AI-driven memory cycle powers Applied Materials’ 2026 growth surge

Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ: AMAT) is set for a sharp acceleration in revenue growth in 2026, as a rebound in memory spending, supercharged by demand for AI infrastructure, feeds through to its wafer fabrication equipment business, particularly in DRAM.

Visible Alpha consensus estimates point to net sales rising 18% year-on-year to $33.4 billion in 2026, a marked improvement from the relatively modest 4% growth in 2025. The growth is being driven primarily by memory, where cloud providers and semiconductor manufacturers are ramping capacity to support AI workloads, including high-bandwidth memory (HBM) and advanced DRAM architecture.

Within Applied Materials’ semiconductor systems segment, sales are expected to increase 18% to $25.4 billion. This division spans foundry, logic and other, DRAM, and flash technologies. DRAM is the standout contributor, with revenues forecast to rise 37% to $7.8 billion, a sharp acceleration from 1% growth last year, reflecting a cyclical upswing in memory capital expenditure.

Foundry, logic and other revenues are also expected to strengthen, rising 15% to $16.5 billion, supported by ongoing investment in advanced nodes and AI-linked compute demand. In contrast, flash memory remains a weak spot, with revenues projected to fall 20% to $1.2 billion.

 This article was published by Visible Alpha, part of S&P Global Market Intelligence and not by S&P Global Ratings, which is a separately managed division of S&P Global.