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Digital Realty

Digital Realty

Datacenter Colocation Provider

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The race to build AI's physical foundation

Built World

Second-largest US colocation provider, planning 5 GW across 40 metros in 2026-2027

ChatGPT's November 2022 launch triggered the fastest infrastructure buildout in tech history. Datacenter construction spending tripled from $15 billion to $45 billion annually in just two years. Hyperscalers are now on track to spend over $1 trillion in 2026—exceeding the GDP of all but 10 countries—racing to secure power, land, and cooling systems before their rivals. Alphabet shocked markets on February 4, 2026 with guidance of $175-185 billion in 2026 capex, 55-65% above Wall Street estimates of $119.5 billion. Amazon escalated the spending war on February 5 with $200 billion 2026 capex guidance after Q4 revenue of $213.4 billion and AWS growth of 24% to $35.6 billion. Microsoft reported $37.5 billion in capex for Q2 FY2026 (just one quarter), while Meta committed $6 billion to Corning for fiber-optic cables in late January, secured 6.6 gigawatts of nuclear power through three partnerships announced in early January 2026, confirmed a multi-billion Nvidia chip deal, and on February 24 announced a $60-100 billion, 6-gigawatt AMD GPU deal—diversifying away from Nvidia dominance.

Updated Feb 24