Key Points

  • Gartner said on Monday that global IT spending will reach $6.37 trillion in 2026,raising its forecast, as organizations increase their investments in artificial intelligence.
  • The latest forecast represents a 14.2% increase from 2025 and is higher than the$6.31 trillion forecastGartner issued in April.
  • "Despite market concerns about an AI bubble, AI infrastructure growth remains rapid, with spending on AI-related hardware and software continuing to rise," said John-David Lovelock, distinguished VP analyst at Gartner, in a press release. "Demand from hyperscale cloud providers continues to drive investment in servers optimized for AI workloads."

Deep Dive

AI spending is growing even as corporate investment in the technology faces increasing scrutiny from investors and boards.

According to a study released last month by Cloudzero, which calls itself an AI ROI company, nearly 90% of finance leaders feel pressure to link AI spending to business outcomes within a year, but only 22% have achieved that goal. Cloudzero's survey also found that 66% of boards tie additional AI funding to proof of return.

Meanwhile, a study released in May by Janus Henderson Investors found that nine out of ten investors are at least somewhat concerned about AI, with 28% worried that AI may not live up to expectations. Two-thirds of investors said theyare concerned about a potential AI bubbleor market correction in the near term.

Investor uncertainty about AI's future has at times caused stock market volatility.

Alphabet shares fell about 7% on Thursdayafter the Google parent raised its 2026 capital expenditure outlook to a range of $195 billion to $205 billion, up from its previous forecast of $180 billion to $190 billion, to accelerate AI infrastructure investment. Despite strong AI-related demand—Google Cloud revenue rose 82% year-over-year to $24.8 billion—the stock was sold off.

"While we have significantly increased capacity over the past three years, demand still exceeds investment," Alphabet CFO Anat Ashkenazisaidon Thursday's earnings call. "We, like others in the industry, are in a supply-constrained environment."

Gartner said its latest IT spending forecast is more heavily weighted toward AI. The research firm expects data center systems in particular to be the fastest-growing technology segment this year.

"Driven by AI workload expansion and high-performance computing demand, hyperscale cloud providers and enterprises are rapidly expanding next-generation data center capacity," Lovelock said in a statement released on Monday.