Cloud infrastructure spending just hit an eight-year high

Cloud infrastructure spending reached an eight-year high in the second quarter of 2026, according to Synergy Research Group, with AI investment spurring record-breaking growth.

Figures published by the research firm show cloud infrastructure services spending surged by $43 billion across the period, reaching $143 billion in total and marking an 11th successive quarter of growth.

Synergy noted that the market has doubled in size across that period, with generative AI acting as the “primary driver” behind rampant infrastructure spending.

John Dinsdale, chief analyst at Synergy Research Group, described the recent quarterly growth - and that over the last 11 quarters - as “quite remarkable”.

“AI technology has lit a fire under the cloud market and is now driving unprecedented growth. GenAI-specific cloud services are growing at 165% year over year, but equally importantly, AI technology is enabling enhanced functionality and increased growth across a much broader range of cloud services,” he said.

“It is also interesting to note that in the last two quarters, the US share of the worldwide market has increased, reflecting the huge buildout of US infrastructure by both hyperscale cloud operators and neoclouds.”

Hyperscaler spending spree continues

According to Synergy, Amazon Web Services (AWS) still retains a “strong lead” in the market among the major cloud providers, boasting a 28% share of the global market.

Microsoft and Google Cloud, meanwhile, hold a 20% and 15% share respectively. The firm noted, however, that both hyperscalers continue to achieve “substantially higher growth rates” compared to AWS.

AWS’ market dominance has been waning in recent years, largely due to Microsoft and other providers muscling in on their share.

As ITPro reported in August 2025, Gartner placed AWS’ market share at around 37%, but this marked a 2% decrease compared to the year prior.

Among tier-two cloud providers, CoreWeave, Oracle, and Nscale all recorded notable growth rates.

Crucially, Synergy found that nine neocloud companies now rank among the top 40 cloud providers globally, underlining significant gains made by up-and-coming firms in this space.

Bullish global growth

Cloud infrastructure spending shows impressive growth on a global scale, according to Synergy, with the market continuing to “grow strongly in all regions”.

Among countries with the strongest growth rates, India, Ireland, Indonesia and Thailand all stand out, recording growth rates “well above” the worldwide average.

The US remains the largest cloud market by a wide margin, with its scale far surpassing that of the entire APAC region,” Synergy noted.

“The US market grew by 49% in Q2, which was well above the worldwide average. In Europe, the largest cloud markets are the UK and Germany, but the fastest-growing markets were Ireland, Norway, Denmark, and Finland.”

Figures published by Synergy come hot on the heels of similar projections from Gartner last week. As ITPro reported, the analyst firm revised its global IT spending forecast due to an unexpected surge in AI-related infrastructure spending.

Gartner predicts global IT spending will hit $6.37 trillion across 2026, marking a 14.2% increase compared to last year.

The firm’s revised projections reflected “increased confidence in overall market expansion” - particularly in areas benefiting from AI adoption such as IaaS and data centers.

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