The high cost of building a data center

Major tech companies are investing heavily in data centers, with Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet collectively planning to spend around $750 billion on capital expenditures in 2026. This amount exceeds the GDP of Ireland and Belgium combined and surpasses half of the total spending by S&P 500 companies in 2025. It is also equivalent to providing a $5,500 check to every household in the United States. Ian King, Bloomberg News US Semiconductor Reporter, and Lynn Doan, Bloomberg News Managing Editor for Technology, discussed these figures on Businessweek Daily, highlighting the significant financial commitment required to build a single data center. The discussion underscores the substantial costs involved, from land acquisition to chip manufacturing, illustrating the scale of investment needed in the tech industry.