Micron CEO Says AI Ends Memory Industry Boom-Bust Cycle

Sanjay Mehrotra, CEO of Micron Technology, stated that the memory industry has moved beyond its historical boom-and-bust cycles because of the structural demands of artificial intelligence. Speaking in a CNBC interview, Mehrotra explained that AI infrastructure requires massive amounts of memory for data storage and rapid transfer to accelerator chips, creating a permanent growth driver.

Demand from data center customers currently exceeds supply by 50%, and the company is seeing further growth in robots, autonomous vehicles, and edge AI devices. This supply shortage has kept memory prices high, which is currently impacting the PC and smartphone markets.

Despite a recent 27% loss in the Roundhill Memory ETF, Mehrotra asserts that the industry is no longer driven by the volatile sales of consumer electronics. He noted that customers are currently purchasing all available manufacturing output, signaling a fundamental shift in how the market operates.