In the quarter to September 30, 2026, Microsoft generated $18.6 billion of free cash flow ($58.0 billion of operating cash flow minus $39.4 billion of cash capex), while Amazon (minus $34.8 billion after $77.3 billion of capex), Alphabet (minus $9.1 billion) and Meta (minus $1.2 billion) each spent more on property and equipment than their operations brought in. That gap is the backdrop to the Azure-led earnings beat SI News reported, and the new September-quarter filings point the same way as earlier SI Plots charts of Meta’s capex overtaking its cash generation and Amazon’s trailing-year capex exceeding operating cash flow, this time measured as quarterly dollars of free cash flow for all four companies.
Sources & Notes
- Original story: Google Unveils Gemini 4 Carbon Frontier Model | Microsoft Azure Jumps 48% in Earnings Beat | New York Restricts AI Companions for Minors
- Data sources: Microsoft Corporation (2026). Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2026; Amazon.com, Inc (2026). Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2026; Alphabet Inc (2026). Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2026; Meta Platforms, Inc (2026). Form 10-Q for the quarterly period ended September 30, 2026
- Other references: U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (n.d.). EDGAR application programming interfaces (XBRL company concept data)
- Notes: Free cash flow here is net cash from operating activities minus cash purchases of property and equipment (Microsoft: additions to property and equipment), both as reported in each company’s 10-Q and 10-K filings via SEC XBRL data; fourth-quarter values are full-year minus nine-month totals, and Microsoft’s fiscal quarters are plotted at their calendar quarter-end dates (September 2026 is its fiscal 2027 first quarter). This uniform measure excludes assets acquired under finance leases (material for Microsoft, whose capex including finance leases was $45.2 billion in the quarter) and does not net out asset-sale proceeds, so Amazon’s own free-cash-flow definition gives about minus $33.5 billion for the quarter. Capex includes non-AI assets. Observation period: quarters ending 2024-03-31 to 2026-09-30. Data accessed 2026-10-30.
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