Tech · October 28, 2026
Alphabet’s Revenue Rises 25% as Profit Falls
Alphabet reported its third-quarter financial results on October 28, 2026, revealing a complex picture of growth and increased expenditure. While total revenue rose 25% to $127.6 billion, net profit fell significantly, missing Wall Street expectations. The decline in profit was largely attributed to substantial losses on equity investments, including a stake in the newly public SpaceX, and aggressive spending on artificial intelligence and cloud infrastructure. Consequently, Alphabet's stock price dropped by more than 10% in extended trading as investors reacted to the profit miss and a slowdown in advertising growth.
Read the original coverage
Alphabet’s Revenue Rises 25% as Profit Falls
Read at The New York Times ↗- New York PostTabloid
Google parent Alphabet tumbles after profit disappoints, warns AI is battering its cash flow
Read at New York Post ↗ - The GuardianMainstream
Investors turn on Google owner Alphabet after profit miss, ad slowdown and high spending
Read at The Guardian ↗
Reported by multiple outlets
- Revenue grew 25% year-over-year.
- Alphabet missed analyst expectations for profit.
- Alphabet shares fell by more than 10% in after-hours trading.
- The company is spending heavily on artificial intelligence development.
- A significant portion of the profit decline was linked to the value of equity investments.
Reported by only some outlets
- Net profit was $26.2 billion (a 25% slide from the previous year).
- Revenue reached $127.6 billion, slightly under the $128 billion forecast.
- Advertising revenue grew 11% to $82 billion.
- Google's search business revenue rose 12% to $63 billion.
- Alphabet reported negative free cash flow of $9.07 billion.
- Equity investment losses reached $8.7 billion, specifically citing a stake in Elon Musk's SpaceX.
- Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi warned of near-term margin pressure from third-party cloud capacity.
Industry-friendly coverage frames it as…
Most coverage focuses on the tension between Alphabet's need to innovate in the AI market and the immediate costs of building necessary infrastructure, framing it as a strategic trade-off.
Skeptical / consumer coverage frames it as…
Financial reporting frames the current spending levels as a 'cash burn' risk, questioning if the high capital expenditures will yield timely returns for shareholders.
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CadNews does not determine absolute truth or endorse political viewpoints. It compares publicly available reporting, identifies shared facts, highlights framing differences, and flags uncertainty.