Prices of memory, storage, and silicon keep rising as the likes of OpenAI, Microsoft, and Google burn through stock of components at an unprecedented pace to build out AI infrastructure. Framework CEO Nirav Patel warns that consumers are the ones getting left in the dust in this "winner-take-all race to an AI-first world," and, at this rate, "there is a very real scenario in which personal computing as we know it is dead."
He said as much in a self-described manifesto posted this week announcing the company’s Framework [Next Gen] Event 2026 on April 21. For the uninitiated, Framework specializes in modular laptops that prioritize upgradeability and repairability. Despite Framework's achievements in pushing for a more repairable, upgradable, and customizable laptop ecosystem, the rising costs of computer components paint a grim picture at the consumer level. One where your average PC user has less agency than ever before.
