Spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure is increasing across the largest U.S. technology companies. According to Bloomberg, Microsoft (MSFT), Amazon (AMZN), Alphabet (GOOGL), and Meta Platforms (META) are on pace to spend more than $344 billion in capital expenditures this year. A broader estimate from Morgan Stanley (MS) places the total closer to $400 billion when factoring in forward-looking projections and other infrastructure categories.
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The increase in capital spending is tied to demand for data centers, servers, and AI-ready chips. Much of this investment is aimed at supporting cloud services, training large language models, and running AI-driven products. Microsoft, for example, set a new record with $24.2 billion in capital expenditures last quarter and plans to spend upwards of $30 billion in the current quarter. Meanwhile, Amazon reported $31.4 billion in capex for the same period, nearly double from a year ago, with Alphabet raising its full-year capex forecast to $85 billion.
Meta also raised the low end of its 2025 capital spending guidance and signaled that further increases are likely. The company is building new data centers and expanding its internal AI unit, Meta Superintelligence Labs. In total, the four companies’ projected capital outlay exceeds the European Union’s annual defense budget.
What the Numbers Show
The charts below illustrate how each of the four big tech players is managing the financial impact of AI-related capital expenditures. Amazon shows relatively stable operating margins in its AWS segment, despite an increase in infrastructure spending. Alphabet reports continued growth in cloud operating income, suggesting improved efficiency as its capex ramps up. Meta continues to post losses in its Reality Labs division, which includes long-term investments in AI and augmented reality. Microsoft shows a steady increase in research and development costs, aligning with its broader AI investment strategy.
Taken together, the charts provide a snapshot of how rising capex is being absorbed into core operations, with varying effects on profitability and segment-level performance.
Capex Rising, Results Diverging
The $344 billion figure is based on public company filings and analyst models for the calendar year 2025, while the $400 billion estimate includes additional factors such as accelerated tax treatment under new U.S. legislation and incremental investment from smaller tech players. Morgan Stanley expects the sector to spend $2.9 trillion between 2025 and 2028. The firm sees that investment contributing up to 0.5% of U.S. GDP growth in 2025 and 2026.
Wall Street’s reaction to the news has been mixed. Microsoft and Meta shares both climbed after earnings, with Microsoft reaching a $4 trillion market capitalization. Meta gained more than 8% after posting better-than-expected revenue. By contrast, Amazon shares fell 8% following weak results in its cloud division.
Although Apple (AAPL) remains an outlier in the group, the company reported $9.47 billion in capital investments over the past nine months, a 45% increase from a year ago. Executives said the increase is partly due to AI, though overall capex remains far below peers. Apple continues to prioritize efficiency over scale in its infrastructure planning.
Investors appear focused on whether high capex translates into product performance and business growth. Amazon’s quarterly results underline the uncertainty, as rising investments did not lead to stronger revenue from its cloud unit. As spending accelerates, the market is watching which companies convert AI infrastructure into returns.
Using TipRanks’ Comparison Tool, we’ve brought together key metrics from the five major tech companies to give investors a broader view of each stock and the overall tech landscape.
