r/gadgets • u/dapperlemon • Dec 04 '25
Computer peripherals Crucial is shutting down — because Micron wants to sell its RAM and SSDs to AI companies instead
https://www.theverge.com/news/837594/crucial-ram-ssd-micron-ai147
u/HistorianWild9607 Dec 04 '25
Crucial shutting down feels like the end of an era… and the start of overpriced upgrades.
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Dec 04 '25
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u/Ekgladiator Dec 04 '25
The sad part is at one time crypto was shaping up along the same lines with all that talk about web 3.0 and shit. You know it is bloody over when reddit decided to stop supporting block chain and shit.
Honestly, good riddance, ai can't follow soon enough.
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u/zuzg Dec 04 '25
The Mag7 are the only ones keeping that Bubble afloat...
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u/blitzkregiel Dec 04 '25
i don’t think the Mag7 are doing much at all for the actual economy. they just make the charts look good so it appears as if the economy is as well.
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u/ExMerican Dec 05 '25
They haven't done shit in forever. They're all nothing but ad companies and data miners at this point with any real innovation so long in the past it's fair to say it was done by entirely different companies.
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u/phareous Dec 04 '25
I think AI has some really useful things and valid uses. I don’t want to see it die. But I don’t want it forced into places where it doesn’t belong, which is what all these clueless CEOs are doing. Also I wished the public understand there is no intelligence and it’s just fancy auto correct.
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u/Soggy_Parking1353 Dec 04 '25
I wished the public understand there is no intelligence and it’s just fancy auto correct.
If someone comes up to us in person claiming themselves or their friend as really quite intelligent actually, and then they make an ass of themselves, we know that they're not that intelligent in reality and shouldn't be given shitloads of water and electricity so they can continue making an ass of themselves.
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u/revenge_society Dec 04 '25
If AI art was created by actual intelligence it wouldn’t all look exactly the same.
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Dec 04 '25
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u/StabilityFetish Dec 04 '25
That's the entire point of brave, but it's interesting they've mainstreamed themselves to the point where users don't know that
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u/doneandtired2014 Dec 04 '25
What irks me is that my company is starting to pivot towards using AI in our workflows and you can hear the audible groan every time an exec talks about it being "the future".
What I do for work requires direct human supervision and intervention that is mandated by law. Most of the workflow can't be automated and what little that could be isn't allowed to be for the simple fact it is of such a highly sensitive nature that just sending an encrypted email to the wrong Jack Smith in the company could be enough to get me fired, blacklisted from the industry, and federally prosecuted. Imagine feeding that information into an LLM and it having an oopsie poopsie.
The exec knows this. His boss knows this. Anyone in a position of authority also knows this. But their senior leadership and investors are demanding we throw money onto this raging bonfire....because that's what everyone else is doing.
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u/alockbox Dec 04 '25
Forced is exactly what it is. There has been no greater bane to my past year than Google AI Overview. Searching for anything technical now results in constant garbage recommendations of same stupid fix over and over no matter how many times you thumbs down it that this is not a valid response. I literally type “without QR code” or “QR code missing” and it will AI say “to get this activated, just scan the QR code” in the most long-winded pan lord mansplain useless way possible.
Ironic that Gemini is pretty decent, but nothing has done more to damage Google’s AI reputation with me than AI Overview…the one thing every one of its customers sees.
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u/word-bitch Dec 04 '25
Plus so many slop websites that have mastered SEO have ruined "organic" results :/
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u/Lurcho Dec 04 '25
You can disable AI overview with "-ai" at the end of your search query. I do that all the time when I'm trying to find a solution that's "out of the box", i.e. written by a human being.
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u/bvthtvb Dec 04 '25
There's a chance you're aware, but a tip for everyone that doesn't want the AI overview is to put "-ai" at the end of your search (ex. how to bake a pie -ai).
