The surge in AI data centers has created a substantial need for memory capacity. Consequently, DRAM prices, which serve as a major memory source for computers, have skyrocketed. Current prices have reached a high level, with little expectation of a decrease until mid-next year. As cloud service providers continue to expand their data centers, TrendForce indicates that contract prices for server DRAM are rising, significantly impacting both DDR4 and DDR5 memory. Notably, overall DRAM demand is expected to surpass previous predictions, further extending the current supply shortage.
In 2026, worldwide server shipments are predicted to increase by approximately 4%, driven primarily by cloud service companies shifting rapidly towards high-performance computing (HPC) platforms to manage large AI models. This shift is markedly raising memory requirements per server. Although final contract prices for the fourth quarter are still under negotiation, major cloud companies are ramping up their orders, prompting suppliers to actively pursue price increases. TrendForce has revised its fourth-quarter price forecast for general DRAM from an 8-13% rise to an 18-23% increase, with further hikes considered likely. However, this remains a conservative estimate as pricing trends vary based on company scale and purchasing power, leading to significantly higher spot market prices for DRAM chips compared to March.
👉 Pročitaj original: CIO Magazine
