Big tech earnings ahead

Alphabet and Meta will report first-quarter results on Wednesday, April 29, giving investors a fresh read on how expensive the artificial-intelligence buildout has become. (abc.xyz) (marketbeat.com) Alphabet said on April 7 that its earnings call will start at 4:30 p.m. Eastern on April 29. Meta’s investor calendar also lists a first-quarter 2026 earnings event for that day after the close. (abc.xyz) (investor.fb.com) For Alphabet, the spending line is already set. Chief financial officer Anat Ashkenazi said in March that 2026 capital spending is expected to run about $175 billion to $185 billion, with “the vast majority” going to technical infrastructure. (abc.xyz) (sec.gov) That guidance landed after Alphabet reported fourth-quarter 2025 revenue of $113.8 billion, with Google Cloud revenue up 48% and backlog up 55% quarter over quarter to $240 billion. Those numbers turned cloud demand into the main proof point for whether the company’s AI spending is earning a return. (abc.xyz 1) (abc.xyz 2) Meta is coming into the report from a different starting point: advertising still pays the bills, but the company is spending heavily on chips, data centers and AI tools that feed its apps and ad systems. Meta reported $72.22 billion in 2025 capital expenditures and said Reality Labs cut 2025 operating profit by about $19.19 billion. (sec.gov 1) (sec.gov 2) Meta has argued that the spending is already showing up in the core business. In January, the company said AI changes lifted Facebook feed and video views, helped Threads time spent, and pushed the revenue run-rate of its video-generation ad tools to $10 billion in the fourth quarter. (about.fb.com) Wall Street is also adjusting its expectations ahead of the print. BMO Capital raised its Alphabet price target to $410 from $400 on April 22 while keeping an Outperform rating, citing Alphabet’s position across the AI stack. (finance.yahoo.com) The timing matters beyond tech. The Federal Open Market Committee’s next scheduled meeting is May 5-6, less than a week after the earnings calls, so management commentary on demand, pricing and spending could shape how investors read the broader economy before the Fed meets. (federalreserve.gov 1) (federalreserve.gov 2) By next Wednesday night, investors should have two answers they have been chasing for months: whether cloud and ad growth are keeping pace with AI infrastructure bills, and whether Big Tech still looks willing to spend first and explain the payoff later. (abc.xyz) (investor.fb.com)