Instagram-owner Meta plans to increase capital spending by 73% to develop “superintelligence.” Shareholders support CEO Mark Zuckerberg’s vision, boosting stock by 10% after a 24% rise in advertising revenue. Meta aims to build AI data centers for superintelligence, expecting capital expenditure of $115-135 billion in 2026.

Meta, known for its advertising business, sees revenue surge to $58.14 billion in Q4. Capex rises by 49%, outpacing total revenue growth and causing a drop in operating margin. The company faces capacity constraints in 2026, requiring contracts with Alphabet and others for compute power.

Microsoft, on the other hand, reports a 66% increase in capital outlay in Q4 but sees its shares fall 6.5% as it narrowly surpasses revenue estimates in cloud-computing. Meta expects total expenses to reach $162-169 billion in 2026, driven by rising employee compensation and hiring top AI talent. Q1 revenue is forecasted between $53.5-56.5 billion, beating analyst estimates for Q4.

Read more at Yahoo Finance: Meta boosts annual capex sharply on superintelligence push, shares surge