BOISE, Idaho, Dec. 03, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Micron Technology, Inc. (Nasdaq: MU), a leader in innovative memory and storage solutions, today announced its decision to exit the Crucial consumer business, including the sale of Crucial consumer-branded products at key retailers, e-tailers and distributors worldwide due to AI-driven growth. Micron will continue Crucial consumer product shipments through the consumer channel until the end of February 2026.
Some experts have voiced fears a tech meltdown could hit our savings and pensions. With AI related share prices booming amid warnings from some that the growth is being driven by overvalued technology stocks. Fears of an “AI bubble” are real. Even if you have not actively invested in technology shares, the chances are you have some exposure to companies operating in the sphere. Even if you do not, a collapse could take down other companies’ values.
Tulip Mania, which gripped the Netherlands in the 17th century, is the quintessential example of an economic bubble. Tulips, newly introduced to Europe, became a fashionable luxury item. As demand surged, so did prices, especially for rare varieties. Speculators began buying tulip bulbs not for their beauty, but for the expectation that prices would continue to rise indefinitely. Contracts to buy bulbs changed hands multiple times, often for exorbitant sums, exceeding the annual income of skilled craftsmen or even the value of houses.
The “madness” was that the perceived value of a tulip bulb became completely detached from its intrinsic utility or reproductive capacity. People were making irrational decisions based solely on the hope of quick riches, fueled by herd mentality and a speculative frenzy. Eventually, the bubble burst, prices collapsed, and many fortunes were lost, leaving behind a legacy of financial ruin and a powerful warning about irrational exuberance.
“The AI-driven growth in the data center has led to a surge in demand for memory and storage. Micron has made the difficult decision to exit the Crucial consumer business in order to improve supply and support for our larger, strategic customers in faster-growing segments,” said Sumit Sadana, EVP and Chief Business Officer at Micron Technology. “Thanks to a passionate community of consumers, the Crucial brand has become synonymous with technical leadership, quality and reliability of leading-edge memory and storage products. We would like to thank our millions of customers, hundreds of partners and all of the Micron team members who have supported the Crucial journey for the last 29 years.”
This decision reflects Micron’s commitment to its ongoing portfolio transformation and the resulting alignment of its business to secular, profitable growth vectors in memory and storage. By concentrating on core enterprise and commercial segments, Micron aims to improve long-term business performance and create value for strategic customers as well as stakeholders.
The rapid expansion of data centers, driven largely by the AI boom and increased cloud storage needs, has led to a significant and measurable rise in environmental “pollution” across several vectors. By early 2026, data centers have shifted from being a minor niche to a primary driver of global energy and resource demand. Projections suggest that by 2030, data centers could account for 3% to 8% of global carbon emissions. In the U.S., roughly 56% of the electricity powering data centers still comes from fossil fuels (primarily natural gas), leading to over 105 million tons of CO2 emissions annually as of 2024–2025. In tech hubs like Ireland, data centers are projected to consume nearly 35% of the entire country’s energy by late 2026. A medium-sized data center uses about 110 million gallons of water per year. Large “hyperscale” facilities can consume up to 5 million gallons per day—equivalent to the water needs of a city of 50,000 people. Many facilities now replace servers every 2 to 3 years to stay competitive. Data centers contribute to a global e-waste stream that reached 62 million metric tonnes in 2022 and is rising by 2.6 million tonnes annually.
On the Kardashev scale, a Type I Civilization, or Planetary Civilization is one that can harness and utilize all the energy available on its home planet, including solar, wind, geothermal, tidal, and even volcanic power. Such a society would control planetary forces, manage natural disasters, likely rely on advanced fusion/renewable energy, and exhibit global unity and technological mastery, with humanity estimated to reach this level in the next 100-200 years, though we are currently around Type 0.73.
Comparing Micron’s exit from Crucial to Tulip Mania is, admittedly, a dramatic analogy. However, the comparison serves to highlight the subjective nature of “value” and “ridiculousness” in the market.
