The global NAND flash memory market reached a massive US$46 billion in revenues in the first quarter of 2026, fueled by growing demand for AI infrastructure.
According to Counterpoint Research’s latest NAND Memory Market Tracker, the industry saw the market almost 2x sequentially and a staggering 3.5x compared to the first quarter of 2025, mirroring the dramatic price hikes previously seen in the DRAM sector. Here are the key takeaways from the report:
° Artificial intelligence infrastructure roll out and move to Agentic AI continues to be the primary growth engine. Server-oriented enterprise SSDs (eSSDs) accounted for 43% of the total NAND market in Q1 2026 and are projected to cross 60% by the end of the year. For perspective, Q1 2026 NAND revenues was greater than the full year 2023 revenues.
° Samsung comfortably maintained its number-one position, capturing a 29% market share.
° Kioxia, Micron, SanDisk and YMTC are pretty close competing fiercely for the third spot with solid demand all across.
° China’s Yangtze Memory Technologies Corp (YMTC) is the market’s standout performer. Driven by heavy demand from domestic Chinese manufacturers and price increases driven by supply shortages, YMTC grew almost 445% annually as its market share rose from 8% a year ago to 13% this quarter.
