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Google, Microsoft and Amazon Report Stronger-Than-Expected First-Quarter Cloud Growth

Google, Microsoft and Amazon all exceeded analyst estimates for first-quarter cloud revenue, driven by surging demand for AI services. Google posted its fastest growth on record at 63%, while Amazon and Microsoft also showed robust expansions. The results highlight accelerating AI adoption amid rising cloud infrastructure spending.

CNBC
1 source·Apr 30, 7:57 PM(5 days ago)·2m read
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Google, Microsoft and Amazon reported better-than-expected first-quarter cloud growth on Wednesday, with Google achieving its fastest growth rate on record. 05 billion. Google started breaking out cloud results in 2020.

Alphabet shares jumped 10% on Thursday, marking April as the stock's best month for performance since 2004, the year Alphabet went public. 'Our enterprise AI solutions have become our primary growth driver for cloud for the first time,' Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said on the company's Wednesday webcast with analysts.

Revenue from products built with Google generative AI models grew 800%, Pichai said.

Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian spoke at the Google Cloud Next event in San Francisco on April 9, 2019. Google Cloud is the smallest of the three cloud providers, as Google chases Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure in the public cloud market. Neoclouds hold 5% share of the cloud market, according to Synergy Research.

Neocloud providers include companies like CoreWeave and Nebius, and they have obtained 5% of the cloud market, Synergy Research analyst John Dinsdale said. Cloud infrastructure spending reached $129 billion in the first quarter, according to Synergy Research. 'Wow, that was some quarter,' Synergy Research analyst John Dinsdale said in an email after the results were released.

Google, Microsoft and Amazon expect to spend close to $600 billion on capital expenditures this year. 6 billion in the first quarter, exceeding StreetAccount's consensus by nearly $1 billion. AWS customer spending on Bedrock service jumped 170% from the fourth quarter, Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said.

Bedrock service used more tokens in the first quarter than in its history dating to 2023, Jassy said. 'OpenAI has said they're already seeing unprecedented demand for this new product, and we're seeing heavy customer interest as well,' Amazon CEO Andy Jassy said. AWS announced on the previous day that OpenAI models will come to Bedrock.

AWS also announced a new Bedrock service to enable clients to build sophisticated agents integrated with existing infrastructure. 8%. Microsoft management sees second-quarter Azure growth of 39% or 40% at constant currency, above StreetAccount's consensus of 37%.

The number of customers that adopted Anthropic and OpenAI models through Microsoft's platform doubled from the prior quarter, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said. Google, Microsoft and Amazon surpassed analyst estimates in earnings reports late Wednesday. The market is becoming more competitive with neocloud providers holding a growing share.

Key Facts

Google Cloud revenue growth
Google reported 63% expansion in Google Cloud to $20.03 billion, exceeding consensus of $18.05 billion.
Amazon Web Services performance
AWS revenue rose 28% to $37.6 billion, with Bedrock spending up 170% from prior quarter.
Microsoft Azure growth
Microsoft reported 40% growth in Azure, with second-quarter forecast at 39-40%.
Market spending
Cloud infrastructure spending reached $129 billion in the first quarter.
Capital expenditures
Google, Microsoft, and Amazon expect to spend close to $600 billion this year.

Story Timeline

6 events
  1. 2026-04-30

    Alphabet shares jumped 10% following earnings reports.

    1 sourceCNBC
  2. 2026-04-29

    Google, Microsoft, and Amazon reported first-quarter earnings with better-than-expected cloud growth.

    1 sourceCNBC
  3. 2026-04-28

    AWS announced OpenAI models will come to Bedrock and a new Bedrock service for building agents.

    1 sourceCNBC
  4. 2020

    Google started breaking out cloud results.

    1 sourceCNBC
  5. 2019-04-09

    Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian spoke at the Google Cloud Next event in San Francisco.

    1 sourceCNBC
  6. 2004

    Alphabet went public.

    1 sourceCNBC

Potential Impact

  1. 01

    Sustained AI demand may drive further revenue growth for cloud services in upcoming quarters.

  2. 02

    Accelerating adoption of AI models might boost innovation in enterprise solutions.

  3. 03

    Increased competition from neocloud providers could pressure market shares of major players.

  4. 04

    Stock performance gains, as seen with Alphabet, could influence investor sentiment in tech sector.

  5. 05

    High capital expenditures could strain short-term profitability for the companies.

Transparency Panel

Sources cross-referenced1
Framing risk15/100 (low)
Confidence score55%
Synthesized bySubstrate AI
Word count391 words
PublishedApr 30, 2026, 7:57 PM
Bias signals removed3 across 3 outlets
Signal Breakdown
Loaded 3

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