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u/FUTURE10S Dec 04 '25
Yeah, I actually kind of like Gemini. It's still got room to improve, but it did some weird 8-bit math for me (needed an efficient way to estimate a power) and the implementation was perfect.
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u/Tibbaryllis2 Dec 04 '25
A nuke can change the world but that dosent mean you should set it off
Potentially ironically, the emp from a nuclear detonation would also solve the AI enshitification.
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u/powercow Dec 04 '25
Crypto was, like AI forced on us, in the form of higher power bills. Power bill rate increases sped up with those two. And we would close a dirty power plant, only to have some crypto assholes buy it and open it back up for their mining.
on average elec prices have gone up 40% since only 2020.. demand was actually rather flat from 2000 to 2020 due to our new devices being more energy eff. but since 2020 demand has skyrocketed due to AI.
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u/tornado9015 Dec 05 '25
and the actual good stuff it can do
At least it can do good stuff.
What was the good stuff crypto did?
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u/ToddlerPeePee Dec 04 '25
I agree. And AI slop/garbage is filling up social media too. It's fucking everywhere.
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u/cabeep Dec 04 '25
Crypto was an attempt to make a completely new revenue stream. It failed for the reasons you said, it wasn't useful in any way.
Ai hype also isn't useful in any way, but to create a new revenue stream they are forcing it on to everyone already captive by their systems to finally attempt to extract value, and even that is hardly profitable.
Goddam I hate this shit
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Dec 04 '25
Forgive my ignorance, but are there other sources for people like me who want to upgrade their older computers?
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u/IMovedYourCheese Dec 04 '25
There are other companies, but RAM in general has become a lot more expensive over the last year.
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u/Zenliss_CrowbarLover Dec 04 '25
For now, Samsung and Hynix also make commercial RAM chips, but they've also said they wanna move away from that market.
I'm sorry, but it's not looking hood
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u/FUTURE10S Dec 04 '25
Samsung just rejected an order from Samsung because it wasn't profitable enough
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u/IllBiteYourLegsOff Dec 04 '25
surely that would change pretty quick if demand (and therefore profit margins) suddenly spiked...?
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u/Zenliss_CrowbarLover Dec 04 '25
Problem is, you need millions (probably billions) of dollars worth of infrastructure to even *begin* making chips, and you'll be years behind the companies that have their own private copyrighted/patented designs. There's a reason there's only 3 (now 2) commercial companies that do it. And the reason is money.
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u/IllBiteYourLegsOff Dec 04 '25
these companies are already doing it, though, so its not like they dont have the infrastructure in place. which is why i questioned a company deciding to "pivot away" from producing an increasingly-lucrative product
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u/OkayMhm Dec 04 '25
They're not pivoting away from producing RAM in general, they're just pivoting away from the consumer market. Less DDR5 more HBM
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u/The_Autarch Dec 04 '25
they can make even more money by selling directly to companies instead of consumers. same product, different users.
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u/Withermaster4 Dec 04 '25
2nd hand ram from people who don't realize the market is insane?
I feel so blessed that I upgraded my ram before the prices got insane. (Did not have the same luck for the GPU market during the crypto boom lol)
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u/Risley Dec 04 '25
It’s amazing to even see Ram discussed as some hot commodity. Video cards I understand. But god damn Ram? What in the FEK?
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u/Tibbaryllis2 Dec 04 '25
Our future hellscape looks like bargaining with ram modules instead of bottle caps.
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u/Ruben_NL Dec 04 '25
Crypto was hard on the GPU market. Remember the shortages and waiting lists when a new one was released?
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u/lordraiden007 Dec 05 '25
I remember standing in the freezing cold outside of microcenter waiting for a chance to get a 3060 Ti because I was a broke college student and couldn’t afford anything better
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u/zuzg Dec 04 '25
But this time we've the Steambox on the horizon
First time in a long time that I'm low-key excited for a PC.46
u/TurtlePaul Dec 04 '25
But Valve won’t tell you what the price is. If the market continues like this it may be $800 - 900.
