Google Parent Alphabet Spells out Spending Spree

Alphabet reported nearly $110 billion in total revenue in Q1 2026, a 22% increase year over year, with growth driven in part by Google Cloud, which reached roughly $20 billion in quarterly revenue.

On its Wednesday, April 29 earnings call, Alphabet, the parent company of Google, highlighted how aggressively it is scaling infrastructure spending. Capital expenditures (capex) totaled $35.67 billion in the first quarter, up 106% from a year earlier. This surge is part of a much larger strategy and in its February earnings call, the company outlined plans to spend between $175 billion and $185 billion in capex for the full year, up sharply from $91.4 billion in 2025.

Amazon spent $43.2 billion on capital expenditures in Q1 2026, with the overwhelming majority tied to AWS and its AI infrastructure. 

The company’s spending spree doesn’t have an immediate end in sight, and it is targeting about $200 billion in capex in 2026, largely for AI infrastructure. In its Wednesday, April 29 earnings call, executives made clear that its aggressive investment is meant to fund a multi-year AI buildout intended for data centers with 30+ year lifespans. 

Meta intends to spend at least $115 billion this year, about 60% more than the $72 billion it spent last year as it hurries to boost its data centers and artificial intelligence program, the company said on Wednesday, January 28.