leaks suggests $5000 RTX 5090 GPUs arriving in 2026 due to AI market demand.
It’s well-known that gaming is facing an affordability crisis, as higher demand for AI-capable GPUs and DDR5 memory leads to soaring prices for gamers, along with broader impacts on the gaming hardware industry. Currently, new leaks indicate that the situation is expected to deteriorate even further in 2026. As reported by the Korean outlet Newsis, AMD and NVIDIA intend to steadily and permanently raise GPU prices “over the coming months.” It is anticipated to begin as soon as January 2026, when AMD is predicted to raise prices. NVIDIA is reportedly set to follow in February.
If the publication’s inside sources are accurate, the NVIDIA RTX 5090, initially released at $1,999, could soar to as much as $5,000 by year’s end. No forecasts have been issued for AMD’s RX 9000 series, but it’s already noted that memory could account for up to 80% of the average GPU BOM cost, and memory costs are anticipated to rise by as much as 40% by Q2 2026. We have previously noted that the instability and rising prices in the DRAM market will likely influence the release schedules for future hardware, possibly impacting next-gen console launches, and ASUS has recently stated it will raise hardware prices beginning in early January 2026, while also boosting DDR4 motherboard production in light of the shifting market conditions.
