{"id":99836,"date":"2026-02-23T16:14:28","date_gmt":"2026-02-23T19:14:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/automotive.einnews.com\/article\/894837277"},"modified":"2026-02-23T16:14:28","modified_gmt":"2026-02-23T19:14:28","slug":"automakers-racing-to-prepare-for-microchip-shortage-micron-among-companies-to-benefit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/2026\/02\/23\/automakers-racing-to-prepare-for-microchip-shortage-micron-among-companies-to-benefit\/","title":{"rendered":"Automakers racing to prepare for microchip shortage; Micron among companies to benefit"},"content":{"rendered":"<div><img data-opt-id=758893364  fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAIAAAAAAAP\/\/\/ywAAAAAAQABAAACAUwAOw==\" fifu-lazy=\"1\" fifu-data-sizes=\"auto\" 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https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/idahobusinessreview.com\/files\/2026\/02\/2026-02-22T120931Z_296482171_MT1USDAYNETMIP88761471007_FRTPIP_4_USA-TODAY-NETWORK-e1771862804576.jpg?ssl=1&w=1280&resize=1280&ssl=1 1280w, https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/idahobusinessreview.com\/files\/2026\/02\/2026-02-22T120931Z_296482171_MT1USDAYNETMIP88761471007_FRTPIP_4_USA-TODAY-NETWORK-e1771862804576.jpg?ssl=1&w=1600&resize=1600&ssl=1 1600w\" fifu-data-src=\"https:\/\/mlmjbqro95r8.i.optimole.com\/cb:bOxR.6a5\/w:auto\/h:auto\/q:mauto\/f:best\/https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/idahobusinessreview.com\/files\/2026\/02\/2026-02-22T120931Z_296482171_MT1USDAYNETMIP88761471007_FRTPIP_4_USA-TODAY-NETWORK-e1771862804576.jpg?ssl=1\" class=\"ff-og-image-inserted\"><\/div>\n<div id=\"ra-player\" data-skin=\"https:\/\/assets.readaloudwidget.com\/embed\/skins\/default\">\n<div class=\"ra-button\"> Listen to this article<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><audio id=\"ra-audio\" data-lang=\"en-US\" data-voice=\"Amazon Joanna\" data-key=\"9a894192b5d95537bb1afa80262745f5\"><\/audio><\/p>\n<p>Automotive industry analysts are forecasting that another microchip shortage could hit in the coming months, which could increase risks for production halts as costs skyrocket.<\/p>\n<div class=\"box shadow\">\n<div class=\"box-inner-block\"><i class=\"tieicon-boxicon\"><\/i> <\/p>\n<h5>At a Glance:<\/h5>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/idahobusinessreview.com\/tag\/automakers\/\" class=\"st_tag internal_tag \" rel=\"tag\" title=\"Posts tagged with automakers\">Automakers<\/a> face rising DRAM chip prices due to AI data center demand, impacting costs and production.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/idahobusinessreview.com\/tag\/micron-technology\/\" class=\"st_tag internal_tag \" rel=\"tag\" title=\"Posts tagged with Micron Technology\">Micron Technology<\/a>, Samsung, and SK Hynix dominate over 90% of DRAM production, benefiting from increased demand.<\/li>\n<li>Premium auto brands and EV makers are most vulnerable to DRAM shortages affecting advanced vehicle features.<\/li>\n<\/ul><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The shortage would not be of general-purpose semiconductors, or microcontrollers, that caused plant shutdowns, low vehicle inventories, disabled features and higher prices in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The problem instead lies with dynamic random-access memory, or DRAM (dee-ram), chips that support artificial intelligence, infotainment and advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS).\n<\/p>\n<p>A boom in AI data center development has resulted in chip manufacturers prioritizing these high-bandwidth memory applications with high-margin opportunities from newer-generation chips, forcing consumer electronics companies and automakers to pay higher prices and scramble for supply.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you\u2019re in on the automotive-consuming side of this equation,\u201d said Phil Amsrud, analyst for S&amp;P Global Inc.\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/idahobusinessreview.com\/tag\/automotive-semiconductor\/\" class=\"st_tag internal_tag \" rel=\"tag\" title=\"Posts tagged with automotive semiconductor\">automotive semiconductor<\/a> research area, \u201cyour prices are going to go up and cash flow negatively will be impacted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Two major things AI needs to operate are: lots of power and lots of memory. DRAM is the organ behind the memory storage in <a href=\"https:\/\/idahobusinessreview.com\/tag\/ai-data-centers\/\" class=\"st_tag internal_tag \" rel=\"tag\" title=\"Posts tagged with AI data centers\">AI data centers<\/a>.