New York, Feb 11, 2026, 18:51 EST — After-hours
- Shares of Aehr Test Systems shot up roughly 26% in late trading, following news of a fresh production order tied to AI.
- The company expects to start shipments for the order in summer 2026.
- Traders look for fresh follow-on orders, waiting for specifics about the size of the deal.
Shares of Aehr Test Systems shot up some 26% to $33.85 in late trading Wednesday, having earlier bounced between $26.65 and $37.02.
The company disclosed it had landed its first production order for several Sonoma ultra-high-power test and burn-in systems—along with supporting modules and sockets—destined for a hyperscale client’s next-gen AI processor. Shipment is penciled in for summer 2026. 1
Why does it matter? Aehr’s been hustling its Sonoma platform to ride the wave of custom AI chip investment at major data-center players. Now, a production order—price undisclosed—gives momentum traders exactly the kind of validation that grabs their attention.
“Burn-in” is a reliability process—chips are stressed under heavy power and heat to weed out weak ones before shipping. For Aehr, each new burn-in system placed with a customer opens up another stream of consumable sales tied to that equipment.
Gayn Erickson, the chief executive, described the agreement as “a key early production win” tied to a “world leading hyperscaler.” According to Erickson, this marks the first time the company has been officially tapped for production burn-in work on the new device. He noted that the customer’s current-generation AI processor is already ramping up, with internal forecasts suggesting “a very large expansion” in Sonoma orders expected during the second half of 2026 and continuing into 2027. 2
The company didn’t disclose the customer’s identity. Aehr called it a major data-center operator working on custom AI accelerator ASICs—application-specific integrated circuits designed for both training and inference tasks.
The surge throws fresh attention on a niche segment of the semiconductor tools business. Aehr, for its part, focuses on burn-in systems. Bigger names like Teradyne and Advantest handle more expansive chip testing equipment that gets used throughout the manufacturing process.
A missing piece: Aehr left out the dollar figure for Wednesday’s order, and with deliveries not set until later this year, any revenue impact is pushed back. Delays on the customer side—or a slowdown in AI infrastructure budgets—could challenge the market’s fresh optimism.
Heading into Thursday, the focus shifts to see if the sharp move sticks during the main session and if the company drops any extra information in filings or post-market statements. The next fundamental update isn’t due until the company’s earnings, currently penciled in for early April—market calendars point to April 7 as the estimated date. 3
