Puya semiconductor(SH:688766) Sou Hu Cai Jing·2025-09-21 13:16Core Viewpoint - The demand for AI is driving a significant increase in storage chip prices, with reports indicating potential price hikes of 20% to 30% for various memory products, although official announcements from companies like Micron Technology have not yet been made [1][3]. Group 1: Market Dynamics - Micron Technology has paused pricing for all DDR4, DDR5, LPDDR4, and LPDDR5 products, indicating a shift in the market dynamics due to rising demand [1]. - The storage market is experiencing a surge, particularly in DRAM prices, which have seen a significant increase since Q2 2025, while NAND prices have risen more moderately [3]. - The supply-demand imbalance is tilting towards sellers, leading to a price increase trend that is expected to continue through the end of the year [3][6]. Group 2: AI Impact on Storage Demand - The explosion of data generated by AI is straining global data center storage, leading to shortages in traditional HDDs and a shift towards high-performance SSDs, particularly QLC SSDs, which are expected to see explosive growth by 2026 [4]. - The demand for high-performance storage products like DDR5 RDIMM and eSSD is increasing as tech companies accelerate data center construction to support AI applications [4]. - The global server NAND Flash bit demand is projected to grow at a staggering rate of 99.5% in 2024, indicating a robust market for high-performance storage driven by AI [4]. Group 3: Company Strategies - Domestic manufacturers are responding to rising storage prices by ramping up procurement of DRAM and NAND Flash products, as demand from North American cloud service providers remains strong [5][6]. - Companies are actively developing high-performance storage solutions to meet the challenges posed by varying AI workloads, including new memory technologies like CXL2.0 and MRDIMM [7]. - The focus on niche markets is expected to benefit from the shift in AI processing from cloud to edge devices, with products like Nor Flash and SLC NAND being widely used in mobile and wearable devices [7][10]. Group 4: Price Trends and Future Outlook - East China Semiconductor has reported a gradual recovery in sales prices for niche storage chips, with SLC NAND prices showing signs of increase since Q2 [8]. - The market is awaiting significant product releases that could drive volume, with companies like Puran announcing plans to acquire technology firms to enhance their NAND offerings [9]. - The overall sentiment in the storage industry is optimistic, with expectations of a broad market boom driven by AI applications [10].