Alphabet Shares Drop as Cloud Growth Slows and AI Spending Rises
Alphabet Inc., the parent company of Google, experienced a significant decline in its share price, dropping 7.5% after reporting fourth-quarter revenues of $96.47 billion, which fell short of market expectations. A key factor in this downturn was the performance of Google's cloud computing division, which saw a 30% increase in revenue to $12 billion. This growth was below analyst projections of a 33% rise to $12.19 billion and marked a decrease from the 35% growth observed in the previous quarter.
In response to these challenges, Alphabet announced plans to significantly boost its capital expenditures on artificial intelligence, aiming to invest $75 billion in 2025, up from $52.5 billion in 2024. This move underscores the company's commitment to enhancing its AI capabilities to rema...