forbes.com
Mixed Recovery in Memory and Storage Market: AI Drives SSD Growth, DRAM Prices Fall
The memory and storage market is experiencing a mixed recovery in 2024, with slower-than-expected growth despite rising data center capex; DRAM prices are declining, while SSD demand is rising due to AI; emerging non-volatile memories are growing, especially for embedded applications.
- How are the price dynamics and market demand for DRAM and NAND flash impacting various segments (consumer, enterprise, data center)?
- Despite increased data center capital expenditures (capex) by hyperscalers—a 63% annual growth rate reaching 18% of their aggregate revenue—the sustainability of this spending is uncertain. The NAND flash market also faces price pressure, particularly in consumer applications. However, enterprise SSD demand is rising, driven by AI and the need for high-capacity storage.
- What are the key trends and projections for the memory and storage market in 2024 and 2025, considering the impact of AI and data center spending?
- The memory and storage market showed signs of recovery in late 2023 after a significant correction, but 2024 growth has been slower than predicted. TrendForce forecasts further price declines for DDR4 and LPDDR4X DRAM by the end of 2024, and a substantial drop in the first half of 2025, although HBM is expected to see strong growth due to AI.
- What is the potential long-term impact of emerging non-volatile memories such as MRAM and ReRAM on the overall memory landscape, considering factors like cost, performance, and applications?
- The ongoing shift towards high-capacity SSDs, driven by AI and data center needs, is causing a significant increase in demand. Although SSD costs remain higher than HDDs, the long-term cost difference is expected to stay around 5x. The emerging non-volatile memory market, including MRAM, ReRAM, FRAM, and PCM, is experiencing growth, primarily in embedded applications, replacing NOR flash and SRAM, and is projected to reach $71.7B in revenue by 2034.
Cognitive Concepts
Framing Bias
The blog's framing emphasizes the technological advancements and market projections, presenting a generally optimistic outlook on the future of memory and storage. While it acknowledges some downward trends in certain market segments, the overall tone leans towards highlighting the growth potential of high-capacity SSDs, HBM, and emerging non-volatile memories. The selection and emphasis of data points (e.g., focusing on high growth areas like HBM and high-capacity SSDs) influence the reader's perception of the overall market health.
Language Bias
The language used is generally neutral and objective, employing technical terminology appropriately. However, phrases like "strong growth" and "considerable growth" could be considered slightly loaded, suggesting a more positive outlook than might be warranted by a completely neutral assessment of the data. More precise quantification and cautious phrasing would enhance objectivity.
Bias by Omission
The analysis focuses heavily on market trends and technological advancements in memory and storage, but lacks discussion of the social or environmental impacts of these technologies. The blog also omits discussion of potential job displacement due to automation driven by advancements in AI and related memory technologies. While acknowledging space constraints is valid, including brief mentions of these broader implications would improve the article's scope.
False Dichotomy
The blog presents a somewhat simplistic view of the competition between SSDs and HDDs, focusing primarily on cost and capacity. It doesn't fully explore the nuanced trade-offs between performance, power consumption, and endurance, which could influence adoption in specific applications. For example, while mentioning QLC's lower endurance, it doesn't delve into the implications for different use cases.
Sustainable Development Goals
The article discusses advancements in memory and storage technologies like flash memory, DRAM, MRAM, RRAM, FRAM, and PCM. These innovations are crucial for the development of faster, more efficient computing systems, which are essential for advancements in various industries and infrastructure. The development and implementation of new computer architectures like CXL and UCIe also fall under this SDG.