FX168 Financial News (Americas) News Consulting firm Bain & Company released a report on Wednesday, September 25, showing a surge in demand for smart phones and laptops that support artificial intelligence, which may lead to the next global chip shortage. #AI boom#

The last serious semiconductor shortage occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic, when supply chains were disrupted, forcing people to stay at home and increasing the demand for consumer electronics.

Tech giants have been competing to acquire graphics processing units (GPUs), mainly from Nvidia, which are crucial for training large AI models in data centers, such as OpenAI's applications like ChatGPT.

Meanwhile, companies like Qualcomm are designing chips for smart phones and personal computers, enabling these devices to run AI applications locally instead of relying on cloud-based internet connections. These devices that support AI are often referred to as such, with Samsung, Microsoft, and other companies already launching such products.

Bain stated that the demand for GPUs and AI consumer electronics may be the cause of the chip shortage.

Bain Americas' Technology Business Director Anne Hoecker told CNBC via email: "The surge in demand for graphics processors (GPUs) has led to shortages in specific parts of the semiconductor value chain."

"When we combine the growth in GPU demand with the wave of AI devices, this could accelerate the refresh cycle of PC products, leading to broader restrictions on semiconductor supply."

However, it is currently unclear how much demand there is for such AI devices as consumers seem to be cautious about them.

Bain pointed out, the semiconductor supply chain is extremely complex, with demand growth of around 20% or more likely to disrupt the balance and lead to chip shortages.

The report adds, "The explosive growth of artificial intelligence in the large terminal market is likely to surpass this threshold, causing fragile bottlenecks throughout the supply chain."

Geopolitical crises may also be a factor leading to chip shortages.

"Geopolitical tensions, trade restrictions continue to pose serious risks to semiconductor supply. Factory construction delays, material shortages, and other unpredictable factors may also create bottlenecks," Bain said.