Big Tech AI Capex Surge Drops Combined Free Cash Flow to Negative $26.4 Billion

Surging capital spending on artificial intelligence infrastructure drove combined free cash flow for Amazon, Alphabet, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft into negative territory in the third quarter of 2026, dropping to negative $26.4 billion. Aggregate capex reached a record $201.9 billion, up $36.9 billion from the previous quarter and more than doubling over the past 12 months. Amazon posted an estimated negative free cash flow of $33.5 billion after $75.9 billion in capital spending, while Alphabet and Meta reported negative $9.1 billion and negative $2.1 billion, respectively. Microsoft was the sole company to maintain positive free cash flow at $18.6 billion.