Citing a research report from Nomura Securities, user @jukan05 on social media platform X stated that storage chip giant SanDisk is expected to double the prices of enterprise-grade solid-state drives (SSDs) in the first quarter of 2026, in response to the robust demand for server-grade storage in the coming quarters. This move underscores the widening supply gap and mounting price volatility in the storage market, driven by the sustained growth in demand for storage chips from artificial intelligence (AI) data centers and the increasingly tight supply of storage wafers.
In a report to clients, Nomura Securities wrote, "Channel checks indicate that multiple storage suppliers continue to push up prices, with particularly aggressive hikes seen in enterprise-grade NAND Flash prices." "SanDisk’s NAND Flash for enterprise SSDs is expected to register a month-on-month price increase of over 100% in March."
As one of the well-reputed financial analysis firms in the high-tech industry, Nomura Securities attributes storage suppliers’ plans to raise enterprise-grade NAND Flash prices to short-term supply shortages and medium-term demand growth, especially the overall AI demand and evolving trends in the AI storage segment.
Nomura Securities also identified NVIDIA’s Inference Context Memory Storage Platform (ICMSP) as one of the key drivers of enterprise storage demand this year. Based on the BlueField-4 DPU, the platform is equipped with 512GB SSDs and comes with a KV cache. Each compute tray in the VR NVL144 rack is fitted with a BlueField-4 Data Processing Unit (DPU) and a 512 GB hard drive, enabling each rack to house 18 DPUs with 9.216 TB of 3D NAND. Assuming NVIDIA ships 50,000 VR NVL144 racks annually, the company will need to secure approximately 0.439 EB of 3D NAND from various sources. Its partners’ VR NVL144 rack versions equipped with BlueField-4 DPUs will also boost 3D NAND memory usage this year through the Vera Rubin platform.
While NVIDIA’s ICMSP could potentially consume around 1 EB of 3D NAND Flash per year at best from 2026 to 2027, this hardly justifies an overnight doubling of 3D NAND Flash prices, given that the industry produces over 800 EB of NAND Flash annually.
It remains unclear to what extent the price hike of high-capacity 3D NAND will impact the quotes of mainstream NAND Flash for client devices. However, enterprise-grade NAND Flash and NAND Flash for smartphones and PCs are typically manufactured in the same wafer fabs.
Notably, according to SanDisk’s financial report for the first quarter of fiscal 2026 (ended October 3, 2025) released on November 6, 2025, the company posted revenue of $2.31 billion, representing a year-on-year increase of 22.6% and a month-on-month rise of 21%. Its GAAP net profit stood at $112 million, down 47% year-on-year but surging 587% month-on-month. Non-GAAP net profit reached $181 million, a year-on-year decline of 31% but a remarkable 331% month-on-month surge.
Back in November 2025, industry rumors emerged that SanDisk had already raised the contract prices of its NAND Flash memory by an astonishing 50% that month.
(Reprinted from https://news.eccn.com/）