Overview
- Andy Jassy, in a CNBC interview Monday, defended the 2026 plan to spend about $200 billion by explaining that data centers, power, hardware, and chips require cash up front and then generate returns over many years.
- Q1 2026 results on April 29th showed AWS revenue up 28% to $37.6 billion and an AWS backlog of about $364 billion, signaling multi‑year demand tied to generative AI workloads.
- Customer commitments are stacking up, including OpenAI’s planned use of roughly 2 gigawatts of Trainium capacity starting in 2027 and Anthropic’s more than $100 billion in Trainium commitments reported after the quarter.
- Amazon launched Amazon Supply Chain Services on May 4 to sell its end‑to‑end logistics network to third parties, a move BofA says could lift use of fixed assets without changing 2026 capex plans.
- Spending is already surging with $44.2 billion in Q1 capex and trailing 12‑month free cash flow down to $1.2 billion, yet analysts raised price targets and commentators highlighted AWS as the profit engine while a year‑long bull‑versus‑bear debate plays out on returns.