‘Robots could need 200GB+ of DRAM’: Micron says data centers will make the memory crisis worse through 2028, and then ‘physical AI’ is going to eat all your RAM by 2030

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Micron has warned that the RAM shortage will get much worse in 2027 and 2028

Then coming to the end of the decade, robots are going to put more strain on memory supply

So-called ‘physical AI’ could need 200GB+ of DRAM and multiple terabytes of storage per unit, Micron predicts

Micron just published its latest financial results, complete with some predictions for the future of the RAM crisis that aren’t going to prove very comforting for consumers.

Wccftech reports that Micron, which is one of the three big memory chip makers, just revealed its results for fiscal Q4 2026 with predictably booming profits — and some not-so-obvious predictions about the RAM shortage.

As flagged on X by Eric Jhonsa, a portfolio manager for a Dutch asset corporation, in Micron’s accompanying guidance the company observed: “We expect memory and storage supply-demand conditions to be much tighter in calendar 2027 and 2028 than they were in 2026.”

Analysis: robot RAM drain

(Image credit: Getty Images)

In short, Micron is saying that RAM supply is going to be tight not just in 2027 — which has been a widespread prediction — but also in 2028. Granted, 2028 has been forecast as a gloomy year in general, but from what Micron is saying here, the company is putting this year on a level with 2027 in terms of the memory shortage, and next year is set to be pretty dire by all accounts.

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This is feeding more into the RAM crisis lasting until 2030 narrative (one of the earliest mentions of this came from Nvidia’s CEO), and the comment about robots further reinforces this. Even if the demand to drive AI falls away somewhat so data centers aren’t gobbling up so much memory, the overall strain on RAM supply may remain due to an uptake of robots, which will also need a lot of memory.

The one thing I would say is that Micron may be exaggerating somewhat in terms of talking up the timeframe on the usage of robots here. After all, in these kinds of forecasts, it’s in the firm’s interest to build up its future prospects and drive more investment.

Clearly, though, Micron is in a very strong position, and robots are something that’s on the radar. And with there being a great deal of doubt as to whether the AI bubble is going to burst at all — depending on who you listen to — this is just another concern for consumers (alongside robots taking over jobs to boot).

It seems clear enough that RAM won’t be reaching affordable pricing levels for a long time yet.

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Analysis: robot RAM drain

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