Big Tech's AI debt hits $350bn and heads to Europe

This article was published on July 10, 2026 Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Oracle have doubled their debt to $350bn to build AI, and cash flow is not keeping up. Now they are crowding into European credit markets, on track to out-borrow France. Big Tech built its reputation on mountains of cash. It is building its AI empire on debt, and the bill is starting to land in Europe. The five biggest builders of AI data centres in the US have doubled their debt over five years. Together, Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft and Oracle have piled on about $350bn, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. They are betting that cutting-edge AI will one day pay it all back. For now, the interest is almost a rounding error. The five paid a combined $10bn on their debt last year. That is more than double 2019, but tiny beside Google’s cash flow of roughly $64bn last quarter. These are still some of the most profitable firms on Earth. The strain shows at the edges. Amazon’s free cash flow turned negative in the March quarter. Oracle’s debt reached about 2.5 times its sales, and S&P cut its rating on Thursday to one notch above junk, blaming AI spending. Investors have lapped up the bonds so fa