Morgan Stanley·2026-01-19 01:50Investment Rating - The report indicates a positive investment outlook for the memory sector, particularly in DRAM and NAND markets, driven by AI demand and expected price increases [1][2]. Core Insights - The memory industry is experiencing a capacity-constrained cycle, with order visibility extending significantly due to AI-driven demand. The risk lies more in execution and transformation rather than demand itself [1]. - A steeper price increase trend is anticipated, with DRAM, HBM, and NAND prices expected to rise rapidly. Innovations and architectural redesigns are enhancing memory efficiency, thereby lowering economic barriers for adoption and expanding the total addressable market for AI [2]. - The bottleneck in memory is becoming a critical challenge, with AI inference demanding significantly more memory capacity and performance than previous models. This shift is expected to drive substantial growth in DRAM and NAND demand [1][27]. Summary by Sections Memory Pricing and Demand - The report forecasts a steep upward cycle in memory pricing, with DRAM and NAND prices expected to increase significantly due to strong AI infrastructure demand. The analysis suggests that pure text AI inference could account for 35% of global DRAM supply and 92% of NAND supply by 2026 [2][39]. - Current supply chain dynamics indicate a tightening of inventory levels, necessitating accelerated capital expenditures, particularly in DRAM, with expectations of substantial greenfield expansions starting in 2027 [2][43]. Investment Opportunities - The report highlights specific companies as favorable investment targets, including Samsung, SK Hynix, Micron in the DRAM space, and traditional memory manufacturers like Winbond. It also points to semiconductor equipment firms benefiting from increased capital expenditures [3][11]. - The focus is on companies that are positioned to benefit from the memory bottleneck, particularly those with strong pricing power in DRAM and NAND markets [3][8]. AI and Memory Demand - The transition from generative AI to agentic AI is expected to significantly increase memory requirements, as these systems demand higher memory capacity for context processing and continuous learning. This shift is anticipated to create a larger market for memory products [26][27]. - The report emphasizes that memory is becoming a critical bottleneck in AI development, with the need for high-bandwidth memory increasing as AI models scale up in complexity and capability [22][26]. Future Market Dynamics - The report suggests that the memory market is entering a phase of significant price inflation, driven by major suppliers reallocating capacity to high-margin server DRAM and HBM to meet AI demand. This has led to a seller's market characterized by high prices and limited supply [43][44]. - The anticipated price increases for DRAM and NAND are projected to be substantial, with quarterly increases expected to range from 50% to 85% depending on the product segment and customer agreements [44][45].