'The current situation is extremely serious' — Zotac warns that graphics card makers could be wiped out by memory crisis

• Graphics card maker Zotac has warned consumers about the memory shortage in a reported statement
• Zotac says that the RAM crisis is 'extremely serious'
• It cautions that graphics card manufacturers may be at risk of being shut down

It seems that on a daily basis now, the PC hardware market is sinking deeper into trouble due to the RAM crisis, which shows no signs of abating – and unfortunately, the bad news around price hikes and memory shortages continues.

This time, it's coming directly from a graphics card manufacturer, Zotac Korea, which has warned that the RAM shortage may leave third-party board makers on the verge of being eliminated, as reported by TweakTown.

In a post translated by user @harukaze5719 on X (add your own seasoning), Zotac stated: "The current situation is extremely serious – serious enough to raise concerns about the very survival of graphics card manufacturers and distributors going forward.

"Memory supply remains constrained, and it has been announced that GPU supply volumes will also be reduced."

It's quite evident how volatile the situation is, as supply shortages are progressively getting worse.

Zotac's statement also adds credence to the rumor that Nvidia could cut production of its RTX 5000 GPUs by up to 40%, which would be troubling for consumers looking to buy a new graphics card, to say the least.

With continued memory shortages and higher costs on VRAM modules, graphics card makers like Zotac, Gigabyte, and Asus will be hard-pressed to supply enough cards for consumers, ultimately impacting revenue.

On the consumer side, it means PC builds will only become more expensive, as GPU prices may increase even further, and RAM prices are already at unprecedented levels, costing more than entire pre-built systems in some cases. Storage price hikes are happening too, of course.

With the big GPU chip makers, namely AMD and Nvidia, turning their attention to the AI market, it's a very worrying sign for PC gamers. 2026 is not off to a good start.

Analysis: I hope cloud gaming doesn't become a priority

While the RAM crisis rages on, Nvidia's GeForce Now (GFN) continues to grow as a cloud gaming service, in terms of device compatibility and features to improve image quality and performance.

I've tested GeForce Now, and I can tell you that it truly is an amazing companion for gaming on a handheld, or even a device as simple as an Amazon Fire TV stick. However, my major worry is that the surge in RAM prices is going to increasingly affect GPU availability, which will ultimately lead to a push for cloud gaming to become the primary way to play.

That might sound like a real reach, given that frankly, the RAM crisis hasn't caused that much of an impact just yet. However, the longer it continues, the closer that possibility gets.

I'm not a fan of gaming without the necessary hardware in front of you, and I view admittedly great services like GFN as an alternative or a temporary option for more casual gamers who can't afford a gaming PC. A push in the direction of GFN becoming the 'main way' to play games effectively is worrying for me, because it's robbing people of the freedom of owning a gaming PC. GFN, for all its merit, has obvious weaknesses – such as what happens when your internet goes down, or gets glitchy.

I truly hope I'm overthinking this, but I fear that the longer this price crisis continues, the more frustrations are going to be visited on PC gamers – and my fears may end up warranted.

The best graphics cards for all budgets

➡️ Read our full guide to the best graphics card
1. Best overall:
AMD Radeon RX 9070 XT
2. Best budget:
Intel Arc B580
3. Best Nvidia:
Nvidia RTX 5070 Ti
4. Best AMD:
AMD Radeon RX 7900 XTX

Follow TechRadar on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our expert news, reviews, and opinion in your feeds. Make sure to click the Follow button!

And of course, you can also follow TechRadar on YouTube and TikTok for news, reviews, unboxings in video form, and get regular updates from us on WhatsApp too.