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AI-Fueled Memory Shortage Deepens as Prices Climb and Relief Slips to 2027–2028

Fabs need years to expand.

Prices for laptops, smartphones and game consoles are rising sharply as a global chip shortage worsens, driven in part by demand from AI systems. Apple’s Mac Studio is shown paired with the 27-inch Studio Display and the optional Magic Trackpad and Magic Keyboard with TouchID and numeric keypad.
Prices for laptops, smartphones and game consoles are rising sharply as a global chip shortage worsens, driven in part by demand from AI systems. A Sony PlayStation 5 video game console is for sale in 2023.
© CHRIS DELMAS/AFP via Getty Images
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Overview

  • New reporting cites output plans of about 7.5% growth a year versus roughly 12% needed, pointing to a supply gap that likely lasts into 2027 and could extend to 2028.
  • Samsung, SK Hynix and Micron are prioritizing high-bandwidth memory for AI servers, squeezing supplies of standard DRAM and NAND used in phones and PCs.
  • High-bandwidth memory is a stacked, ultra-fast type of RAM designed to feed AI chips, and the shift toward it is starving consumer devices of more common parts.
  • Manufacturers are raising device prices as costs spike, with Microsoft lifting Surface models by up to $500 and Meta, Raspberry Pi and Samsung also posting increases.
  • Samsung’s Pyeongtaek complex is not expected to reach full-scale output until next year, and Reuters reported a court action in a union dispute that could slow progress.