Nand Flash Crisis Deepens: Prices Surge 50 Overnight
The NAND flash industry is currently experiencing a severe shortage, with prices skyrocketing by as …
12. March 2026
Seagates Supercycle Warning: Ai-Driven Memory Price Hikes Threaten Industry Stability
The Storage Industry Braces for a New Normal: Seagate CCO Describes Memory Price Hikes as ‘Supercycle’Driven by AI Growth
The entry-level PC market is on track to “disappear” by 2028, as rising memory prices pile more strain on the consumer PC market, highlighting the unprecedented nature of current market conditions.
Seagate Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) Ban-Seng Teh has described current market conditions as a “supercycle” driven by artificial intelligence (AI) data center demand, which shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. According to Teh, memory price hikes have become “the new normal” for the storage industry.
The recent surge in DRAM prices is significant, with server DRAM contract prices forecast to rise by over 90% quarter-over-quarter in Q1 2026 , according to TrendForce. This represents the steepest single-quarter increase on record, driven by worsening supply-demand imbalances and cloud service providers pulling forward orders to secure allocations.
PC DRAM prices are also expected to more than double quarterly over the same period , also a record. These price hikes have significant implications for companies like Seagate.
Despite being one of the largest players in the industry, Seagate’s use of memory is modest relative to PC makers or hyperscale data center operators. However, this does not mean that the company can avoid the rising costs and subsequent price hikes necessary to maintain its margins.
“We’ve definitely seen increasing costs from rising DRAM prices,” Teh confirmed , as the company struggles to maintain its profit margins.
Another factor contributing to the price pressure on Seagate is volatile oil prices , which have surged due to recent conflicts in the Middle East. Crude briefly rose to a four-year high of nearly $120 a barrel in the past few days before retreating below $100.
In contrast to previous cycles, where prices tended to follow historical patterns of recovery , Teh described current market conditions as “very unusual”. The industry is facing an unprecedented demand-supply imbalance driven by AI growth.
“This growth has pushed the industry toward higher areal densities,” Teh explained , as the industry adapts to the changing demands of AI and cloud computing.
Seagate has responded to this trend by launching its Mozaic 4+ platform , which uses heat-assisted magnetic recording (HAMR) technology to achieve higher storage densities. The company began shipping its next-generation hard drive to two unnamed hyperscale cloud providers at capacities up to 44TB per drive.
Seagate CEO Dave Mosley stated that the company’s nearline hard drive capacity is on allocation through the end of 2026 , with supply agreements in place with major cloud customers extending into 2027. This suggests that consumers looking for a break from high storage prices are unlikely to see relief anytime soon.
The AI-driven demand-supply imbalance has pushed the industry towards higher areal densities , with Seagate’s Mozaic 4+ platform representing a significant step forward in this area. The company’s focus on efficient storage solutions is likely to continue as the industry adapts to the changing demands of AI and cloud computing.
As Teh noted , “It’s hard to tell if it will last forever." However, one thing is clear: the current market conditions are driven by a combination of factors, including AI growth, supply-demand imbalances, and volatile oil prices. The storage industry must adapt to these changing trends in order to meet the growing demands of cloud computing and AI.
Original Source
- [Read the full article here](https://aiwirenews.com/posts/seagate-s-supercycle-warning-ai-driven-memory-price-hikes-caf8ec/)
Related Articles
- Entry-level PC market to ‘disappear’ by 2028 — rising memory prices pile more strain on consumer PC market
- Phison CEO says that NAND prices hiked by around 50% overnight, highlighting severe shortage in the industry — warns ‘our current concern is that both money and inventory are insufficient’
- Framework raises RAM prices for the third time in three months, SSD costs up — company warns that it’s running out of stock on some Intel processors as well
- Micron exits consumer business as AI demand reshapes priorities