Alphabet plans to spend about $200 billion and Amazon about $220 billion on data center capex this year, with most of the computing power rented out through their cloud platforms. Google Cloud's backlog reached $514 billion in Q2 on $24.8 billion of revenue, while AWS had a $496 billion backlog and $42.2 billion of revenue. Google Cloud grew 82% and AWS 37%, but AWS's 39% operating margin far exceeds Amazon's 14% companywide margin, and AWS generated about 60% of Amazon's operating profit in Q2. CEO Andy Jassy said Amazon lacks enough computing capacity to meet 2026 demand, with 2028 demand already emerging. The author concludes that Amazon will outperform Alphabet through 2028 because AWS has a bigger influence on Amazon's bottom line.
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Related tickers and likely impact
AMZN
• NeutralAmazon
Relevance: low
| Market | US stocks |
|---|---|
| Sector | Consumer Discretionary |
| Industry | Broadline Retail |
| Market cap | $2.7T |
| Close on 10/26/2026 | 249.09 |
| Change that session | +0.44% |
GOOGL
• NeutralAlphabet Inc. (Class A)
Relevance: low
| Market | US stocks |
|---|---|
| Sector | Communication Services |
| Industry | Interactive Media & Services |
| Market cap | $4.0T |
| Close on 10/26/2026 | 316.80 |
| Change that session | -1.06% |
Impact is scored by AI from the headline and may be wrong. It is not investment advice.
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