Big Tech Companies Triple Down on AI Spending as Revenue Soars. The three largest US tech giants, Microsoft, Meta and Google, have reported record profits and infrastructure spending on artificial intelligence (AI) that has surpassed expectations, fueling speculation about an AI market bubble.
Microsoft's quarterly earnings were boosted by a significant increase in cloud computing revenue, with the company's cloud business generating $15.1 billion in the third quarter, up 35% from last year. Capital expenditures on AI infrastructure rose to $34.9 billion, more than double previous forecasts and up 74% from last year.
Meta, parent of Facebook and Instagram, reported record capital expenditure of between $70 billion and $72 billion this year, with its revenue reaching $51.24 billion in the third quarter, a 26% increase year-over-year. The company's AI investments are expected to propel its ad business and virtual reality product lines to new heights.
Google's parent company, Alphabet, reported a record $102.3 billion in revenue for the third quarter, up 33% from last year, with capital expenditures set to reach between $91 billion and $93 billion in 2025. The tech giant said most of its spending would be invested in data centers and AI initiatives.
The companies' willingness to spend heavily on AI infrastructure has raised concerns among analysts about a potential market bubble. Tech companies are investing billions of dollars in expensive, multi-year data center projects and investments in AI startups like OpenAI. Nvidia announced it would invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI, provided the company builds and deploys at least 10 gigawatts of AI data centers using Nvidia's chips.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that the company is finding ways to make its fleet of data centers "fungible" and continually modernize its infrastructure. Mark Moerdler, a senior research analyst covering global software at Bernstein, says that Microsoft is building capacity in tranches over time and can shift resources, giving it protection against an overall AI bubble.
Despite concerns about the market, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that aggressively front-loading investment would be the right strategy to prepare for potential major breakthroughs in AI. The companies' willingness to invest heavily in AI suggests that demand for the technology will only continue to grow, but some analysts are warning of a bubble waiting to burst.
Microsoft's quarterly earnings were boosted by a significant increase in cloud computing revenue, with the company's cloud business generating $15.1 billion in the third quarter, up 35% from last year. Capital expenditures on AI infrastructure rose to $34.9 billion, more than double previous forecasts and up 74% from last year.
Meta, parent of Facebook and Instagram, reported record capital expenditure of between $70 billion and $72 billion this year, with its revenue reaching $51.24 billion in the third quarter, a 26% increase year-over-year. The company's AI investments are expected to propel its ad business and virtual reality product lines to new heights.
Google's parent company, Alphabet, reported a record $102.3 billion in revenue for the third quarter, up 33% from last year, with capital expenditures set to reach between $91 billion and $93 billion in 2025. The tech giant said most of its spending would be invested in data centers and AI initiatives.
The companies' willingness to spend heavily on AI infrastructure has raised concerns among analysts about a potential market bubble. Tech companies are investing billions of dollars in expensive, multi-year data center projects and investments in AI startups like OpenAI. Nvidia announced it would invest up to $100 billion in OpenAI, provided the company builds and deploys at least 10 gigawatts of AI data centers using Nvidia's chips.
Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that the company is finding ways to make its fleet of data centers "fungible" and continually modernize its infrastructure. Mark Moerdler, a senior research analyst covering global software at Bernstein, says that Microsoft is building capacity in tranches over time and can shift resources, giving it protection against an overall AI bubble.
Despite concerns about the market, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg said that aggressively front-loading investment would be the right strategy to prepare for potential major breakthroughs in AI. The companies' willingness to invest heavily in AI suggests that demand for the technology will only continue to grow, but some analysts are warning of a bubble waiting to burst.