Of the many industries artificial intelligence has affected, the video game industry has been the most impacted in part because of the increase in RAM prices.
RAM chips, short for Random Access Memory, are vital components in electronics. They handle the short-term memory tasks so that the CPU or processor can complete its work more efficiently.
However, as data centers increase, so do the demand for these chips as AI and technology companies are prioritizing fulfilling their demands.
Already, Micron, a prominent player in memory and storage solutions, announced that it is exiting the consumer business because of the growth of data centers.
These developments are affecting the video game industry. Bloomberg reported Nintendo lost $14 billion in its valuation as the memory chip shortage scares investors.
The impact it has made on its rivals, Sony and Microsoft, is not lost on consumers.
“If we look at Xbox, the Series X, it used to be $499 back in 2020, 2021, 2022, and then once the AI boom started happening, prices went up,” Carlos Knight, a gamer, said.
The impact of AI on the video game industry is not limited to hardware. It has also affected those working or planning to work in the video game industry.
Rick Rowley is a BYU student in an interdisciplinary major who wants to start his own video game company after graduation.
“I don’t think the technology itself is inherently bad or evil or anything. I think it’s just a powerful tool and like any powerful tool, it can be used for all kinds of purpose whether they’re good ones or bad ones,” Rowley said.
When it comes to new AI developments that affect the industry as a whole, such as coding, the first thing he will do is to talk with his programmers to see how heavily it will impact them.
“I think as long as I, in good faith, take in the well-being of the people working at the company and the people buying the products, I think it will turn out all right,” Rowley said.