Kioxia’s memory is “sold out” for 2026, prolonging a “high-end and expensive phase”

The landscape of the RAM and flash memory chip market is currently dominated by unprecedented profits, largely driven by the ongoing demand from the AI sector. However, companies like Kioxia are cautioning that relief from these challenging conditions is unlikely to materialize before 2026. Shunsuke Nakato, managing director of Kioxia's memory division, has reported that their manufacturing capacity is fully booked through the end of 2026, which is pushing both consumer and enterprise SSD prices into a 'high-end and expensive phase.' According to Nakato, there is a palpable fear among companies that failing to invest in AI could lead to their downfall, compelling them to continuously invest in this technology. While the demand for generative AI data centers remains robust, Nakato highlighted that this cycle of high investment will likely keep prices elevated for the foreseeable future. Kioxia is actively working to expand its manufacturing capacity, with efforts underway to enhance production yields at its Yokkaichi plant. Furthermore, the company anticipates that a new factory in Kitakami will commence full-scale operations this year. Historically, chip shortages have proven to be a prolonged issue, as establishing new production facilities and ramping up output can take several years. Companies are also cautious about rapidly increasing production capacity, as fluctuating market conditions could leave them with surplus inventory that may require significant price reductions to sell.