IDC forecasts that the global smartphone market will shrink by 13% this year due to a shortage crisis of storage chips.

Research institution IDC states that due to an unprecedented shortage of storage chips, the global smartphone market will shrink by 12.9% in 2026, signaling a "unprecedented crisis." This latest forecast is significantly lower than previous estimates, reflecting the latest assessment of the shortage of storage chips that has engulfed the entire electronics industry. The advanced storage demands that support artificial intelligence tasks have depleted global supply, and the tense situation will continue for quite some time until next year, threatening the business models of many smartphone manufacturers. IDC currently predicts that global smartphone shipments will be around 1.1 billion units in 2026, lower than the previous year's 1.26 billion units, wiping out several years of growth. Faced with high component costs, smartphone manufacturers are responding by cutting configurations, canceling unprofitable entry-level models, and encouraging consumers to buy more high-end devices.