谷歌母公司 Alphabet 周一表示，计划筹集 800 亿美元，用于支付其已规划的大规模 AI 基础设施建设费用。Alphabet 将出售等值股票，并将所得资金用于“一般企业用途，包括扩大 AI 基础设施和全球算力的资本支出”，该公司在一份声明中表示。
该计划的一部分涉及向伯克希尔·哈撒韦公司出售 100 亿美元股票。伯克希尔·哈撒韦是一家庞大的全球控股公司，此前由沃伦·巴菲特领导。
“公司正经历来自企业和消费者对其 AI 解决方案和服务的强劲需求，其水平已超过公司现有的供应能力，”Alphabet 在声明中表示。“通过扩大投资，公司旨在拓展其基础架构，以支持未来巨大的增长机遇。”
该公司补充称，该股票计划代表了一种“在保持健康资产负债表的同时，以平衡方式为其投资提供资金”的途径。
与其他科技巨头一样，谷歌已宣布今年在算力方面进行大规模投资的计划，这些投资将用于支持一系列新的 AI 服务。在上个月的 Google I/O 大会上，首席执行官桑达尔·皮查伊表示，公司预计今年年底前的资本支出将在 1800 亿至 1900 亿美元之间。预计谷歌及其他科技巨头今年在 AI 资本支出上的总额将高达 7000 亿美元。
Google parent company Alphabet said Monday that it plans to raise $80 billion to help pay for the massive AI infrastructure buildout it has planned. Alphabet will sell off that amount in stock and will then use the funds to pay for “general corporate purposes, including capital expenditures to scale AI infrastructure and global compute,” the company said in a statement.
Part of the plan involves selling $10 billion in stock to Berkshire Hathaway, the massive global holding company formerly led by Warren Buffett.
“The company is experiencing strong demand for its AI solutions and services from enterprises and consumers, at levels that are exceeding the company’s available supply,” Alphabet said in its statement. “By scaling its investments, the company seeks to expand its foundational infrastructure to support the significant growth opportunity ahead.”
The company added that the stock plan represented a way to “fund its investments in a balanced way while retaining a healthy balance sheet.”
Like other tech giants, Google has announced plans for a massive investment in compute this year, the likes of which will be used to support a flurry of new AI services. At Google I/O last month, CEO Sundar Pichai said that the company expects to spend between $180 billion and $190 billion on capex before the year is out. Google and other tech giants are expected to spend as much as $700 billion this year on AI capex.