Samsung expects memory shortage to worsen through 2027 and last until 2028
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- Samsung warned on its Q2 earnings call that the RAM shortage will intensify in 2027 and persist through at least 2028, noting frontier AI labs are sharing long-term demand forecasts directly to lock in supply.
- Samsung — which manufactures roughly a third of the world's memory chips — is now prioritizing customers willing to sign long-term contracts, gaining multi-year visibility to ramp production.
- Samsung's semiconductor unit hit an all-time high in Q2, but profitability in its smartphone and TV divisions shrank as higher chip prices drove up component costs.
- Samsung passed those costs to consumers via higher Galaxy smartphone and tablet prices, and demand for the devices subsequently dropped.
- Apple raised prices on MacBooks, Macs, and iPads last month and warned that its quarterly revenue growth will slow to 9%–11% year-over-year, down from a recent 16% rate.
- Nvidia is expected to raise consumer graphics card prices by 20% to 30%, potentially pushing up costs across gaming PCs, consoles, and laptops.
Why it matters: Consumers face higher device prices through at least 2028 as memory makers retool for AI data centers. Samsung's smartphone and TV profits shrank even as its chip unit hit an all-time high, and Apple projects quarterly revenue growth slowing from 16% to 9%–11%. The same chips fueling the AI buildout are squeezing the consumer electronics pipeline.
