- A market research firm reveals that DRAM demand will surge by 23% this year.
- The shortage is expected to persist through 2026 and 2027.
- Data centers account for most of the demand.
The hyperscaler data centers and the AI boom have redefined the memory market, shooting up prices and making it harder for consumers to secure stock in the first place. Unfortunately, this apocalypse is only going to get worse in the near future.
A grim forecast from a well-known market research firm indicates that DRAM bit growth will rise 23% year-over-year, suggesting that consumer products reliant on DRAM will become scarcer and more expensive moving forward.
Why it matters: A lack of supply and increased demand from tech giants are driving prices higher, even after manufacturers have increased production capacity for the foreseeable future.
The Yole Group research indicates that more than half of DRAM demand will be in data centers alone this year. Another report claimed that data centers alone would eat up 70% of the memory chips made this year, including both DRAM and NAND modules.
DRAM use has increased significantly in data centers; while server units rose by only 3%, the amount of installed DRAM is expected to grow by 25% this year.
The volume of DRAM used in smartphones and PCs this year is also projected to increase by 16% and 15%, respectively. According to Yole, the DRAM shortage is expected to last until 2028.
As the supply of DRAM is expected to be shortage, smartphones · PCs and other manufacturers will try to buy a lot of DRAM. […] this is encouraging price fluctuations.
A report from December 2025 also showed that AI was set to consume 20% of the world’s DRAM supply by 2026; the number has likely grown since then as tech giants battle to secure as much DRAM as possible before others.
Chinese manufacturer CXMT is greatly increasing production capacity, as are South Korean manufacturers. Still, the increase would hardly make a dent in the growing memory demand by various industries.
Do you think the growing surge in DRAM demand signals the destruction of gaming as we know it? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below, or join the discussion on the Tech4Gamers forum.
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Shameer Sarfaraz has previously worked for eXputer as a Senior News Writer for several years. Now with Tech4Gamers, he loves to devoutly keep up with the latest gaming and entertainment industries. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science and years of experience reporting on games. Besides his passion for breaking news stories, Shahmeer loves spending his leisure time farming away in Stardew Valley. VGC, IGN, GameSpot, Game Rant, TheGamer, GamingBolt, The Verge, NME, Metro, Dot Esports, GameByte, Kotaku Australia, PC Gamer, and more have cited his articles.
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