Another day, another company says the current memory crisis that’s driving up RAM prices is far from over. This time it’s Micron, one of three companies – Samsung and SK Hynix are the others – that have been accused of worsening the RAM crisis by fixing prices through American trial.
CEO Sanjay Mehrotra confirmed that Micron has already sold most of the memory they will make next year during an earnings call regarding the company’s fiscal 2026 results (via The register). Those who buy RAM next year will also pay “much higher prices” than those who buy this year, he added.
“In calendar years 2027 and 2028, we see demand outpacing supply,” Mehrotra said. “In fact, we see greater tension in the industry in 2027 and 2028 compared to 2026. Overall, the supply-demand environment is only getting tighter. We do not have visibility on when supply and demand will return to balance.”
In the meantime, Micron will continue to rake in profits by selling to both AI companies and consumers, with the type of RAM the latter group needing severely limited by companies shifting to order fulfillment from AI data centers. Hence the higher prices of consumer memory and Mehrotra’s chatter about waterproofing.
The fact that none of Micron, Samsung and SK Hynix have decided to take advantage of the industry’s drive to deliver AI by reversing course to meet the unmet demand left on the consumer memory side, likely making a lot of money by selling RAM at a more reasonable price for regular devices, is at the center of this ongoing US lawsuit. Basically, the three trios are accused of not acting as true competitors should in order to fix prices, the kind of practice for which all three have been fined or avoided a fine through their cooperation with authorities. in previous decades.
For now, chipmakers can only continue to see gaudy profit margins and hordes of people completely ticked off that they can’t upgrade or replace certain PC parts without giving up their firstborns.
