Samsung touts 96% lower-power NAND design
• Samsung’s FeFET‑based NAND design represents a major step toward ultra‑efficient flash memory, promising 96% lower power use and higher density (up to 5 bits per cell). While still experimental, it could redefine the future of NAND flash in energy‑sensitive applications.
Kioxia SSDs achieve compatibility with Microchip’s Adaptec SmartRAID 4300 series RAID storage accelerator
• These SSDs are now certified compatible and interoperable with Adaptec SmartRAID 4300 Series RAID storage accelerator cards, ensuring interoperability and performance for high-capacity NVMe deployments.
• The SmartRAID 4300 supports up to 32 NVMe SSDs, enabling large-scale, high-performance storage arrays.
SanDisk recognized as a reborn flash memory titan, now positioned at the center of the AI-driven storage revolution
• The company’s rebirth is described as a “radical transformation”, marking a shift from legacy consumer electronics to enterprise-grade storage solutions.
• Analysts highlight SanDisk’s strategic importance in the semiconductor and storage sectors as AI demand accelerates.
SK hynix complete Intel data center certification for 32Gb die-based 256GB server DDR5 RDIMM
• The firm’s 256GB DDR5 RDIMM, built with advanced 32Gb DRAM dies, is now officially certified by Intel for Xeon 6 servers—marking a milestone in high-capacity, next-gen memory for data centers. The 256GB RAM enables larger memory footprints per server, critical for AI, big data, and cloud workloads.
Micron announces exit from Crucial consumer business
• The company is retiring its Crucial consumer brand after nearly three decades, redirecting focus to enterprise and AI-driven data center solutions, while ensuring warranty support and employee redeployment during the transition.
Driven by AI and datacenter growth, NAND flash demand has shifted sharply toward high-capacity enterprise SSDs, prompting a steady rise in 3D NAND output and a decline in Planar NAND—signaling a structural transition in supply to meet evolving market needs.
Flash Sufficiency: CSP-driven AI expansion caused severe NAND shortages starting from Q3’25, and this might last during the entire 2026 1H.
Price Trend: Overall NAND flash price rose sharply in Q4’25 with enterprise and cloud service provider (CSP) demand surging—driven by AI infrastructure expansion and server upgrades. The market condition is projected to continue in 2026, sustaining NAND flash prices at a high level.
DRAM Sufficiency: Supply has come under significant pressure since Q2’25, as manufacturers phase out DDR4 production and reallocate capacity toward high-demand applications from the CSPs. This shift has led to a pronounced tightening in overall DRAM availability.
Price Trend: The spot price begins to diverge upward from contract pricing starting from late 2025, reflecting the continuous shortage in more of spot and channel markets.
