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ARTICLE · 17 MAY 2026

When Hardware Costs Spike: What Your Tech Contracts Should Say

Lewis Silkin
Lewis Silkin
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Lewis Silkin

Lewis Silkin

Joint managing partners: Jo Farmer, Richard Miskella International offices: Dublin, Hong Kong...

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RAM prices have surged over 500% since October 2025, driven by AI data centres consuming global memory chip supplies. This analysis examines the contractual implications for enterprises with multi-year hardware agreements, exploring price adjustment mechanisms, specification flexibility, and termination rights when market conditions shift dramatically.

IrelandTechnology
Chris Swann
Chris Swann
Rory Campbell
Rory Campbell
Caroline McNally
Caroline McNally
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If you're procuring IT hardware in 2026, you may have already noticed the problem. RAM prices have more than doubled since October 2025, with some vendors quoting costs 500% higher than a few months ago, according to BBC reporting.

A 32GB kit of RAM that cost around £70 in September 2025 hit £280 by December. Major PC vendors have confirmed 15-20% price hikes and contract resets.

This isn't a blip. The cause sits in AI data centres, which are hoovering up the world's memory chips. Every wafer allocated to high-bandwidth memory for AI processors is a wafer denied to the laptop or smartphone. IDC expects DRAM supply growth to remain below historical norms through 2026, at just 16% year-on-year. Geopolitical tensions and escalating trade restrictions are also reshaping semiconductor supply chains, with export controls affecting everything from chip manufacturing equipment to design tools. For enterprises with multi-year hardware agreements, the contractual implications could be

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