.
A $1000 iPhone leaves enough left over for an iPad (even pro, almost).
Of course, that's not directly comparable, but it's notable.
For pointful comparison, it's also important to consider that nowadays people pay $$$ for camera. For this perspective, Pixel Fold is closer to Pixel 6 than iPhone Pro.
1TB iPhone pro max is $1,600, not $1,700.
A comparable Pixel 7 Pro can be bought for $450ish with discounts. The iphone pricing does not even come close