Amazon sells $25 billion in bonds for what CEO Andy Jassy calls ‘once in a lifetime opportunity’
Amazon has raised $25 billion through a bond sale as the company steps up spending on AI infrastructure, with CEO Andy Jassy calling AI a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” The bond sale comes as Amazon plans to spend $200 billion in capital expenditure in 2026, up sharply from $131 billion in 2025. The expenditure is aimed to expand the company’s AI data centres and related infrastructure. While investors have raised concerns over the size of Big Tech’s AI spending and how long it could take to generate returns, Andy Jassy has argued that Amazon risks missing one of the biggest technology shifts if it fails to invest aggressively.
Amazon CEO Andy Jassy called AI a ‘once-in-a-lifetime opportunity’
In his annual letter to shareholders in April, CEO Andy Jassy defended Amazon’s AI strategy, saying the technology will transform customer experiences and create entirely new services.“AI will reinvent every customer experience, and there will be a slew of new experiences only possible because of AI,” Jassy wrote. He added, “AI is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity where the current growth is unprecedented and the future growth even bigger.”Jassy also dismissed concerns that AI is a bubble or that the investments would fail to deliver attractive returns for Amazon.
Fear of missing the next big shift
As mentioned above, Amazon has committed $200 billion in capital expenditure for 2026, marking one of the biggest annual investment plans in its history. The planned expenditure is also highest in the tech industry. To compare, Google-parent Alphabet has projected capital expenditure of $195 billion to $205 billion in 2026, while Meta expects to spend between $125 billion and $145 billion.According to the Motley Fool report, Amazon’s aggressive investment reflects a fear of missing a major technology shift rather than spending too much. The report compares the situation to companies that failed to act during earlier technology transitions, arguing that Amazon sees AI as an opportunity it cannot afford to ignore, even if the investments take years to pay off.
