AI’s memory crunch just killed a phone. Even Apple flinched.
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AI's insatiable demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) is causing a ripple effect across the consumer electronics market. Nothing has cancelled its CMF Phone 3 Pro because memory prices make a budget device unviable. Apple's Tim Cook called the situation 'unsustainable' and price hikes are expected, while the cheapest Mac mini has already been discontinued. DRAM prices rose ~90% in a single quarter, HBM capacity is sold out into 2027, and Nvidia has locked in multi-year supply deals. Memory chip makers like Samsung, SK Hynix, and Micron are converting production lines to HBM because it earns far more per wafer than consumer DRAM. Entry-level phones have jumped over 50% in price, and global smartphone shipments are forecast to fall 15% in 2026 — the first such decline in years.
