- YMTC held a reported 14% global NAND shipment share in Q2 2026, according to Counterpoint data cited by CNBC. [1] - Counterpoint’s public revenue-based data shows YMTC rising from 8% in Q1 2025 to 13% in Q1 2026; Micron was also at 13% and Kioxia at 14% in the latter period. [2] - The shipment ranking indicates growing competitive pressure, but does not establish that YMTC leads Micron or Kioxia in revenue, profit or enterprise-SSD share. [1][2] - Micron and Kioxia are both targeting AI-related data-center storage, where product mix and pricing may matter more than raw shipment volume. [3][4]
Yangtze Memory Technologies has entered the global NAND flash market’s top three by shipment share, according to second-quarter 2026 data from Counterpoint Research cited by CNBC. YMTC accounted for a reported 14% of shipments, putting it ahead of Micron and Kioxia by volume. [1]
The result would mark a sharp expansion for the Chinese supplier, but it should not be read as a revenue ranking. Counterpoint’s publicly available quarterly table reports NAND market share by revenue, and its first-quarter 2026 figures placed YMTC at 13%, alongside Micron and just behind Kioxia at 14%. [2]
Shipment share is not revenue share #
Counterpoint’s public revenue series shows YMTC increasing its share from 8% in Q1 2025 to 9% in Q2, 10% in Q3, 11% in Q4 and 13% in Q1 2026. Over the same five-quarter period, Micron’s revenue share moved from 15% to 13%, while Kioxia’s moved from 17% to 14%. Samsung led the Q1 2026 table with 29%, followed by SK hynix at 18%. [2]
The latest 14% figure is described as a shipment share, not a revenue share. That difference matters because NAND prices rose sharply during the period. A supplier can increase the number of bits shipped without generating the same proportion of industry revenue, particularly if its sales mix is weighted toward lower-priced components or domestic markets. [1][2]
Counterpoint’s public page identifies the underlying source as its NAND Flash Tracker but does not provide the full methodology for the reported Q2 shipment ranking. The public table also does not show the exact Q2 shipment shares for Micron and Kioxia. [2]
YMTC’s manufacturing and product base #
Yangtze Memory Technologies Co., Ltd. was established in Wuhan in July 2016. The company describes itself as an integrated device manufacturer focused on 3D NAND design and production, with products including NAND wafers, packaged chips, embedded memory and consumer and enterprise SSDs. [5]
YMTC’s technology roadmap includes its Xtacking architecture and five generations of 3D NAND products. Its company profile says first-generation 3D NAND entered mass production in 2018, while Gen5 TLC and QLC products reached mass production in 2024 and 2025, respectively. Those are company-reported milestones rather than independent performance validations. [5]
The company’s product pages show exposure to client and enterprise SSDs as well as UFS and eMMC storage. However, the available market-share data does not identify how much of YMTC’s Q2 shipment growth came from each product category or how much was sold within China. [6]
Implications for Micron and Kioxia #
The ranking adds competitive pressure to Micron’s NAND business, even as the company benefits from tight supply. In its fiscal Q2 2026 filing, Micron reported that NAND sales increased 82% from the prior quarter, driven primarily by a high-70s percentage increase in average selling prices and a low-single-digit increase in bit shipments. Micron attributed the result to tight industry conditions and product mix. [3]
Micron also said AI-driven data-center demand for memory and storage was growing faster than the industry’s ability to increase supply. Its NAND portfolio includes data-center SSDs, and the company said it had begun shipping a 245-terabyte QLC SSD in fiscal 2026. [3][7]
Kioxia is pursuing a similar move toward higher-value storage. At its June 2026 investor day, the Japanese company said it was shifting toward data-center demand and targeting data-center revenue of more than 60% of total revenue by fiscal 2028. It also highlighted high-value SSD products for AI systems. [4]
For Micron and Kioxia, the immediate issue is therefore not simply whether YMTC shipped more NAND bits in one quarter. The more consequential questions are whether the gain persists, whether it converts into revenue share, and whether YMTC can compete in enterprise SSDs and other higher-margin segments. Those questions require the next comparable Counterpoint data release and a clearer account of the Q2 shipment methodology.
Companies mentioned #
Further sources #
[[1] CNBC report dated August 13, 2026, citing Counterpoint’s Q2 2026 NAND shipment … ↗](https://www.cnbc.com/2026/08/13/chinese-firm-tops-micron-kioxia-shipments-nand-memory-chips.html)
[[2] Counterpoint Research’s public Global NAND Memory Market Share: Quarterly data,… ↗](https://counterpointresearch.com/en/insights/global-nand-memory-market-share)
[[3] Micron Technology fiscal Q2 2026 Form 10-Q, including NAND sales, average-selli… ↗](https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/723125/000072312526000006/mu-20260226.htm)
[4] Kioxia Holdings’ June 2026 Investor Day presentation describing its data-center… ↗
[[5] YMTC’s company profile describing its founding, Wuhan base, 3D NAND business an… ↗](https://www.ymtc.com/en/intro.html)
[[6] YMTC product pages listing 3D NAND, enterprise SSD, client SSD, UFS and eMMC pr… ↗](https://www.ymtc.com/en/products.html)+1 more
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