I wonder if anybody has told Micron about what happens when customers sign a contract but then declare bankruptcy shortly after.
this post was submitted on 25 Jun 2026
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Isn't that called price fixing, and is generally illegal?
its price fixing if the agreement is among 'competitors' - this is price fixing for a customer(s)
Yes, but it's AI, and Peter Thiel have bought all the politicians he could, so they will let them get away to "gain an advantage against China in AI".
Yes, but the fine is far lower than their profits here... so, it's only illegal if you can't afford it.
"Cost of doing business"
If there’s some collusion, sure, but you’d have to find a government body with the will and teeth to prosecute.
Nothing really against charging whatever you feel like outside of things like certain supplies during disasters. It’s shitty
"Locks in"...if all of a sudden there was no demand you can be assured they would "lock out". Micron likes to put the boot to the throat when they have an advantage. Not someone I'd do business with.
Yeah, everyone was paying to back out of their contracts as soon as the prices went through the roof. The customers will do the same when they come back down if they are stuck in these contracts.
I believe that most of the customers signing these agreements are also the ones responsible for the memory shortage in the first place, and will go bankrupt when the AI bubble bursts, so the contracts will be voided in bankruptcy court.
Assuming these customers are the reason for the price hikes, their backing out is the demand loss needed to bring prices back down.
Well, I know who's gonna take a beating when the bubble pops and the market falls out from under them. What a stupid decision.
"Hey guys, this AI thing is gonna be like this forever. We'll never lack for insane demand ever again."
I think the logic for the customers is that either: A) It will work out exactly as predicted and we can afford whatever the hell we want, so it's worth it to have secured supply
B) Declare bankruptcy, the purchasing obligations no longer matter.
the barrier to entry for ddr can't be so high that someone can't buy a fab machine and undercut them can it?
China seems to be working on it.
They need to hurry up, I need some third shift Sunnlecs branded ddr6 STAT
It's not just the price. If you get excavators to your new chip factory plot today to start building foundations it'll take several years until you get first chips out of the line after everything is calibrated and ready to go. By then you've thrown few hundred millions on the building, machines and all the physical stuff. Hired and trained workers, managed supply chains and built a system which is pretty expensive to keep running.
So, you're betting quite a lot of money and time against that the market stays like it is for the next 10 years (give or take) to just break even. If the bubble bursts in 5 years you have incomplete factory without potential market and a metric shitload of debt on your company. And that's the same odd you're betting against when trying to raise funding. Venture capital understands this risk too pretty well and that's why everyone and their dogs aren't building chip factories right now.
Saw a great documentary on the company that makes all the memory fab devices. They aren't quite as bad a processors, There is only one company left that makes the house sized machines, but they're largely self contained. Still need a clean room, but you probably don't need as huge of a factory.
It can.
Fun fact: this place lays off employees damn near yearly, in big waves lol
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