Semiconductor market hits record quarter, driven by memory surge - Evertiq

The global semiconductor market achieved record quarterly growth in Q1 2026, with revenue reaching $319 billion, up 27% quarter-over-quarter. This marks the third consecutive quarter of double-digit g... Read original →

The Q1 2026 memory revenue surge—accounting for over 40% of total semiconductor sales—signals AI infrastructure has shifted from experimental training to mass deployment. Soaring DRAM and NAND prices reflect a technical cascade: HBM3E adoption and CXL-based memory pooling are forcing legacy DRAM makers to accelerate node transitions, while QLC NAND’s rise in inference clusters exacerbates supply-demand mismatches. Geopolitically, tightening U.S.-Japan-Netherlands export controls inflate compliance costs across packaging hubs in Taiwan, China and Hong Kong, China, pushing Samsung and SK Hynix to diversify customer bases away from U.S.-aligned ecosystems. Micron is leveraging AI-optimized LPDDR5X for edge deployments, while YMTC may counter with its 232-layer NAND in domestic Chinese data centers. Over the next 12–24 months, capex will concentrate on high-bandwidth memory, systematically displacing commodity storage capacity—a structural realignment, not a cyclical bounce.