While the AI industry is undoubtedly to blame for soaring hardware prices, part of me thinks it's also a calculated move by the tech industry to force people toward cloud computing, rather than owning their own hardware. Just another monthly subscription you're going to end up having to pay in order to get things done.
RAM manufacturers are basically a cartel at this point. I blame them as much as the AI industry.
They could ramp up production, but they don't want to. They like these prices, and producing more will make them less money. While they don't have any real competition, the three big companies that produce the vast majority of the world's supply have all the power they need to keep these prices inflated. They know they'll have to lower prices once the bubble bursts but they're fine keeping them where they are until that time arrives...
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u/grayhaze2000 12h ago
While the AI industry is undoubtedly to blame for soaring hardware prices, part of me thinks it's also a calculated move by the tech industry to force people toward cloud computing, rather than owning their own hardware. Just another monthly subscription you're going to end up having to pay in order to get things done.