AI is eating your storage: SSD shortage sends prices soaring

TDT | agencies

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The world's growing appetite for artificial intelligence is creating an unexpected problem for ordinary computer users: storage is getting harder and more expensive to buy.

Demand from AI data centres is putting enormous pressure on the NAND flash market, the technology used in SSDs, memory cards and other storage devices. TrendForce says servers now account for more than 40 per cent of global NAND flash bit demand, while the market is expected to remain in deficit through 2026.

The squeeze is already being felt in the consumer market. SSD prices have risen sharply, with technology retailers reporting that reasonably priced drives can sell out quickly. The pressure has been linked to the rapid expansion of AI infrastructure, which requires vast quantities of high-capacity enterprise SSDs.

Enterprise SSD contract prices reportedly rose about 80 per cent in the first quarter of 2026, as AI infrastructure absorbed available NAND production.

The problem isn't simply that people are buying more SSDs. Manufacturers are also redirecting production towards higher-value products for data centres and AI systems, while existing factory capacity remains constrained.

TrendForce expects the situation to improve only gradually. It forecasts that NAND supply could begin to outpace demand in the second half of 2027, suggesting that consumers may have to live with elevated prices for some time.

For consumers planning to upgrade laptops, PCs, NAS systems or external storage, the message is becoming increasingly clear:

The days of cheap, ever-growing storage may be on hold — at least for now.