Editor’s Note
The rise of lab-grown diamonds, produced in weeks rather than over billions of years, is reshaping the traditional jewelry industry. As technology drives costs down, this synthetic alternative presents both a market disruption and a new choice for consumers.
It takes over a billion years for the Earth to create a natural diamond, but lab-grown diamonds can be produced in just a week. According to Marty Hurwitz, head of the Synthetic Diamond Trade Organization, the emergence of these lab-grown diamonds is causing massive disruption in the traditional industry.
Lab-grown diamonds began appearing in the jewelry market over a decade ago, but recent technological advancements have made their production significantly cheaper. Currently, the price of a 3-carat lab-grown diamond is only 7% of the price of a mined diamond of the same size. Data from Tenoris shows that by volume, lab-grown diamonds now hold a 17% share of the U.S. retail market, a significant increase from just 3% in 2020.
Over 70% of the world’s lab-grown diamonds used in jewelry come from China, and Henan is the center of this industry. China’s turn towards diamond production was not driven by jewelry demand but by geopolitical factors, as the Soviet Union cut off the supply of industrial diamonds in the early 1960s.
By the 1980s, Henan had become a center for industrial diamond production. Chinese companies only turned to the jewelry business in the last decade, which offers higher profit margins. Today, most lab-grown diamonds in China are produced using the “High Pressure, High Temperature” (HPHT) method, and a growing number of manufacturers for larger gems are using the “Chemical Vapor Deposition” (CVD) method.
After initial processing, they are sent to Surat, India for polishing, then to trading hubs like Antwerp or Dubai, and finally to consumers. However, due to customs labeling conventions, which typically indicate the country where the diamond was polished, very few consumers are aware of China’s central role.
China’s diamond industry is also strategically important due to its use in military and defense equipment. Norinco, a Chinese state-owned weapons manufacturer, also trades in lab-grown diamonds with its own jewelry brand.
In 2018, natural diamond giant De Beers established Lightbox Jewelry, a lab-grown diamond company, to preserve the luxurious appeal of expensive natural diamonds and create a distinct market. However, this move sparked a price war, causing natural diamond prices to fall.
By the end of 2024, De Beers’ diamond inventory value had reached $2 billion, the largest inventory level since the 2008 financial crisis.
Lab-grown diamond prices have fallen incredibly. In 2020, the retail price of a 3-carat lab-grown diamond was about $28,900. By the second quarter of 2025, that price had dropped to just $3,900, only one-eighth of its previous value. As Chinese companies improved their technology and lowered retail prices, Lightbox lost its competitive edge and ceased operations this year.
In Henan province, the Chinese provincial government had to intervene to control the price war and established a new diamond association, similar to what happened in the electric vehicle industry. One of the association’s first steps was to set a minimum price of $15 per carat for rough diamonds.
David Kellie, CEO of the Natural Diamond Council, acknowledged the challenge posed by lab-grown diamonds but argued that the main reason for the price drop was a post-pandemic supply-demand imbalance.
A positive aspect of the rise of lab-grown diamonds has also emerged: the democratization of diamonds. Ankur Daga, co-founder of online jewelry company Angara, expressed surprise at their popularity.
With the rapid rise in gold prices, the cost composition of engagement rings has also changed. For many buyers of lab-grown diamonds today, the most expensive component is no longer the diamond, but the gold setting. This shows that lab-grown diamonds are not only changing the market but also redefining the concept of luxury and value in jewelry.