Tech giants burn cash for AI glory
Major technology companies are accelerating their investments in artificial intelligence, despite uncertainty about the financial returns. Meta, Alphabet and Microsoft disclosed substantial spending increases for data centers and computing infrastructure in their latest earnings reports.
Meta plans to spend between $70 billion and $72 billion in 2025, raising its previous projection. The company expects even larger growth in 2026 as it competes with OpenAI. Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg told analysts the investments would support new products and improve existing advertising operations.
Alphabet increased its 2025 forecast to between $91 billion and $93 billion, nearly double its 2024 spending. Microsoft reported $34.9 billion in capital expenditures for the quarter ending on September 30, exceeding analyst predictions and rising from $24 billion the previous quarter.
The three firms have outperformed the broader market as investor enthusiasm for AI remains strong. Meta reported higher quarterly revenue, but profits dropped 83 percent to $2.7 billion because of a tax charge. Microsoft profits climbed 12 percent to $27.7 billion while Alphabet saw a 33 percent increase to approximately $35 billion.
