The world is facing a memory chip crisis, which is a component of almost everything, from smartphones, laptops to servers, cars and cloud infrastructure.
At the end of 2025, supply will tighten to the point of increasing prices every week in some markets. This forces large buyers to compete to ensure allocation.
This tightening supply is being driven by the demand for advanced memory chips from artificial intelligence (AI) data centers. At the same time, manufacturers are shifting production capacity from lower-yield components to conventional equipment.
For consumers, this change has been clearly shown on the shelves: Compared to the summer, many PC memories on the market are priced 50-100% higher, and some standard 32GB RAM sets are increasing in price strongly, approaching tens of millions of VND.
This increase has a clear motivation: AI data centers are buying memory on a new scale because AI servers need significantly more memory than regular systems. This causes large technology companies to place large orders to ensure supply.
At the same time, the three largest memory manufacturers - Samsung Electronics, SK Hynix and Micron Technology - are prioritizing a high-end, super-fast RAM built for AI accelerators (high-band memory, or HBM). The shift of their most advanced manufacturing direction to new products has caused a decline in the number of "normal" chips for phones, PCs and consumer memory.
Supply crisis
A clear sign of scarcity is Micron's decision to discontinuate the Crucial consumer RAM product line in early 2026, to shift production to AI customers and higher-priced data centers.
The current competition is so tense that US technology giants such as Microsoft and Google are said to have asked Micron to provide all the memory that the company can transport.
Meanwhile, Chinese companies led by ByteDance are pushing for more distribution from Samsung and SK Hynix. Samsung even negotiated the delivery of quarterly memory with its own smartphone unit instead of signing a long-term contract. Industry sources described the simply "everyone as asking for supply" mood.
The AI explosion has not only increased demand but also reshaped the memory decentralization system. Consumers are starting to feel the tightening through daily utilities.
Xiaomi and Realme have warned that memory costs are rising too fast, they may have to increase smartphone prices, especially in the mid-range and low-end segments. PC buyers and gamers are also not affected slightly by the change in RAM prices.
Analysts predict the shortage will last longer than the latest rally. The construction and expansion of new memory factories will take many years. Current forecasts point to tight supply and high prices lasting until at least 2027.
