TrendForce’s latest research shows that the MLCC market in 2Q26 is showing a clear split between robust AI-driven demand and soft consumer demand. The U.S.–Iran conflict has pushed up oil and natural gas prices, driving higher energy and transportation costs. Consumer price indexes (CPI) across major economies rose in March, with inflation expected to intensify and weigh on end-market demand and corporate capital spending.
TrendForce’s latest research indicates that the global market for AI-focused optical transceivers has entered a phase of rapid growth, with market size projected to expand from US$16.5 billion in 2025 to $26 billion in 2026, representing over 57% YoY growth. This surge is driven not only by specification upgrades but also reflects a broader structural reshaping of the optical communications supply chain amid accelerating AI data center deployment.
Although AI demand will continue to drive both general-purpose servers and AI servers in 2026, suppliers are prioritizing capacity allocation to higher-market AI server products, according to TrendForce’s latest server industry findings.
According to TrendForce’s latest findings on AI servers, NVIDIA’s high-end AI chip shipment mix is expected to change in 2026. The combined share of Hopper and Rubin series in overall high-end GPU shipments is anticipated to decrease due to geopolitical issues and ongoing supply chain changes. Meanwhile, the Blackwell series is projected to grow markedly from 61% to 71%, solidifying its leading position in the market.
Major suppliers are continuing to phase out production of mature products below DDR4, according to TrendForce’s latest research on the memory industry. As supply tightens structurally, DRAM prices have already posted significant cumulative increases in recent months.