The End of 16GB RAM Phones? AI Boom Forces Smartphone Makers to Bring Back 4GB Models

The global Random Access Memory (RAM) shortage has started showing its impact in the smartphone market. Multiple brands have either priced this year's models higher than the predecessor or are rumoured to hike the prices of the models post-launch. With the shortage expected to continue for multiple years, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are also changing their go-to-market strategies. A tipster has now claimed that in 2026, smartphone variants with 16GB RAM will no longer be available, and companies could begin reintroducing models with 4GB RAM.

16GB RAM Smartphones Could Disappear from the Market

South Korean tipster Lanzuk (yeux 1122) has claimed in a recent post that smartphone companies will stop launching 16GB RAM models in 2026 due to the ongoing global memory shortage. The tipster also predicts that brands will lean towards increasing the prices of handsets or lowering the specifications to protect their margins.

The second strategic direction could mean the return of 4GB RAM variants, which were so far limited to entry-level smartphones. While this might seem like an extreme step, there is enough evidence to support these claims. The iQOO India CEO, Nipun Marya, recently told Gadgets 360 that memory component prices increased by 60 percent between September and November.

A recent leak has claimed that Samsung could increase the prices of its Galaxy A series smartphones. The same has also been said about Apple's iPhone 17. According to a separate report, HP CEO Enrique Lores has hinted that the PC manufacturer will also have to resort to price hikes and specification lowering in the second half of 2026.

The tipster also claimed that 12GB models will be reduced by more than 40 percent next year, and companies will expand the 6GB and 8GB models instead. However, a continued shortage could pressurise the supply chain even further, resulting in a reduction of the 8GB RAM models and reintroduction of the 4GB variant even in the midrange segments.

Behind this global RAM shortage, artificial intelligence (AI) is said to be the culprit. With the AI market booming exponentially, the big players, such as OpenAI, Anthropic, Google, Microsoft, and others, are all scaling their operations. With the operations being directly tied to the processing power a company can generate, a race to build massive data centres has started.

Experts have claimed that this is where memory component manufacturers are prioritising their shipments since AI companies are willing to pay a premium price. At the same time, the more price-sensitive consumer tech market has been left deprived of these components, leading to the global shortage. At present, it cannot be said how long this scarcity might continue.