Alphabet is raising nearly $32 billion in debt in under 24 hours, signalling just how expensive the global race to dominate artificial intelligence has become.
The group commenced a $20 billion bond sale in the US and followed with major offerings in the UK and Switzerland, including a rare 100-year bond, something tech companies seldom issue.
The demand was overwhelming, with investors placing more than $100 billion in orders for the US portion alone, according to people familiar with the deal.
The timing matters. Alphabet announced just days earlier that it would spend up to $185 billion on capital expenditures this year, nearly double what it spent in 2025. That money goes straight into building the physical machinery of AI: sprawling data centres, specialised chips, energy infrastructure.
Alphabet isn’t alone. Oracle recently raised $25 billion for its own AI push, while Microsoft and Meta have also announced aggressive spending plans for 2026. According to Bloomberg, analysts at Morgan Stanley expect total borrowing by hyperscalers, the world’s largest cloud providers, to hit $400 billion this year, more than double 2025 levels.
When bonds last a century, a rare bet by Alphabet
Here’s what really caught attention: Alphabet sold a 100-year bond. That’s not normal in tech. The last time a major technology company issued a century bond was Motorola in the late 1990s.
A 100-year maturity means investors are essentially betting that Alphabet will exist and remain relevant for the next hundred years, a risky proposition in an industry where yesterday’s leader becomes tomorrow’s cautionary tale.
Demand was strong, especially from UK pension funds and insurers that prefer very long-term assets. Alphabet’s bond sale in the UK set a record, becoming the largest sterling corporate bond deal ever.
Some investors are becoming concerned. Bond prices are already high compared to history. The big question is whether AI will actually make enough money to justify all this spending. Banks expect tech companies to borrow even more this year.
If AI doesn’t deliver the promised returns, there could be problems in the bond market.
For now, markets are supporting Alphabet’s plan. The company is raising $32 billion to prove that it is serious about winning the AI race.
This isn’t just about smarter chatbots or better search tools; it’s about physical infrastructure. AI models now require massive data centres, specialised chips, and enormous energy capacity, all of which cost billions before a single product reaches users.