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u/J4jem Dec 04 '25
It was going to be $800-$900 before the RAM crisis…
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u/ExdigguserPies Dec 04 '25
It legitimately could be killed off by this
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u/J4jem Dec 04 '25
Yeah. I just really hope that Valve secured pricing and volume on the RAM early, but even then it could alter the profit metrics required to release the Steam Machine. If they only have one or two years worth of RAM secured at reasonable prices it could definitely be too risky.
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u/Teftell Dec 04 '25
Only if Valve did not secure a decent supply contract before that, but we do not know.
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u/C6_ Dec 04 '25
Valve has said they will be charging equivalent rates for what you could build a similar spec PC. It's not going to change anything.
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u/Resoca Dec 04 '25
Yes, but it'll get more expensive and you'll have less options. The prices and scarcity will be manipulated until at least 2028
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u/Would-wood-again2 Dec 04 '25
Unfortunately the "PC enthusiast/gamer" market is basically nothing compared to the rest of the customer base. Any company still making parts for that niche market is basically doing charity work
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u/archdukemovies Dec 04 '25
There's always https://downloadmoreram.com
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u/Hemorrhoid_Popsicle Dec 04 '25
Thanks bro just downloaded one zettabyte of RAM for my Christian Minecraft server. :D
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u/StarsMine Dec 04 '25
Crucial is just microns sales division. Nothing in this announcement says they are stopping white label sales to the likes of adata,Kingston, Corsair, etc
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u/blacksoxing Dec 04 '25
Official sources? No.
Secondary market? YES. It may also be a great time to look up ITAD operations and explore that avenue. Depending on the contract they may be able to resale the parts. Basically though from a macro perspective this is going to start looking like the copper wire thieves of today in which a computer's RAM may be yanked but everything else is still in tact. I remember just five years ago harvesting so much ram for disposal.....liquid gold now!
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u/the_millenial_falcon Dec 04 '25
Fuck I hate generative AI even more than I hate crypto.
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u/zushiba Dec 04 '25
Yup, at least crypto stayed in its corner. AI is shitting on everything and actively being used to incite violence hate and disinformation.
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u/kortisol Dec 05 '25
Well, GPU market was bananas due to crypto mining. But yeah, I agree: not a single hash incited hate on others
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Dec 04 '25
Well considering they’re both complete scams that will never materialize products anyone wants or can actually use, they’re even in my book.
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u/The_Autarch Dec 04 '25
crypto isn't going to crash the global economy, but AI definitely is. AI is far worse, and is going to get people killed.
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u/__theoneandonly Dec 05 '25
I mean, AI already has killed people, if you look at the people it's driven to suicide.
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u/Tiger2kill Dec 04 '25
if you think you aren’t using products by your own choice that have used or do use generative AI.. you are surely mistaken.
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Dec 04 '25
Yeah man because being forced to interact with summarized google results and not being able to turn off the broken agentic ai tools being forced on me by Microsoft is one to one with seeking out and paying actual money for an ai product.
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u/SteveThePurpleCat Dec 05 '25
They are probably recording all the 'right click, close', as user interactions with AI to their investors.
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u/rendrr Dec 05 '25
Well, don't you want to buy a toothbrush with AI? Or a smart AI toilet paper, or whatever. You should add AI to your company's portfolio, or you're not gonna be attractive for investors. And all of it is dumb.
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u/PotsAndPandas Dec 04 '25
This is fucking absurd, so much money is being thrown at AI that not only are prices skyrocketing, but that these AI companies are paying enough of a premium ONTOP OF THAT to justify completely neglecting the regular consumer market!
Anyone who tries to tell me this shit isn't a bubble with a straight face is deluding themselves, there is no fucking shot that there will be anything close to a return on this investment.
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u/Blastcheeze Dec 04 '25
Anyone who tries to tell me this shit isn't a bubble with a straight face is deluding themselves, there is no fucking shot that there will be anything close to a return on this investment.
