Tokyo’s Tech Havens Struggle Amid Global Supply Crisis

Akihabara Faces Unprecedented Component Shortage

Akihabara district in Tokyo, regarded as a mecca for electronics enthusiasts, is experiencing an unprecedented shortage of computer components. Reports indicate that Japanese consumers are eagerly purchasing all Nvidia accelerators, starting from the GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16GB.

Any powerful graphics card that appears on the shelves of Akihabara’s electronics shops is sold almost instantly. This is especially true for mid and high-end versions. In TSUKUMO eX, the shortage is so severe that employees had to cover half of the displays with fabric – there is simply nothing to showcase. Major networks like Dospara and PC SHOP Ark have introduced a “one item per customer” rule for graphics cards, SSDs, hard drives, and RAM to prevent bulk purchases by resellers.

Sellers point to problems “upstream” in the supply chain. Rumors circulate about temporary halts in shipments by distributors due to a global memory chip shortage and rising prices. Stores can’t even approximate the timelines for new arrivals. Radeon graphics cards are still available for now, but retailers warn this won’t last long – demand will shift as soon as Nvidia accelerators disappear entirely from the market.

Recent developments have seen Nvidia’s competitor AMD announcing their next-gen graphics cards, putting further pressure on supply chains already stretched thin due to ongoing chip shortages worldwide. Industry experts note that these shortages could persist well into the second half of 2026, affecting not only graphics cards but a wide array of electronic devices, from laptops to gaming consoles. This could have significant impacts on both price and availability in the market.