SMT Perspectives & Prospects: What I Hope the Next Generation Will Carry Forward
Knocking Down the Bone Pile: Interposer Rework and Precision Solder Ball Attachment
Standard of Excellence: AI Makes It Possible, and Engineers Make It Happen
Hyperscale CSPs are ramping up investments in servers and AI infrastructure, according to TrendForce’s latest AI server industry research. Combined CapEx among the world’s nine leading CSPs is projected to surge 106% YoY to US$957 billion in 2026. In 2027, this figure is expected to surpass $1.5 trillion, representing a further 60% YoY increase. Both forecasts have been revised upward from previous estimates.
The world’s nine leading CSPs consist of Google, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, Oracle, ByteDance, Tencent, Alibaba, and Baidu. The upward revision to their combined 2027 CapEx growth forecast—from 50% to 60%—reflects three key factors: rising prices for complete server systems, higher component quotations amid supply shortages, and advance payments required by some component suppliers to secure supply, prompting CSPs to bring forward cash expenditures.
Strong financial resources fuel AI server procurement, with shipment growth expected to approach 36% in 2027
Demand for AI servers continues to strengthen as CSP investment remains robust. Beyond hyperscale CSPs, Tier-2 data center operators such as Tesla and CoreWeave have also continued purchasing AI servers. TrendForce now forecasts AI server shipments to grow 32.2% YoY in 2026 given the strong overall demand outlook.
Looking ahead to 2027, hyperscale CSPs are expected to remain the primary drivers of the AI market. Additional demand from neocloud providers, sovereign AI projects, and LLM developers introducing new AI models and application services will further support procurement momentum. Consequently, AI server shipments are projected to increase by nearly 36% YoY.
In terms of market value, AI servers are expected to generate approximately $479 billion in revenue in 2026, supported by their high ASPs and solid shipment performance. This would account for nearly 75% of the projected $639.2 billion in total server market revenue, which includes both general-purpose and AI servers.
In 2027, end-customer orders are expected to center on rack-scale solutions such as NVIDIA's GB300 and VR200, as well as AMD's Helios series. Shortages and rising prices of key components, particularly memory, are driving up the ASPs of next-generation AI server racks.
TrendForce therefore expects total server market revenue to surpass $1 trillion for the first time in 2027, while AI server revenue is projected to surge by more than 90% YoY to nearly $920 billion. This means that AI servers' share of total server market revenue is expected to rise to approximately 81%.
