According to Micron's latest earnings report released in June, the memory chipmaker's revenue surged over 400% year-over-year in the fiscal quarter ending May, with operating margin reaching 80% and free cash flow hitting $18 billion. The surge stems from soaring demand for high-bandwidth memory (HBM) used in AI servers.
As Micron and competitors Samsung and SK Hynix shift production capacity toward higher-margin HBM, traditional DRAM and NAND Flash supplies for consumer devices face severe shortages. Apple has raised Mac and iPad prices by up to 20%, while Microsoft increased Xbox pricing by up to $150—the third hike in a year. Industry forecasts suggest laptop prices will climb 15–17% and smartphone prices 13% due to memory cost inflation. Analysts expect the shortage to persist until 2028, despite Micron's plan to boost capital expenditure to $40 billion next fiscal year.