HP Says Memory's Contribution To PC Costs Just Doubled To 35%

Source: Slashdot

HP has revealed that memory now accounts for 35 % of the cost of materials needed to build a PC, up from between 15 % and 18 % in the previous quarter. The company expects RAM’s contribution to continue rising throughout the year.

Memory’s Share of PC Costs

• Current share: 35 % of total material costs.
• Previous quarter: 15 %–18 %.

HP’s Response and Strategies

During the Q1 2026 earnings call, interim CEO Bruce Broussard highlighted several actions HP is taking:

• Supply agreements: Secured long‑term supply contracts for the year and qualified new suppliers.
• Strategic inventory: Built strategic inventory positions for key platforms and cut the time to qualify new material in half, accelerating product configuration changes.
• Cost sourcing: Expanded lower‑cost sourcing across the commodity basket, reducing logistics costs through agile end‑to‑end planning processes powered by internal AI initiatives.
• Demand shaping: Configuring products and shaping demand to align supply with customer needs.
• Pricing actions: Implementing targeted pricing measures in close partnership with both channel and direct customers to offset remaining cost impacts.