The four giants adjust their capital expenditure expectations for 2026, with a total cap likely to exceed 740 billion USD

As concerns about the sustainability of heavy investments in AI by tech giants grow in the market, the four major tech companies—Meta, Microsoft, Alphabet, and Amazon—updated their capital expenditure expectations for 2026 in the third fiscal quarter, showing a divergence in overall expansion pace. Based on current data, the combined capital expenditure cap for the four companies in 2026 is expected to exceed $74 billion, a significant increase from the actual total capital expenditure of $45.58 billion in 2025.

Specifically, Meta has further raised the lower end of its full-year spending guidance, with the third-quarter expectation set at $135 billion to $145 billion, higher than the mid-year expectation of $130 billion to $145 billion. Microsoft has lowered its third-quarter expectation to $170 billion, down from the mid-year expectation of $175 billion, but official comments state that the change in figures is due to accounting adjustments, and the actual AI infrastructure investment plan remains unchanged from the beginning of the year. The capital expenditure expectations for Alphabet and Amazon remain unchanged, at $195 billion to $205 billion and $220 billion, respectively.