The supply shortage in the global memory (RAM) market is not expected to end in the short term. According to the latest information from industry sources, the production capacity of DRAM and high bandwidth memory (HBM) manufacturers for 2027 has been completely sold. On the NAND Flash side, although the table seems a little more flexible, the current capacity is expected to be largely reserved before the end of August. This development indicates that memory costs may continue to remain high in a wide range of products, from server systems to smartphones.
According to the news by DigiTimes based on industry sources; Samsung Electronics, Micron and SanDisk have also allocated their NAND production capacities to their customers for 2027. Kioxia and SK Hynix are expected to complete similar agreements by the end of August. The news states that manufacturers request advance payment or deposit from customers even if they have multi-year supply agreements. It is stated that this approach aims to meet the demands of large customers who want to secure limited production capacity earlier.
Artificial intelligence and data center investments increase memory demand
One of the main reasons for the deterioration of balance in the memory market is shown to be the recently accelerated data center investments of cloud service providers and artificial intelligence companies. The need for high-capacity DRAM and especially HBM solutions for training and running large-scale artificial intelligence models has significantly exhausted the current capacity of manufacturers. On the other hand, since it takes years for new production facilities to be built and put into operation at full capacity, the supply side cannot respond to the increase in demand at the same pace.
Industry sources report that in 2026, memory manufacturers are directing their existing production capacity to cloud infrastructure companies willing to pay higher prices. As a result, smaller manufacturers and consumer electronics-focused companies began to experience more difficulties in supplying memory. The same sources suggest that even some hyperscale data center operators are struggling to procure the amount of memory they need and are therefore making deals with manufacturers to secure 2027 capacity now.
In addition, it is pointed out that it is critical to reserve production capacity in the sector in July and August. According to the evaluation in the news, the fact that some buyers are not sufficiently aware of the importance of this calendar may be due to the fact that companies who do not want the capacity race to accelerate further prefer to remain silent. However, some sources think that the most difficult period in terms of memory supply will occur in 2027.
This table may also have direct consequences for smartphone and computer manufacturers. The memory quota allocated to consumer electronics manufacturers is expected to shrink due to the priority given to cloud service providers and artificial intelligence companies. As a result, it is stated that memory chips used in phones and computers will be more difficult to find and supplied at higher costs in 2027.
Apple is also among the companies affected by these developments in the global memory market. Although it is known that the company gains a certain amount of advantage thanks to long-term supply agreements, the tightness in memory supply causes Apple to also face cost pressure. In various allegations that have emerged before, it has been claimed that the company is evaluating alternative ways to supply from some memory manufacturers that are on the US sanctions list. These claims, which have not been officially confirmed, attract attention as they show the point that the supply pressure has reached throughout the sector.
On the other hand, the rise in memory prices affects not only manufacturers but also end users. Due to increasing component costs in recent years, many technology companies have updated their product prices upwards. If the tightness in production capacity continues through 2027, the cost pressure on RAM, SSD, smartphone and computer prices is expected to continue. Since it will take time for new production facilities to come into operation, it seems difficult to re-establish the balance of supply and demand in the memory market in the short term.
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