The worldwide appetite for Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM) is through the roof. This boom is driven by the nationwide explosive growth of data centers and cutting edge advances in artificial intelligence (AI). As demand for compute capabilities continues to climb, the private sector is responding with decisive action, as evident by Samsung’s recent investment to help meet supply challenges. Samsung should be ready to open a third plant—its new front-end facility in Pyeongtaek, South Korea—by 2028. This strategic investment will double the company’s production capacity. The company’s initial proof of concept was the ability to stack a 16-high stack using hybrid bonding technology. This milestone now indicates that we can expect to see progress towards 20 dies sooner rather than later.
The unprecedented demand for DRAM, especially for applications in AI data centers, is fundamentally changing the memory production landscape. As detailed in our recent reports, Nvidia’s data center revenue has skyrocketed from slightly more than $1 billion in late 2019. By October 2025, it ballooned to an incredible $51 billion! This intense expansion highlights the surging demand for superlative memory technologies specifically designed for GPUs and AI accelerators.
As Samsung and other manufacturers grapple with supply constraints, experts emphasize that two primary strategies exist to alleviate these issues: innovation and the construction of additional fabrication facilities. It can take 18 months or more to build a new fab, making immediate solutions more urgent.
The Implications of DRAM Demand
The ripple effects of this insatiable demand for DRAM are felt across many sectors, particularly the automotive industry and defense. For Fortune 500 companies whose businesses hinge on technology and data management, the pressure is being amplified as prices for memory components continue to balloon. As Mina Kim, an expert in semiconductor economics, notes:
“In general, economists find that prices come down much more slowly and reluctantly than they go up. DRAM today is unlikely to be an exception to this general observation, especially given the insatiable demand for compute.”
This statement highlights a critical concern: as prices rise due to increased demand, it may take considerable time before relief is felt in the market.
The precision challenges of cutting-edge DRAM technology only adds to this burden. Stacking multiple dies on top of a base die, which is one of Samsung’s innovations, allows for more efficient communication among memory and processors. This complex design is important, one because it enables a large amount of data to be quickly transferred across systems that need the fastest processing power.
In today’s chips, it’s common to utilize 12 dies. With the upcoming HBM4 standards, you can tally 16 DRAM dies for increased performance. The new B300 model, released in December 2022, uses eight HBM chips. Each chip is stuffed with 12 DRAM dies, emphasizing the move to higher density memory solutions.
Innovations in Memory Technology
Samsung’s ongoing passion for innovation is at the center of its blueprint to stay ahead of soaring memory needs. By leveraging advancements in hybrid bonding technologies, the company has better positioned itself to deliver tomorrow’s more efficient, more powerful memory solutions. In 2024, Samsung showed that with this technology they were capable of manufacturing a 16-high stack. They suggested that getting to 20 dies might not be too far off.
Mina Kim emphasizes the importance of innovation as a means to combat supply issues:
“There are two ways to address supply issues with DRAM: with innovation or with building more fabs.”
This claim dovetails with national trends championing investments in technology that the industry has seized on.
When manufacturers innovate more efficient advanced packaging practices and processes, they can achieve better yield rates and lower costs of production. This combined strategy is critical to enabling long-term advancements in the DRAM industry.
The global landscape includes close to 2,000 new data centers either in the pipeline or already under construction. This quick growth increases the need for high-performance DRAM solutions. Further, manufacturers are under extreme pressure to scale their operations quickly.
The Future of DRAM Supply
Shawn DuBravac asserts:
“Relief will come from a combination of incremental capacity expansions by existing DRAM leaders, yield improvements in [advanced packaging], and a broader diversification of supply chains.”
This innovative, multifaced approach does double duty by addressing the challenges of increasing demand. It guarantees price predictability and consistency from application to application.
As companies like Samsung invest heavily in new plants and advanced technologies, the focus remains on balancing immediate supply needs with long-term sustainability. The industry continues to face pressures from accelerating technological change and changing consumer preferences, often at an increasing cost and need to deliver at competitive prices.