As demand for memory semiconductors for artificial intelligence (AI) servers surges and drives DRAM prices sharply higher, PC and laptop makers are expected to face increased cost pressures. PC companies that had prepared new lineups of AI PCs are now being forced to adjust launch schedules or lower product specifications due to the sudden cost burden.
According to industry sources on the 1st, global PC manufacturers are on high alert to secure profitability as prices of DRAM (including DDR5), a core component, have jumped 70% from a year earlier, with some items soaring as much as 170%. Overseas companies such as Lenovo, HP and Dell, as well as Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, are reportedly reviewing product road maps for next year, including AI PCs and tablet PCs.
The impact is especially severe for AI PCs, which are becoming the new standard in the laptop market, due to rising memory prices. Because AI PCs have a minimum standard RAM capacity of 16 gigabytes (GB), the increase in DRAM prices is directly reflected in product costs. On top of that, equipping high-performance solid-state drives (SSD) is also essential, sharply increasing production expense.
Given that the biggest obstacle to the popularization of AI PCs in the consumer market has been their high prices, it is not a situation where list prices for new products can be easily raised. Conversely, cutting specifications to save costs is difficult because the hardware levels required by recently offered AI software and services are high. They have to either raise prices or lower performance, but neither choice is easy.
The problem is that the upward trend in memory prices is likely to continue into next year. Market researcher TrendForce projected that shortages of DRAM and NAND flash will persist through 2026. TrendForce said, "DRAM module companies are delaying actual product launch schedules or setting plans conservatively." Lenovo is already preparing for a long-term battle by "stockpiling" DRAM that has risen as far as it can. As of the end of this year, Lenovo is said to have secured more than 50% higher memory inventories than usual.
HP also said on a recent earnings conference call that memory expense has reached 15%–18% of general PC expense. This is estimated to be nearly double compared with a year earlier. Another PC maker, Dell, said, "There has never been a time when memory expense has risen this fast," adding, "We will do our best to minimize the impact, but it is true that the cost baseline of all products is rising."
A domestic PC company official said, "The AI PC trend is not stopping, but it is true that it has become difficult to launch AI PCs at reasonable prices that consumers expected," adding, "PC corporations have no choice but to delay launches or redesign products rather than reduce margins."
Meanwhile, as cost burdens on finished goods corporations intensify, Intel, AMD and Qualcomm, which supply central processing units (CPU) to those corporations, are also being hit in succession. In particular, the three companies had planned to ramp up supply of CPUs for AI PCs, which began in earnest this year, but as PC makers fail to secure sufficient DRAM, the overall scale of production itself is increasingly likely to shrink.