Amazon And Google Are Winning The AI Capex Race — But What’s The Prize?
AI capex spending hits record levels as Amazon and Google pour $375B into infrastructure. But will massive investments translate to AI dominance?
Matilda
Amazon And Google Are Winning The AI Capex Race — But What’s The Prize?
AI Capex War: Amazon's $200B Gamble Changes Everything Who's winning the AI infrastructure race in 2026? Amazon and Google are pouring nearly $400 billion combined into data centers, custom chips, and AI infrastructure this year—doubling last year's spending. But the real prize isn't just compute power; it's sustainable revenue from AI services that can justify these historic capital expenditures before investor patience runs thin. Credit: Camille Cohen / AFP / Getty Images The numbers are staggering. Amazon recently projected $200 billion in capital expenditures for 2026, a 52% jump from 2025's $131.8 billion. Google followed closely with a $175–185 billion forecast, more than doubling its previous year's $91.4 billion. Meta committed $115–135 billion, while Oracle scaled back to $50 billion. Microsoft, though without an official annual projection, appears on track for approximately $150 billion based on quarterly trends. These aren't just line items—they…