\n<\/p>\n<p>A report from global wealth manager UBS Group AG found companies are reporting more than 100% price increases on <a href=\"https:\/\/idahobusinessreview.com\/tag\/dram-chips\/\" class=\"st_tag internal_tag \" rel=\"tag\" title=\"Posts tagged with dram chips\">DRAM chips<\/a>. It predicts automakers will cover about 80% of the costs shared with suppliers, many of whom are increasingly under financial pressure from inflation, tariffs and other costs. Suppliers in electronics and ADAS are most at-risk.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe prices have increased, because there is a lot of demand in general for the memory chips driven by AI,\u201d said David Lesne, UBS anlyst. \u201cBut then, if you look 12-24 months from now, the chips that the auto industry is using \u2014 which are a bit more basic and not necessarily so profitable for the memory chip suppliers \u2014 and we might be in a situation of more shortages.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Most vulnerable are premium auto brands and EV makers, including those in China, analysts said. Although vehicles had hundreds of the microcontrollers that were short a few years ago, DRAM represents about $25 to $150 of the content in a vehicle, according to UBS.\n<\/p>\n<p>DRAM chips especially are important for users of automotive system-on-a-chip, or SoC, technology that combines computing functions like ADAS, infotainment and vehicle control onto a single chip. SoC is the main enabler of zonal electrical architectures in vehicles that automakers likes Tesla Inc., Rivian Automotive Inc. and some Chinese manufacturers use to unlock increasingly software-defined vehicles, lower costs and improve over-the-air updates.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThose guys can\u2019t build cars without DRAMs,\u201d Amsrud said. \u201cIt\u2019s one of the few times in my recent memory where being a traditional automaker might actually have a little bit of an advantage.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>If needed, they could remove certain content or features, though automakers like <a href=\"https:\/\/idahobusinessreview.com\/tag\/ford-motor-co\/\" class=\"st_tag internal_tag \" rel=\"tag\" title=\"Posts tagged with ford motor co.\">Ford Motor Co.<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/idahobusinessreview.com\/tag\/general-motors-co\/\" class=\"st_tag internal_tag \" rel=\"tag\" title=\"Posts tagged with general motors co.\">General Motors Co.<\/a> also are working on rolling out vehicles with central computing electrical architectures as well.\n<\/p>\n<p>There are multiple kinds of DRAM. The auto industry primarily has used DDR4 and LPDDR4 \u2014 the fourth-generation low-power double data rate. The fifth generation, however, mostly is what AI uses with higher memory capacity and greater efficiency. The technology also provides higher profits for chip fabricators. As a result, they are prioritizing capacity for those applications.\n<\/p>\n<p>Unlike the microcontroller shortage, there is sufficient production capacity for DRAM for now, experts said. But smartphones and tablets represent about 35% of global DRAM revenue, computers are 25% and servers and data centers are about 20%, according to UBS. Automotive makes up a lower single-digits percentage, resulting in lower prioritization.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere may be adequate worldwide capacity,\u201d Amsrud said, \u201cbut what the memory guys are doing is they\u2019ll take that same unit of capacity and say, \u2018I can build high-bandwidth memory for servers, and I\u2019ll make this much money on that, or I can make for automotive and make a lot less with that same unit of capacity.\u2019 If you want it, you can get it, but you\u2019ll have to pay for it.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>Long-term, he noted, automakers may have to turn to DDR5 to ensure secure supply as chip fabricators shift capacity to the more advanced versions.\n<\/p>\n<p>GM last month shared that it expects that DRAM, unfavorable foreign exchange changes and higher prices on materials like copper and aluminum as a result of tariffs will increase costs by $1 billion to $1.5 billion this year.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs of now, we don\u2019t see any issues that are going to impact our ability to produce,\u201d GM CEO Mary Barra said during an earnings call. \u201cYou\u2019ve seen us over the last couple of years, even going back to the semiconductor shortage, how the team works and gets ahead of these. And so that\u2019s obviously ongoing work the team is doing.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>Ford Chief Financial Officer Sherry House on an earnings call this month said higher commodity prices from DRAM and inflation are expected to total about $1 billion more in costs in 2026, but the Dearborn automaker expects material and warranty cost reduction will offset the increase.