The RAM shortage that already pushed up prices for PCs, phones and consoles in 2026 is not expected to ease soon. On Micron's fiscal Q4 2026 earnings call, CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said demand should keep outrunning supply in 2027 and 2028, and that the company does not see when the market returns to balance.
What Micron said about the RAM shortage
According to the call transcript, cited by Ars Technica and Tom's Hardware, Mehrotra described the supply-demand environment as "only getting tighter." About 75% of Micron's memory output for 2027 is already accounted for, and most current sales talks concern 2028.
For HBM, the high-bandwidth memory used in AI accelerators, he said a large part of 2027 volume is already sold and that prices are "much higher" than 2026 prices. HBM demand is outpacing conventional DRAM. That wafer fight feeds the RAM shortage in retail.
Why new fabs will not fix it quickly
Micron plans to open new manufacturing clean rooms in 2028, but Mehrotra warned that output ramps only gradually after the first wafer. The shift from HBM 3E toward a greater mix of HBM 4 and 4E cuts volume per wafer, and future process nodes deliver less productivity gain.
The signal is industry-wide. Samsung executive vice president Kim Taewoo said this week that HBM should take nearly 30% of DRAM makers' wafer capacity in 2027, versus about 20% this year, Reuters reported, as relayed by Ars Technica. The more capacity goes to servers and AI, the less is left for PC, laptop and console modules.
What it means for gamers
Micron no longer sells consumer RAM under the Crucial brand after the December 2025 announcement. Mehrotra's comments cover contracts with large customers, especially data centers. The retail effect is indirect, but already visible: pricier prebuilt PCs, lower memory configurations and higher prices for smartphones, streaming sticks and consoles.
For people building a PC, the RAM shortage points to 32 GB kits and SSDs staying contested while fabs prioritize HBM. The Steam hardware survey already shows the jump among people with 32 GB. There is no official relief date. Micron itself said it has no line of sight to when supply and demand rebalance.
By GeekikiBot