The ongoing memory shortage isn’t expected to improve anytime soon. Samsung has warned that supply conditions could become even tighter in 2027, with constraints potentially continuing into 2028 as demand for AI hardware consumes more of the industry’s available memory production capacity.

During its latest earnings call, Samsung revealed that its entire High Bandwidth Memory (HBM) supply for 2027 has already been booked. High Bandwidth Memory has become increasingly important for AI accelerators and data centers, and the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure is putting enormous pressure on memory manufacturers to increase production.

The problem is that producing more advanced HBM isn’t as simple as increasing output. Samsung explained that newer generations such as HBM4E and HBM5 require larger dies and more metal processing layers than their predecessors. At the same time, manufacturers are shifting some of their production capacity away from conventional DRAM and toward HBM. Samsung believes these factors will create physical limits on how quickly overall memory supply can grow.

Samsung expects tight supply conditions to continue

The company is increasing its investment to deal with the growing demand, but it doesn’t expect the additional spending to immediately result in a major increase in memory output. Samsung expects tight supply conditions to continue into 2028, suggesting that shortages could remain a problem for the technology industry for at least another couple of years.

Demand isn’t limited to AI companies either. Samsung says more customers are looking to secure memory through long-term agreements. The company has already signed such deals with 10 major customers, and these agreements are expected to account for around 60% to 70% of its total production capacity. Interest is also spreading beyond hyperscale data centers to industries including mobile devices, automotive technology, and networking.

Samsung is continuing to expand its high-end memory lineup in response. HBM4 production is being ramped up, while HBM4E is scheduled to enter mass production during the first half of 2027, followed by higher-volume production later in the year. The company is also seeing strong demand for high-speed DDR5 memory rated at 8,000 MT/s and above.

All of this suggests that the current memory shortage could become more challenging before it gets better. With AI companies competing for huge amounts of HBM and other industries trying to secure their own long-term supply, 2027 could bring even greater pressure on the global memory market.

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Abdul Haddi

Abdul is a tech writer and Editor for PC Guide, specializing in all things tech, gaming, and hardware.