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is something that we\u2019ve been actively managing,\u201d House said at the Wolfe Research Auto, Auto Tech and Semiconductor Conference. \u201cWe do believe at this point in time that we have access to sufficient supply, but we are seeing pressure on pricing, and that has gone into our forward plan.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>Chrysler and Jeep maker Stellantis NV will report full-year financial results on Thursday. The company is actively monitoring the situation and working to develop mitigation strategizes to minimize potential disruption, spokesperson Jodi Tinson said in a statement.\n<\/p>\n<p>Under the microcontroller shortage, tensions with China and chip production centered in Taiwan contributed to supply challenges. Meanwhile, three suppliers represent more than 90% of DRAM production: South Korea\u2019s Samsung and SK Hynix Inc. and Idaho-based Micron Technology Inc., offering some regional supply amid trade negotiations.\n<\/p>\n<p>Micron is forecasting a more-than-fourfold increase year-over-year in earnings per share in the second quarter alone. After a record 2025, SK Hynix says its entire 2026 production already is sold out in what it\u2019s dubbed a \u201csupercycle.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>Van Buren Township-based digital cockpit electronics supplier Visteon Corp. said last week it identified 50% year-over-year growth in the memory chip business late last year compared to the usual 10%. In addition to working with the big three DRAM suppliers, it\u2019s looking at drop-in replacements and also has secured supply from emerging manufacturers in China. It\u2019s looking to customers to cover the increasing prices.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf I look at our full-year demand for this year, we should largely be able to cover customer demand,\u201d Visteon CEO Sachin Lawande said on an earnings call. \u201cThere may be some timing impacts that we have to manage. Even that, I think as we work with our suppliers, we should be able to largely mitigate.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>Adding to automotive\u2019s challenges is the unpredictability around consumer demand, particularly of EVs. Automakers looking to secure supply may pay upfront to lock it in, Amsrud said. But EV sales have missed expectations because of affordability challenges, insufficient charge infrastructure and the end of the federal plug-in tax credit in the United States, and manufacturers don\u2019t want to overpay.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you worst-case this, and what we saw from the pandemic was pretty close to worst-case, it shouldn\u2019t be that bad,\u201d Amsrud said. \u201cIt\u2019s not going to be industrywide where everyone can get nothing, and everybody is waiting on something to do.\n<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRight now, we\u2019re somewhat reading the tea leaves,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s a reasonable risk it\u2019s (a shortage) going to happen.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p><em>This article originally appeared on The Detroit News: A new microchip shortage is looming. Automakers are racing to prepare<\/em>\n<\/p>\n<p><em>Reporting by Breana Noble, The Detroit News\/USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect<\/em>\n<\/p>\n<p><!-- post-single CPT Filter Start --><!-- post-single CPT Filter End --> <\/p>\n<div class=\"taxopress-output-wrapper\">\n<h4>Related Articles<\/h4>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/blockads.fivefilters.org\"> <\/a><\/strong> <a href=\"https:\/\/blockads.fivefilters.org\/acceptable.html\"> <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8230; consumer electronics companies and <span class=\"match\">automakers<\/span> to pay higher prices &#8230; vehicles that <span class=\"match\">automakers<\/span> likes Tesla Inc., Rivian <span class=\"match\">Automotive<\/span> Inc. and &#8230; largely mitigate.\u00e2\u0080\u009d Adding to <span class=\"match\">automotive<\/span>\u00e2\u0080\u0099s challenges is the &#8230; , particularly of EVs. <span class=\"match\">Automakers<\/span> looking to secure supply &#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99836","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99836","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99836"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99836\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99836"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99836"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new7.shop\/zerocostfreehost\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99836"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}