In Q1 2026, Samsung Electronics finalized DRAM contracts with price increases exceeding 100%—a dramatic escalation from the 70% projection just weeks earlier. Even Apple Inc. reportedly accepted the hike to secure LPDDR5X supply for its upcoming devices.
The driver is clear: AI infrastructure.
Hyperscalers such as NVIDIA, Microsoft, and Google are absorbing wafer capacity for HBM production, creating a structural shortage of conventional DRAM and NAND. Analysts at Gartner and IDC project AI data centers could consume up to 70% of high-end DRAM output in 2026.
The 2026 “Rampocalypse” is not cyclical—it is structural. When memory pricing doubles, hardware economics reset across the digital economy.
https://www.buysellram.com/blog/samsungs-100-dram-price-hike-and-why-even-apple-had-to-pay-up/
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