Big tech plans US$650 billion in spending as AI race intensifies

Alphabet, Amazon, Meta and Microsoft plan about US$650 billion in capital spending this year, largely tied to AI investments. Bloomberg reports those estimates would roughly match or exceed their budgets for the past three years and could be a 10-year high for single-company capital spending.

Alphabet, Amazon, Meta and Microsoft plan about US$650 billion in capital spending this year, with much of that spending tied to AI tools and related infrastructure. The companies are pursuing greater market position in a still-nascent AI tools market. Each firm's estimates for this year are reported to be near or to surpass their budgets for the past three years combined. Bloomberg data shows those planned levels would represent a high-water mark for capital spending by a single corporation in the past 10 years. Key facts: - The four companies plan about US$650 billion in capital spending this year. - The planned spending is reported as largely directed toward AI tools and supporting infrastructure. - Each company's estimates for this year are expected to near or surpass their budgets for the past three years combined. - Bloomberg data indicates these levels would set a high-water mark for single-company capital spending in the past 10 years. Summary: The planned spending represents a substantial ramp-up in capital investment tied to AI and would mark an unusually high level of corporate spending. Undetermined at this time.