Micron Technology Stock Is Plummeting, but Here’s Why I’m Not Buying the Dip
Anthony Di Pizio, The Motley Fool
Sun, August 2, 2026 at 11:15 PM GMT+5:30
5 min read
- MU
-5.90% - NVDA
+2.93%
Micron Technology (NASDAQ: MU) is one of the world’s top suppliers of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) for data centers, which helps maximize processing speeds in artificial intelligence (AI) workloads. Demand for this hardware is off the charts, resulting in a severe shortage that is giving Micron the ability to dictate prices
But despite these favorable conditions, Micron stock recently plummeted by 32% from its June record high. Concerns are growing about the sustainability of the AI infrastructure spending boom, as the soaring cost of chips and components threatens the financial
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To keep things in perspective, Micron stock is still sitting on a one-year gain of almost 700%, so the sky isn’t exactly falling just yet. But here’s why I won’t be buying the recent dip
Why Micron stock is sinking
According to a forecast by Bloomberg, there will be around 118 gigawatts’ worth of data center capacity installed across the U.S. by 2030 to support the AI boom. Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang says building a single gigawatt worth of capacity requires $50 billion worth of capital investment, so if Bloomberg’s forecast proves to be accurate, America’s tech giants will have spent a staggering $5.9 trillion by 2030
Those companies have to generate a return on all of that capital spending, otherwise it wouldn’t make economic sense. Some of them will achieve this by renting computing capacity to other businesses for a fee, while others will charge for the use of their AI models and software applications. But as hardware prices continue to soar, AI companies have to charge their customers more money, and it’s quickly becoming unsustainable
Microsoft and Anthropic recently implemented price increases for some of their AI software products, with concerning results. For example, Uber Technologies burned through its entire 2026 AI budget in just four months by using Anthropic’s Claude Code, and the company’s chief operating officer said it’s becoming hard to justify the current rate of spending
Amazon and Walmart recently joined Uber in capping AI usage for their employees to prevent further budget blowouts. But they aren’t alone, because a survey by UBS Group found that 60% of businesses are now routing tasks to cheaper, more efficient AI models to help reduce costs