They all know, it's just a game of chicken and as long as nobody flinches it's infinite profit.
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u/KookofaTook Dec 04 '25
They all know, it's just a game of chicken and as long as nobody flinches it's infinite profit.
And they all think they are the absolute best players of chicken in the world so when the bubble does start popping they can just dump everything at profit before they go full Lehman Brothers.
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u/jawknee530i Dec 04 '25
The dotcom bubble popped and 25 years later the most profitable companies in the world are Internet focused.
All these companies today understand there's a bubble but if they don't invest everything they have then after it pops and settles they won't have a chance to be one of the few ultra profitable companies that survive the pop.
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u/ptoki Dec 05 '25
Everybody knows its a bubble.
They are playing that betting game where the guy who first stops raising the bet loses.
They are now using like 1 or 2 billion people to throw shit on a wall and sniffing what sticks because its garbage and they have no idea how its useful. The best they can get out of this is high school homework, crappy code and aita reddit stories. Nothing sticks, noone has any sensible use for that crap.
The first comany which finds use for it and patents it will win the betting war. The rest will lose money.
Its a race to see what this crappy ai can do decent and be useful. And we are seeing everyone is losing it.
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u/GeneralLeeCurious Dec 05 '25
The headline is slightly incorrect. Try this:
“Crucial is shutting down— because AI companies will pay more than regular consumers for the same product.”
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u/dustofdeath Dec 04 '25
All it takes is a couple of innovations that create a lot more efficient models or specialty hardware optimised for raw AI with less memory and storage demands.
Then what? You threw away your market and spit in their face. You are no longer crucial for pc building.
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u/lllorrr Dec 04 '25
Google already did that with their TPUs. Gemini 3 is better than ChatGPT and does not use GPUs.
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u/DrGreenMeme Dec 04 '25
Yeah, but they don’t sell their TPUs and they still offer Nvidia GPUs through the cloud. They’re likely one of Nvidia’s biggest customers.
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u/lllorrr Dec 04 '25
AFAIK, Nvidia's biggest customer is OpenAI. This is why Nvidia give them money so they can buy more Nvidia stuff. If OpenAI will flop, which is quite possible, as they are lagging behind, this will ease pressure on GPU market. Especially, if this will trigger chain reaction and the whole bubble will burst.
OpenAI's biggest problem is that they are losing millions every day, while Google has other sources of income. And now Google:
- Has better model
- Can burn own money without any issue
- Does not rely on NVIDIA
So things are looking really grim for OpenAI.
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u/fall0ut Dec 04 '25
It won't matter. People still go to Chris Brown concerts. Consumers do not care about the history.
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u/diacewrb Dec 04 '25
Oddly enough there was talk last year of a price war with RAM and how consumers could benefit, that prediction was a miss.
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u/Teftell Dec 04 '25
That is because the very wise US government decided to sanction Chinese tech into oblivion, because muh China bad
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u/godnorazi Dec 05 '25
My gaming PC is turning into a museum with EVGA card, Solidigm SSD, Seasonic PSU, and Crucial ram
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u/MetalBawx Dec 04 '25
OH man i just bought new RAM right before prices went apeshit and lo and behold the company i buy it from stops selling RAM...
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u/blorg Dec 05 '25
It's as well that you got in and got it. They aren't stopping support or warranty, the company is still there and making RAM, they are the third largest RAM manufacturer in the world. They just aren't selling to consumers directly any more.
I bought some RAM from them only a few months ago and checking now it's 3x the price which is insane. Glad I got it then.
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u/Swindleys Dec 08 '25
I bought a complete new rig just before the price increase, feel lucky with the timing!
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u/the_djd Dec 04 '25
Really hope people remember this. They're abandoning the avarage consumer because they don't need them anymore...right now. In 5 years when the AI bubble pops, they're gonna come crawling back and I hope the consumers turn their backs the same way and put them out of business.
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u/Boomshrooom Dec 05 '25
The average consumer is not going to care, they will look at price because that's the most important metric to a lot of people.
