Google owner Alphabet to sell $80bn in stock to fund AI spending spree

Google’s parent company Alphabet has said it plans to raise up to $80bn (£59bn) in equity to fund its vast artificial intelligence infrastructure investments, raising further questions over the economics of the AI boom.

The move, one of the largest equity fundraisings ever globally, includes a $10bn share sale to the US investment group Berkshire Hathaway, which was led until last year by the retired investment guru Warren Buffett for 60 years.

Alphabet, behind the Gemini system which has been increasing its share of the AI chatbot market, said it would use the money to expand its “world-class AI compute infrastructure to meet its unprecedented customer demand”.

The Californian company said: “AI is driving an expansionary moment for Alphabet. The company is experiencing strong demand for its AI solutions and services from enterprises and consumers, at levels that are exceeding the company’s available supply.

“By scaling its investments, the company seeks to expand its foundational infrastructure to support the significant growth opportunity ahead.”

However, such a huge fundraising is also a warning to the markets that, for all the many billions of dollars thrown at AI infrastructure, meaningful returns to investors have so far been limited.

Jim Reid, a market strategist at Deutsche Bank, said Alphabet was reminding investors of the “unprecedented scale of the AI spending boom”, adding: “Funding of the AI [capital expenditure] boom is becoming an increasingly key topic for markets.”

The decision to tap Berkshire Hathaway is eye-catching too. Under Buffett, known as the Sage of Omaha, Berkshire often stepped in to provide funding for companies that needed cash, such as the famous $5bn investment into Goldman Sachs at the height of the financial crisis. Berkshire has been investing in Alphabet since last summer.

In its filing, Alphabet explained that half the $80bn will be dedicated to “scale AI infrastructure and global compute”, with $40bn set aside to cover “an administrative change to how it meets tax obligations associated with vesting of employee equity awards”.