Rumor: Nvidia and AMD Are Plotting to Bankrupt Us All with Monthly GPU Price Hikes
Just when I thought the crypto mining crash had finally saved PC gaming, the industry found a new way to ruin my financial stability.
I honestly believed we were past the dark ages of buying graphics cards. I was wrong. A terrifying new report out of Korea suggests that the era of "affordable" hardware is dead and buried. According to industry sources cited by Newsis, both Nvidia and AMD are preparing to significantly raise GPU prices starting as early as next month. This is not a simple inflation adjustment. This looks like a complete restructuring of the market that puts gamers dead last.
The Month-to-Month Nightmare
Here is the breakdown of the pain. The report claims that AMD is expected to kick off price hikes in January 2026, with Nvidia following suit in February. The scary part is the claim that both companies plan to "continue raising GPU prices every month going forward."
You read that right. Monthly price hikes.
If this report holds water, buying a GPU becomes a gamble against time. Waiting for a sale might actually cost you more money as the base MSRP creeps up every thirty days. It is essentially a subscription service to poverty if you want to stay on the cutting edge of hardware.
A $5,000 Graphics Card?
The most jaw-dropping number in the report concerns the RTX 5090. We already knew high-end cards were expensive, with the 5090 having launched around the $1,999 mark (However 90% of people still haven’t been able to find it for that price even). However, Newsis sources suggest this card could soar to a staggering $5,000 (roughly 7.15 million KRW) next year.
For context, you can buy a functional used car for that price. You can pay several months of rent. You could buy roughly ten PS5s. The idea that a consumer-grade piece of hardware could cost as much as a down payment on a house is insanity. If this happens, the "PC Master Race" isn't going to be about performance anymore. It is going to be about who has a trust fund.
Blame the Robots (Again)
So why is this happening? You guessed it. AI.
The report notes that the average cost of memory now accounts for over 80% of a GPU's total manufacturing cost. With the AI boom showing no signs of slowing down, data centers are gobbling up every stick of high-performance memory (HBM and DDR5) that exists. Nvidia and AMD make way more money selling to enterprise AI clients than they do selling to me so I can play Cyberpunk with better lighting.
We are effectively fighting for scraps at the table while the AI giants feast. If memory prices continue to climb as predicted, 2026 is going to be a brutal year for anyone looking to upgrade their rig. Everyone might just have to get comfortable with 1080p gaming for the next decade.