存储行业深度报告：骐骥驰骋，AI“存”变，国产“储”势，星火燎原

Investment Rating - The report assigns a "Outperform" rating to the storage industry, driven by the expansion of AI and data, which is pushing the storage sector into a new cycle with increasing prices and demand for new technologies like HBM [2]. Core Insights - The storage market is experiencing significant growth due to the increasing demand for storage technology across various sectors of the digital economy, particularly driven by AI applications. The demand for AI edge storage is growing at a much faster rate than other segments, becoming a key driver for global storage market expansion [7][14]. - The report highlights that the prices of storage products have already seen substantial increases in 2025 and are expected to rise further in 2026, driven by both AI servers and general server demands. The supply-demand dynamics are complex, with structural capacity constraints and competition across multiple dimensions [7][30]. - The report emphasizes the importance of domestic storage manufacturers in China, such as Changxin Memory and Yangtze Memory Technologies, which are making significant strides in production and technology, potentially reshaping the competitive landscape [7][67]. Summary by Sections Market Overview - The global data generation is projected to reach 213.56ZB by 2025 and exceed 527.47ZB by 2029, with China's data generation expected to grow from 51.78ZB in 2025 to 136.12ZB by 2029, reflecting a CAGR of 26.9% [14][17]. - The capital expenditure of major cloud service providers (CSPs) is expected to increase significantly, with a projected total exceeding $600 billion in 2026, marking a year-on-year growth of approximately 40% [23][26]. Supply Side Dynamics - The supply of storage components is constrained, with a shift in capital expenditure focus towards advanced process technologies and high-value products rather than mere capacity expansion. This is expected to maintain a supply-demand imbalance throughout 2026 [67][70]. - The report notes that HBM technology is becoming increasingly competitive, with significant growth expected in the high-performance memory segment, particularly for AI applications [73][79]. Demand Side Dynamics - The demand for AI storage is rapidly increasing, with traditional HDDs facing supply shortages due to the lack of planned expansions by major manufacturers. This has led to a shift towards high-performance SSDs, particularly QLC SSDs, which are expected to see significant growth in 2026 [83][84]. - High-end DRAM remains a standard for AI applications, with a notable shift towards LPDDR5X memory, which is projected to see a demand increase of 169% in 2026 [86][91]. Investment Opportunities - The report suggests focusing on specific segments within the storage industry that are likely to benefit from the current market dynamics, including distributors and module manufacturers, niche market IC design companies, and domestic semiconductor supply chains [4].