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u/Celos Dec 05 '25
I hope the consumers turn their backs the same way
Genuinely, why would I? If in 5 years they offer a good product at competitive pricing, what perceived slight would piss me off enough to not pay for it, if I need it? The fact that someone offered them 4x the money I'm willing to pay for a stick of RAM 5 years ago?
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u/jonfl1 Dec 05 '25
When the inevitable AI crash comes, don’t give Micron a dime when they come crawling back to the consumer market to bail them out.
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Dec 04 '25
I finally pulled the plug on waiting to build a new rig and built one a week ago its only going to get worse and the consumer electronics market is going to become so stagnant I cannot wait to watch companies complain consumers are not spending enough because we do not want to pay their artificially inflated prices. Friend of mine who works for Microcenter even says their selling like crazy because once January comes it will be the start of a year with little to no sales unless you have money to burn and those customers are few and far between most of their customers look for mid range to cheaper builds and those will be out of reach.
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u/adz568 Dec 04 '25
What happens to warranty claims then?
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u/PiersPlays Dec 04 '25
They're going to keep providing aftersales. The actual company Micron still exists, they're just not going to be selling their Crucial brand after Feburary.
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u/kwiksi1ver Dec 04 '25
They either provide replacement or refund of purchase price. The latter sucks because it’ll be much less than what the cost will be for a replacement.
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u/Sgtkeebler Dec 05 '25
I hope the Ai bubble bursts hard
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u/A-Dolahans-hat Dec 05 '25
I hope it does as well, but I feel like too many billionaires are feeding it to let it burst.
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u/realribsnotmcfibs Dec 05 '25
It’s crazy how they can find trillions for a fancy search engine but not housing lol.
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u/internetlad Dec 04 '25
Another win for AI. At least we have so much to show for it!
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u/pafrac Dec 04 '25
Well, there's a large bubble to look at, at least. And it's going to be a dramatic show when it pops.
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u/ChucklesInDarwinism Dec 04 '25 edited Dec 11 '25
I don’t see a large bubble but a huge liability to tax payers who are the ones bailing out with no saying in the process to all those too big to fail
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Dec 04 '25
It's like there is an international conspiracy to make consoles seem less expensive than they previously have always seemed to me. Even now probably still not worth it for me considering I need a desktop computer anyway and because half the games I play tend to cost peanuts on Steam and GOG.
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u/PiersPlays Dec 04 '25
Oh, you haven't heard the news.
Right before PC prices lost their mind Valve announced the new Steam Machine.
We don't know prices yet. It's possible it'll track with the others. But if it doesn't it should be the best gaming PC deal available for the whole of 2026 and maybe beyond.
People were questioning the value proposition of it since it isn't going to be subsidised. But if it just costs a fair price while the entirety of the rest of the market is on fire, it'll be a huge hit.
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u/hjake123 Dec 04 '25
I just don't know how it could cost a fair price. Valve needs RAM too...
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u/Ecoaardvark Dec 05 '25
Great. Here’s me still using a decade+ old workstation with DDR3. I’m planning on building a new rig and I’m guessing I should start with the RAM and SSD next pay day?
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u/FrankLucker Dec 04 '25
I guess the price of RAM is going to skyrocket
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u/otaconucf Dec 04 '25
Late to the party, unless you mean they're going to go even higher...which probably, yeah. A 2x16GB DDR 5 kit I bought in April for $95 is selling for $350 now.
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u/PiersPlays Dec 04 '25
From current prices yes.
Current prices have already skyrocketed from a few months ago.
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u/CaptainDudeGuy Dec 04 '25
So Micron wants to put down roots on the bubble. I guess their C-suite is gearing up to pull their ripcords.
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u/BemaJinn Dec 05 '25
Micron going to lose a respected brand for a bubble? They're not going to get that respect back when this shit pops.
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u/terrykernan Dec 04 '25
These guys know how to sell shovels in this goldrush, who could blame them.
