Macronix, a key maker of Nintendo cartridge chips, is leaving that business because of AI
In short: Chips for Switch and Switch 2 games get harder to source: Macronix is quitting ROM to make memory for data centers.
Macronix, one of the main makers of the ROM chips inside Switch and Switch 2 cartridges, will leave that business to focus on the NOR and NAND memory that AI data centers demand. Analyst David Gibson shared the news and the company confirmed it in its latest earnings call.
What we know
ROM chips went from 26% of Macronix sales a year ago to just 5% in the third quarter of this year. There will be no new ROM products, and the company's NT$37.8 billion investment goes to NOR and NAND flash, with nothing left for ROM.
Nintendo is not out of chips
Macronix is not the only supplier: Rohm Semiconductor and LAPIS Semiconductor also sell ROM to Nintendo. Nintendo does not buy from Macronix directly either: MegaChips designs the chips and Macronix builds them on contract. Physical cartridges will carry on, but with one less supplier supply gets tighter.
What could happen
With pricier memory and fewer suppliers, analysts see three outcomes: more expensive physical games, more Game-Key Cards (a card that only holds a download key) or more digital sales. A month ago Nintendo said it has no plans to drop physical games, while Sony plans to stop making discs in 2028.
It is one more effect of the AI-driven memory crisis, which has already raised prices of consoles, graphics cards and RAM.
What it means for you
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