AMD continued to gain CPU market share from Intel across desktop, mobile and server segments in the second quarter of 2026, even as overall processor shipments fell, according to Mercury Research. The decline was driven largely by weaker desktop CPU demand, which the firm links to rising PC prices and scarce GPUs, themselves a consequence of memory makers prioritising high-bandwidth chips for AI servers over standard consumer components. The trend highlights how the AI-driven memory shortage is now feeding through into everyday consumer hardware costs and buying behaviour.

Desktop CPU shipments dropped more than 20% year on year, but AMD's decline was smaller than Intel's, lifting its desktop share to nearly 35% from about 32%. Mobile processor shipments rose strongly quarter on quarter after Intel ramped up laptop chip output following supply constraints, though AMD still grew its mobile share to almost 29%, up from 20.6% a year earlier. Server CPU shipments climbed 20% year on year, with AMD's share rising to 34.5% (or 46.4% counting only Xeon SP and EPYC chips), while Arm-based systems also hit record shares of 15.3% in client devices and 13.6% in servers.