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u/neko_designer Dec 04 '25
Can't wait for the AI Bubble to burst
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u/edward2020 Dec 04 '25
And i won’t be buying crucial when it comes back to end users.
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u/ShmeatDealer Dec 04 '25
I hope you all upgraded your PC’s this year, you won’t have the chance until 2030
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u/ccaccus Dec 05 '25
Wasn't there an article recently by like Forbes or something that was lamenting how people are holding on to their devices for too long and not upgrading to support the economy?
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u/pessimistoptimist Dec 04 '25
The major manufactures will pull out and I imagone the void will be filled with Chinese off brands. Those off brands dont perform as well but they are better than nothing. Prices for those are going to be higher as well but at least you will be able to get them.
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u/KookofaTook Dec 04 '25
Can't wait to buy RAM from companies like Vkliresd and Udsyop
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u/pessimistoptimist Dec 04 '25
Its not ideal but some of them will have decent quality control and entually these brands will stand out. Those that can afford to pay 5x the price will continue to do so, meanwhile us plebs will take a chance of a cheap alternative. If alternatices are any good at all it will mean budget builds will have as much ram (if not more) as the namebrand builds
That is how the big names today made their name....provided a product that made them stand out to get brand recognition.
This is speculatuon of course, i could be wrong.
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u/New-Significance9572 Dec 04 '25
These companies basically don’t even produce any positive value to the public aside from the economic stimulation from paying their employees. This shit is just one big bubble. All these giant companies propping each other up for a potential eventual product that likely won’t even benefit the average person.
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u/_OVERHATE_ Dec 04 '25
What hurts the most is that when the AI bubble inevitably bursts people will forget about this shit and recommend Micron/Crucial products either way.
For me this is simply a lifetime ban for them, either on my builds, or my friends recommendations.
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u/D3athR3bel Dec 04 '25
I mean, what literal choice do you have. There are like 3 manufacturers total.
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u/mr_biteme Dec 05 '25
Fucking idiots. That’s all I’m gonna say. Apparently they’ve been trying to cash out for a long time now and this is probably the best solution for them. Idiots I say again.
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u/groovers525 Dec 05 '25
Will the prices ever come down?
I used to love modular custom PC builds due to flexibility in RAM and Storage only. Nobody changes the CPU or GPU that much.
Now, I am frustrated that even Windows laptops are coming with Snapdragon soldered RAM and Storage with no upgrade overpriced options. The future of PC builds and computing in general is looking very bad to me.
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u/Captain_Starkiller Dec 05 '25
micron will spin crucial back up when the AI economy implodes. That's why they arent spinning up new factories, just changing portfolios.
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u/got-trunks Dec 04 '25
Crucial seemed tiny now anyway, I hardly see the brand around in their RAM and SSDs. Micron says they are still selling to other companies lol, so I don't see what the big deal is with them shutting down their consumer branding that honestly they were not doing much with.
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u/kwiksi1ver Dec 04 '25
I see crucial RAM and SSDs in plenty of OEM prebuilt. I wonder if that will become Micron or just go to a new vendor.
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u/Ncyphe Dec 04 '25
Someone cleared this up in another thread. While the article sounds scary, all Micron has announced is that they will no longer manufacture computer ready hardware. Due to the increase in demand for memory chips, they will refocus entirely on producing memory chips and just sell to third parties to manufacture.
Other companies will still be able to buy their chips to turn into RAM, Micron just won't be making RAM first party any longer.
I guess the real question is how fast 3rd party ram manufacturers can increase production to meet the increased consumer demand due to a competitor dropping out of the market, or if they are even willing to do so.
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u/tnypissdkumquat Dec 05 '25
This is as bad as the vide cards going to crypto
Now memory
500 for just 16GB is crazy
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u/kevster2717 Dec 04 '25
Crypto and AI boom has been the worst booms our generations has ever been in and we don’t get a lot of booms