Steam Machine Engineers at Valve Signal Grim Future as Memory Crisis Is 'Still Getting Worse'
· IGN
Steam Machine engineers at Valve have warned the ongoing memory crisis in tech is "still getting worse" as buyers face already exorbitant prices.
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Yazan Aldehayyat and Pierre-Loup Griffais, two individuals who helped bring the new gaming hardware to life, offered their perspective on how the AI industry has influenced the high cost of RAM during an interview with Bloomberg. In case you thought things were already bad enough, they've got an update: the months ahead aren't looking too good.
"Honestly, it’s still getting worse," Aldehayyat said. "Just in case people are not aware. What people are seeing on retail shelves right now, from our observations, is lagging what we’re seeing from a bulk supply by at least three to six months."
The Steam Machine launched with a price tag of $1,049 for its base 512GB model alone. Its most expensive option, a 2TB version bundled with a Steam Controller, is a whopping $1428.
Aldehayyat said Valve had expected to run into some trouble when it formally announced the device in November 2025, but not like this. Griffais went as far as to say that Valve has been "building everything we can get our hands on," adding the company has been "limited by memory capacity, for sure."
"We knew there was going to be an issue with sourcing," Aldehayyat said. "But the extent was beyond anything we actually expected."
Part of Valve's time during what has rapidly become a tumultuous period for tech has seen it struggling to keep up with demand for the Steam Deck, too. The Half-Life company also said it 'would love' to make the Steam Machine 'more affordable' but warned that a price drop wouldn't arrive 'any time soon.'
Valve is far from the only company to ring the alarm bells when it comes to the memory crisis from the last few months. Micron CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said he expected the RAM shortage to last through 2027. Epic Games boss Tim Sweeney warned in late 2025 that high-end PC gamers will struggle with prices "for several years." As Sony and Microsoft charge ever closer to the release of new next-gen gaming consoles, the former has said it's still deciding when and how to launch the PS6.
For more, you can read about what Griffais had to say about Valve's approach to the RAM shortage during an interview with IGN earlier this year. You can also see what Valve had to say about its relationship with RAM companies.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer with IGN. He's best known for his work at sites like The Pitch, The Escapist, and OnlySP. Be sure to give him a follow on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).