Thanks a lot, AI: Hard drives are already sold out for the entire year, says Western Digital | Mashable Western Digital says its all sold out of hard drives for 2026, less than two months into the year. Credit: Alex Kraus/Bloomberg via Getty Images Looking to buy a new hard drive? Get ready to pay even more this year. According to Western Digital, one of the world’s biggest hard drive manufacturers, the company has already sold out of its storage capacity for 2026 with more than 10 months still left in the year. “We’re pretty much sold out for calendar 2026,” said Western Digital CEO Irving Tan on the company’s recent quarterly earnings call . You May Also Like Tan shared that most of the storage space has been allocated to its “top seven customers.” Three of these companies already have agreements with Western Digital for 2027 and even 2028. Mashable Light Speed Want more out-of-this world tech, space and science stories? Sign up for Mashable’s weekly Light Speed newsletter. Loading… Sign Me Up Use this instead By clicking Sign Me Up, you confirm you are 16+ and agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy . Thanks for signing up! SEE ALSO: This is your last chance to get super cheap SSDs and hard drives at Amazon Furthermore, the incentive for these hardware companies to prioritize the average consumer is also dwindling. According to Western Digital, thanks to a surge in demand from its enterprise customers, the consumer market now accounts for just 5 percent of the company’s revenue. AI companies have been eating up computer hardware as industry growth accelerates. Prices for products ranging from computer processors to video game consoles have skyrocketed due to these AI companies cannibalizing supply chains. The tech industry has already been experiencing a shortage of memory due to demand from AI companies. PC makers have been forced to raise RAM prices on a near-regular basis as shortages persist. Video game console makers, like Sony, have even reportedly considered pushing the next PlayStation launch beyond the planned 2027 release in hopes that AI-related hardware shortages would be resolved by then. With this latest news from Western Digital, it appears the ever-increasing demands from AI companies for memory and storage will continue to grow, with no end in sight. Unless, of course, investors decide to pull back from AI over fears that AI’s promises may not come to fruition. But, for now at least, the shortages – and price hikes for consumers – will continue. Topics Artificial Intelligence Recommended For You How to watch Western Michigan vs. Kennesaw State online for free Live stream all the action from the Myrtle Beach Bowl from anywhere in the world. 12/19/2025 By Matt Ford Apple’s iPhone Pocket sock is fully sold out The people, they yearn for the sock! 11/26/2025 By Stan Schroeder Creator Khaby Lame just sold a stake in his brand for $975 million A mouth-watering amount of money. 01/28/2026 By Chance Townsend How ‘A Knight of th

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