The demand driven by artificial intelligence continues to exceed the supply of DRAM and NAND memory, with effects that will be felt for a long time across PCs, smartphones, and the automotive industry.
Micron, one of the world’s top three memory chip producers, has warned that the shortage of DRAM and NAND flash memory will continue not only through 2026 but beyond. This highlights how the semiconductor industry is undergoing a structural transformation powered by AI.
AI Demand Surges Beyond Supply
During the latest investor call, CEO Sanjay Mehrotra made it clear that memory supply will remain significantly below demand for the foreseeable future. The reason is simple: the rapid rise of artificial intelligence workloads is consuming an unprecedented amount of resources.
Financially, Micron reported record quarterly revenue of $13.64 billion, compared to $8.71 billion in the same period last year. Yet behind those numbers lies a fragile balance between growth and capacity.
In recent months, Micron made a symbolic but important decision: to retire its well-known consumer brand, Crucial, to focus on high-performance memory for AI data centers. At the center of this shift is HBM (High Bandwidth Memory), a key technology for training and running AI models. This type of memory uses up to three times more silicon wafers than traditional DRAM, reducing production capacity for chips used in PCs, smartphones, vehicles, and industrial devices.
Micron plans to increase DRAM and NAND shipments by about 20% next year. However, the company admits that this will not be enough to close the gap between supply and demand. The issue is not only about quantity but also timing. The new factories announced in the United States will not begin operating until late 2027 (Idaho) and even 2030 (New York) — timelines that clash with the current pace of the AI market.
The Impact on Everyday Consumers
The ongoing memory shortage is likely to cause a chain reaction. Higher prices, limited availability, and slower upgrade cycles may become the norm for PCs, smartphones, and cars, all competing for the same production resources.
At the same time, the industry’s direction seems clear: AI comes first. As long as profit margins remain higher in data centers, the consumer market will struggle to regain priority.
