This is why we can’t have nice things… 

If you thought the AI boom was done punching random parts of the economy in the throat… think again. Because now it’s coming for memory. But not “memory” like my childhood trama memory. Memory as in RAM… a.k.a., the boring little component in your laptop that used to cost $80 and now apparently needs a payment plan.

(Source: Reddit) 

In short, according to reports, AI memory is basically sold out for 2026, and prices are doing the kind of move that makes consumers start Googling “how to live without a computer.” TrendForce says average DRAM prices are expected to jump 50% to 55% this quarter vs. Q4 2025. They called it “unprecedented.” Translation: this is the part where your next laptop costs $400 more and Best Buy employees start sweating. Why is this happening, you ask? Because AI chips are absolute hogs. 

Nvidia, AMD, and Google are guzzling memory like it’s free, and they’re first in line. Everyone else gets what’s left, which is basically crumbs and a shrug. That said, the real villain here is HBM (high-bandwidth memory), the special fast stuff AI GPUs need to run their internet brains at full capacity. Meaning, HBM isn’t just “more RAM”. It’s RAM on steroids, made through a stacked process where companies like Micron layer 12 to 16 sheets of memory into a single chip “cube”... and yet, just so happens to be a supply chain nightmare when clenched. 

(Source: CNBC) 

For instance, Micron’s own exec straight up said the quiet part: when they make one bit of HBM, they have to give up making three bits of regular memory. So yeah… your gaming PC is getting sacrificed at the altar of ChatGPT. Meanwhile, memory makers are obviously prioritizing servers and HBM because that’s where the money is and the customers are less price-sensitive. Cloud giants don’t care if the price is up 50%. They’ll just buy it anyway and charge you $30/month for the privilege of generating an email.

Regular consumers? Good luck, king.

Heck, Micron even discontinued part of its consumer PC memory business recently so it could save supply for AI chips and servers. All while the numbers are getting stupid. Case in point: A tech guy posted that he bought 256GB of RAM a few months ago for about $300. Now that same RAM would run him around $3,000. Holy inflation. Naturally, the winners here are the three memory overlords that basically control the entire market: Micron, SK Hynix, and Samsung. Micron stock is up like a friggin’ memecoin, profits are ripping, and SK Hynix is even considering a U.S. listing while demand runs wild. 

(Source: Instagram) 

On the other hand, analysts have been asking Apple and Dell what they’re going to do if memory stays tight. Because memory is now like 20% of the hardware cost of a laptop, up from the teens earlier last year. Which means, you’re you’re either paying more, or companies are eating margin. And spoiler: they’re not eating margin. Dell already hinted costs are rising and retail prices will feel it. Apple tried to downplay it a few months ago like “nothing to note there,” which is a hilarious thing to say right before your supply chain starts catching fire. Even Jensen Huang got asked if gamers are going to resent AI because it’s making graphics cards more expensive. Jensen’s response of course was the obvious: “We just need more factories”. 

Which is true, but those factories also take years. Micron is building new fabs in Idaho that start producing in 2027 and 2028. New York comes online in 2030. So yes, help is coming… in the same way retirement is coming. Until then, we’re in the squeeze. So yeah… congrats to Nvidia. Congrats to Micron. Congrats to anyone holding memory names. And RIP to your next laptop upgrade. Until next time, friends… 

At the time of publishing, Stocks.News holds positions in Apple, Dell, and Google as mentioned in the article.