Big Tech is about to reveal just how much it’s betting on AI, and the numbers are staggering
Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta are collectively guiding for over $635 billion in 2026 capital expenditure, with earnings reports starting this week
The four largest cloud and AI companies on the planet are preparing to spend more on infrastructure this year than the GDP of most countries. Combined 2026 capex guidance from Alphabet, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta now sits between $635 billion and $665 billion, with some estimates stretching as high as $725 billion.
The earnings calendar and the capex arms race
Alphabet kicks things off around July 22, followed by Microsoft and Meta near July 29, with Amazon closing out the week around July 30.
The individual numbers are eye-watering. Amazon is guiding for roughly $200 billion in capital expenditure for 2026, the largest single commitment among the group. Microsoft follows at approximately $190 billion, representing a 61% year-over-year increase. Alphabet has set its range between $180 billion and $190 billion. Meta, the relative penny-pincher of the bunch, still expects to spend between $125 billion and $145 billion.
Q1 2026 capex from just these four firms totaled approximately $130 billion. JPMorgan has revised its global AI-related capex estimates through 2030 upward to $5.5 trillion, from a prior $5.1 trillion estimate. The bank expects hyperscaler spending alone to exceed $1.1 trillion by 2027.
The crypto angle: GPU markets, decentralized AI, and power
The most immediate is the GPU market. When hyperscalers are vacuuming up every available chip, it affects pricing and availability for decentralized GPU marketplace projects that rent compute power on-chain. Protocols like Render, Akash, and io.net are essentially competing for the same hardware that Microsoft and Amazon are buying by the warehouse.
Bitcoin mining and AI training compete for the same cheap power sources. Several former Bitcoin mining facilities have already been converted to, or co-located with, AI data centers. As AI capex accelerates, this competition for energy intensifies.
Investors watching this earnings cycle should pay particular attention to two things: forward guidance on capex, specifically whether any company raises or lowers its spending plans, and commentary on AI revenue generation timelines.