With Micron's stock price up more than tenfold since the end of 2024, the company's hometown of Boise, Idaho has a growing crop of newly minted millionaires. The AI-driven memory boom is showing up in the form of job growth, new construction projects, a bustling dining scene and an influx of new residents.
But the rush of development along with Micron's $50 billion expansion plan in Boise also means traffic jams, soaring housing costs and uneven wealth distribution.
Micron has broken ground on two new chip manufacturing facilities that are expected to create more than 17,000 new jobs in the area. That includes 3,500 at Micron, which currently employs about 7,000 people in and around Boise.
On Thursday the company introduced Micron Research Labs, which will be headquartered in Boise and backed with $10 billion from Micron over the next decade.
With the city's rapid expansion comes plenty of annoyances. Residents complain of frequent traffic jams around town or on Interstate 84, rising housing costs and a rush of people from California and elsewhere altering the local culture and landscape.
Micron shares have surged 670% since the end of 2024, and the company aims to produce 40% of its DRAM in the U.S. by 2035.
