Technology

A deeper look at the tightened chipmaking supply chain, and where it may be headed in 2026 — "nobody's scaling up,” says analyst as industry remains conservative on capacity

Source

Tom's Hardware

Published

Jan 2, 2026

TL;DR

AI Generated

The tech industry is facing ongoing chip supply chain challenges, with analysts predicting a future where current hyperscaler accelerators may become available in the secondary market. The market tightness is seen as a structural condition post-AI norm, with companies remaining conservative due to concerns about overcapacity. Memory shortages, driven by AI demand and High Bandwidth Memory (HBM), are expected to persist, impacting pricing for consumer hardware. Advanced packaging capacity, particularly for AI accelerators, remains a bottleneck, with forecasts indicating continued supply constraints in the semiconductor industry. The industry is navigating uncertainties in forecasting demand and the need to build infrastructure to support the growing demand for chips and data centers.

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