Google recycles old memory chips as AI-driven DRAM shortage deepens

Google Alphabet Inc. ↗ 1.59% has confirmed it is pulling DDR4 memory modules from retired servers and repurposing them in its newest AI machines, a stopgap measure that underscores how deeply the global memory chip crunch has cut into the tech industry's ambitions.

Nikhil Cherian, senior director of supply chain infrastructure at Google, said the company is dismantling decommissioned servers to recover DDR4 components and has built specialized hardware adapters that allow the older memory to connect to next-generation AI servers. Even with the recycling effort, Cherian acknowledged that Google is still struggling to secure enough chips, and called on memory makers to expand capacity as the only lasting fix.cryptopolitan+2

Hyperscalers Turn to Recycling

Google is not alone. Meta ↗ 3.01% disclosed earlier this year that it is reusing DDR4 modules across millions of servers using Compute Express Link, a standard that pools older and newer memory in the same machine. Meta reported a 25% reduction in server count on some inference workloads and a roughly 29% drop in average latency on distributed cache systems.eetimes+1

The approach hinges on CXL controllers from companies such as Marvell ↗ 1.14%, whose Structera X product line supports both DDR4 and DDR5. Marvell's Khurram Malik told EE Times that hyperscalers are extending the useful life of DDR4 modules that would otherwise be scrapped when servers migrate to DDR5-only platforms. Meta went further by designing its own Vistara ASIC to avoid latency and bandwidth penalties that come with off-the-shelf CXL hardware.cryptopolitan+1

Prices Keep Climbing

The recycling push reflects a market where memory prices have become a major cost driver. Counterpoint Research reported an 80% to 90% quarter-over-quarter price increase for conventional DRAM in the first quarter of 2026, and Marvell estimated single-quarter jumps as high as 95%. TrendForce projects another 13% to 18% quarterly rise in conventional DRAM contract prices in the third quarter.news.futunn+1

Hyperscalers are now expected to spend roughly 30% of their budgets on memory in 2026, up from about 8% in 2023 and 2024. Dell's ↗ 4.91% chief operating officer Jeffrey Clarke summed up the constraint during an earnings call: "DRAM, DRAM, DRAM, followed by NAND, NAND, NAND".cryptopolitan+1

No Quick Fix

New supply remains years away. SK Hynix ↘ 0.79% has committed about $38 billion to two new fabrication plants, but its Y2 DRAM facility is not expected to reach the cleanroom stage until mid-2029. The company said in late August that it expects the memory shortage to persist through 2030. Meanwhile, two unions representing roughly 10,000 Micron ↗ 0.22% workers in Taiwan are weighing a strike vote over bonus disputes, a potential disruption at one of three firms that control about 94% of the DRAM market.finance.yahoo+2