Core Viewpoint - The report analyzes the recent doubling of NAND contract prices since Q1 2025, assessing the sustainability of this cycle through historical NAND cycles, supply-demand calculations under AI scenarios, and the impact on the HDD industry [2] Demand Side - The resonance between cloud and edge AI is driving a significant increase in SSD demand, with higher requirements for write speed, IOPS, capacity, and durability due to AI model training and inference [4] - Global NAND Flash shipments are expected to approach 2000EB by 2028, maintaining nearly 30% high growth over the next three years [4][19] Supply Side - Cautious capacity expansion is expected to support prolonged price increases, with a stable yet evolving oligopoly in the NAND market [4] - Major manufacturers are adopting a cautious approach to NAND capacity expansion, focusing on high-density and high-capacity technology transitions [21] - Supply tightness is anticipated to last at least until the end of 2026, with NAND prices likely to remain high [22][23] HDD Market - HDD remains a cost-effective choice for cold storage in cloud computing, with a projected market growth rate of approximately 15% over the next three years [5] - The cost advantage of HDDs is expected to diminish as NAND technology advances, with current price differences between HDDs and SSDs ranging from 4 to 6 times [5] NAND Cycle Review - The NAND market exhibits long cycles with significant price volatility, characterized by severe supply-demand mismatches and differentiated expansion strategies among manufacturers [8] - The current cycle is marked by a supply contraction driving price recovery, followed by structural demand growth driven by AI [14][23] AI Demand - AI is significantly boosting SSD demand, with specific requirements for high-speed writing, IOPS, and large capacity in various training and inference scenarios [15][16] - The anticipated growth in AI applications is expected to sustain high demand for SSDs over an extended period [16] Current Cycle Position - NAND prices are expected to remain elevated in 2026, with data centers and enterprise-level applications showing the highest price tolerance [22] - The demand from data centers is projected to be the largest source of future SSD demand, with long-term supply agreements already in place with major cloud service providers [22][23]