# AI Demand Triggers Memory Chip Shortage Through 2028

> AI's hunger for hardware is bending the entire semiconductor market. Analysts now expect AI data centers to consume around 70 percent of all memory chip output, touching off a shortage that looks set to run through 2027 and into 2028. Big tech is on track to spend roughly 650 billion dollars on chips in 2026, up about 80 percent from an already record 2025. The squeeze is not confined to memory. AI-related orders take up nearly 60 percent of leading-edge N3 output, elbowing aside automotive customers whose orders get deprioritized. Raw materials are tight too, with helium prices doubling after 2026 strikes hit Qatari production and copper touching record highs. The bottleneck is also human. The industry reckons it needs more than a million extra skilled workers by 2030, and no real relief is expected before 2028. The takeaway is uncomfortable for anyone assuming AI costs only fall: the physical supply chain underneath the models is straining, and that strain ripples out to cars, electronics, and beyond.

_Section: [Daily AI Updates](https://www.wortins.com/daily-ai) · Source: Manufacturing Dive · Published Thursday, July 9, 2026_

## Wortins' read

AI's hunger for hardware is bending the entire semiconductor market. Analysts now expect AI data centers to consume around 70 percent of all memory chip output, touching off a shortage that looks set to run through 2027 and into 2028. Big tech is on track to spend roughly 650 billion dollars on chips in 2026, up about 80 percent from an already record 2025. The squeeze is not confined to memory. AI-related orders take up nearly 60 percent of leading-edge N3 output, elbowing aside automotive customers whose orders get deprioritized. Raw materials are tight too, with helium prices doubling after 2026 strikes hit Qatari production and copper touching record highs. The bottleneck is also human. The industry reckons it needs more than a million extra skilled workers by 2030, and no real relief is expected before 2028. The takeaway is uncomfortable for anyone assuming AI costs only fall: the physical supply chain underneath the models is straining, and that strain ripples out to cars, electronics, and beyond.

## Source

[Read the full story at Manufacturing Dive](https://www.manufacturingdive.com/news/opinion-omdia-ai-semiconductor-chip-scarcity/817172/)

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