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Big Tech capex boost lifts semiconductor names as AI spending debate widens
Alphabet says 2026 spending will land between $195 billion and $205 billion, while memory makers gained after price increases tied to a supply shortage.
Wall Street is pointing to Big Tech capital spending as a continuing tailwind for semiconductor stocks, even as some investors question how quickly AI infrastructure spending will translate into returns. Yahoo Finance notes that the AI trade has leaned heavily on chips, networking equipment, and data center providers.
Alphabet’s Q2 disclosures are being cited as one of the latest signals, with the company spending more than $78 billion in the first half of 2026. The report says Alphabet expects its total 2026 bill to fall between $195 billion and $205 billion, with most expenses directed to data centers, networking, and custom silicon.
Analysts described a split in the AI trade as the market weighs the payoff from large-scale investment. Evercore ISI’s Mark Mahaney told Yahoo Finance that investors looking for derivative stock calls should see the AI trade as still active, while Interactive Brokers chief strategist Steve Sosnick said the beneficiaries are the “makers versus the takers.”
Despite a hit to parts of the “Magnificent Seven” complex, memory chipmakers including Micron Technology, SK Hynix, and SanDisk jumped on Thursday, as the report attributes gains to memory price increases tied to a supply shortage. The piece also highlights Intel, which Yahoo Finance says topped expectations as demand for CPUs rises with the tech industry’s shift toward AI agents, with the stock up 14% year to date.