What happened
Prices for USB drives and memory cards have surged by a median of 123% since 2025, with some products experiencing increases up to 261%. This escalation stems from the AI chip shortage, which prompts memory chip manufacturers to prioritise high-bin NAND production for AI data centres. This diverts supply from lower-bin NAND used in consumer flash storage. Lexar confirmed a strategy to focus on high-end products due to these supply limitations.
Why it matters
The escalating cost of flash memory will raise procurement expenses for hardware architects and embedded systems developers building edge devices and data collection infrastructure. AI data centre demand for high-bin NAND chips creates a supply constraint for the lower-bin NAND essential to USB drives and memory cards, directly impacting bill-of-materials. Procurement teams should anticipate continued price volatility and explore alternative storage solutions or higher-capacity, higher-cost options.
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