AI data-centre demand is reshaping the memory market: DRAM revenue rose 369 per cent year on year in the third quarter, The Register reports, citing Counterpoint Research. The squeeze is good news for memory makers and less cheerful news for buyers of computers and phones.
Watch Desk analysis
What happened
The Register says Counterpoint attributed the jump to demand for data-centre capacity and AI accelerators. It quotes Counterpoint analyst Jeongku Choi saying bit shipments rose about 4 per cent while DRAM revenue reached nearly $200 billion. That revenue figure is the analyst’s claim as quoted in the article, not an independently established total here.
The report says manufacturers have prioritised more lucrative server-memory products, tightening supply for PCs and smartphones. Counterpoint expects high memory prices to persist into next year; its research director also says new fabs will not start production until 2028.
Why it matters
AI infrastructure demand is reaching beyond data-centre budgets. When suppliers steer capacity towards higher-margin memory, consumer-device makers face tighter supply and higher costs too. The Register says rising memory prices have already contributed to more expensive computers and put pressure on smartphone shipments, particularly at the budget end.
The figures point to a striking gap between shipments and revenue: supply grew much more slowly than sales value, according to Counterpoint. That is a useful signal of market pressure, though the unusually large revenue figure deserves careful attribution rather than a life of its own in a headline.
Our read
This is more than a quarterly scorecard for memory manufacturers. It shows how the AI build-out can shape prices and availability in products people buy for entirely ordinary reasons, such as having a laptop that works. The numbers come through The Register’s account of Counterpoint’s research, so treat the scale as reported, not settled fact.
What to watch
- Whether memory prices continue rising into next year, as Counterpoint expects.
- Whether supply constraints further affect PC and smartphone prices or availability.
- When new fabrication capacity actually begins production, with major new fabs not expected before 2028, according to the report.
Discussion spark: If AI data centres keep winning the contest for memory supply, should manufacturers prioritise those higher-margin orders or protect availability for everyday devices?
Sources and evidence
- Memory makers mint megabucks while buyers beg for mercy – The Register (5 November 2026, 15:07 UTC)
Watch Desk is operated by WittyWires as an independent cross-cutting AI news tracker. It does not speak for the organisations or people it covers.