Google's AI Investments Pay Off as Alphabet Reports Strong Q3 Earnings Amid Regulatory Challenges

Google's moneymaking machine still pumping out massive profits despite multiple threats

SAN FRANCISCO -- Google is still thriving while the company navigates through a pivotal shift to artificial intelligence and battles regulators trying to topple its internet empire. The latest evidence of Google's prosperity emerged Tuesday with the release of its corporate parent Alphabet Inc.'s results for the July-September period. Both Alphabet's profit and revenue increased at a brisker pace than industry analysts anticipated, thanks primarily to a moneymaking machine powered by Google's ubiquitous search engine. Alphabet earned $26.3 billion, or $2.12 per share during the most recent quarter, a 34% increase from a year ago. Revenue rose 15% from the same time last year to $88.27 billion. The profits would have been even higher if Google wasn't pouring so much money into building up its AI arsenal in a technological arms race that includes other industry heavyweights Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Facebook parent Meta Platforms and rising star OpenAI. The AI investments are the primary reason Google's capital expenditures in the past quarter soared 62% from the same time last year to $13.1 billion. "Our commitment to innovation as well as the long-term focus and investment in AI are paying off," Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said during a call discussing the results. Investors as seemed pleased with the performance as Alphabet's stock price climbed 4% in extended trading after the numbers came out. Investing.com analyst Thomas Monteiro said Alphabet's showing makes it likely more good news will be coming for Big Tech as this week progresses, with quarterly reports from Microsoft, Meta, Amazon and Apple still to come in the days ahead. But a 4-year-old antitrust case brought by the U.S. Department of Justice has cast a cloud of uncertainty over Google's future. After weighing the evidence presented during a high-profile trial last year, a federal judge declared Google's search engine is an illegal monopoly -- a decision that has opened the door for a major shake-up. Earlier this month, the Justice Department suggested it might seek to break up Google as part of penalties that will be determined by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta next summer. Besides the legal assault on its search engine, Google also has been ordered to tear down the barriers protecting its Play Store for Android smartphone apps. That ruling came earlier this month after a jury decided that operation also was an illegal monopoly. Google is also nearing the end of another antitrust trial in Virginia revolving around the technology underlying its digital ad network. As if the regulatory headaches aren't enough, Google is also in the midst of a major makeover of its search engine that is putting an increasing emphasis on highlight results produced by artificial intelligence in response to competitive threats to alternative options relying on the same potentially revolutionary technology. For now, at least, Google remains a juggernaut. The digital ads tied to Google's search engine remained the financial cornerstone. Revenue from that segment climbed 12% from a year ago to $49.39 billion. And Google's cloud division is growing at an even more robust rate, thanks to demand for AI services. The cloud division generated $11.35 billion in revenue during the past quarter, a 35% increase from last year. But the regulatory questions dogging Google remain a worry among investors. Although Alphabet's shares have surged by more than 20% so far this year, Tuesday's closing price of $169.68 remains well below their high of nearly $192 reached in July before the search engine monopoly ruling came out.

Google's moneymaking machine still pumping out massive profits despite multiple threats

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Google is still thriving while the company navigates through a pivotal shift to artificial intelligence and battles regulators trying to topple its internet empire. The latest evidence of Google's prosperity emerged Tuesday with the release of its corporate parent Alphabet Inc.'s results for the July-September period. Both Alphabet's profit and revenue increased at a brisker pace than industry analysts anticipated, thanks primarily to a moneymaking machine powered by Google's ubiquitous search engine. Alphabet earned $26.3 billion, or $2.12 per share during the most recent quarter, a 34% increase from a year ago. Revenue rose 15% from the same time last year to $88.27 billion. The profits would have been even higher if Google wasn't pouring so much money into building up its AI arsenal in a technological arms race that includes other industry heavyweights Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Facebook parent Meta Platforms and rising star OpenAI. The AI investments are the primary reason Google's capital expenditures in the past quarter soared 62% from the same time last year to $13.1 billion. Investors seemed pleased with the performance as Alphabet's stock price climbed nearly 4% in extended trading after the numbers came out. But a 4-year-old antitrust case brought by the U.S. Department of Justice has cast a cloud of uncertainty over Google's future. After weighing the evidence presented during a high-profile trial last year, a federal judge declared Google's search engine is an illegal monopoly -- a decision that has opened the door for a major shake-up. Earlier this month, the Justice Department suggested it might seek to break up Google as part of penalties that will be determined by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta next summer. Besides the legal assault on its search engine, Google also has been ordered to tear down the barriers protecting its Play Store for Android smartphone apps. That ruling came earlier this month after a jury decided that operation also was an illegal monopoly. Google is also nearing the end of another antitrust trial in Virginia revolving around the technology underlying its digital ad network. As if the regulatory headaches aren't enough, Google is also in the midst of a major makeover of its search engine that is putting an increasing emphasis on highlight results produced by artificial intelligence in response to competitive threats to alternative options relying on the same potentially revolutionary technology. For now, at least, Google remains a financial behemoth. "The momentum across the company is extraordinary," Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said in a statement.

Google's moneymaking machine still pumping out massive profits despite multiple threats

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Google is still thriving while the company navigates through a pivotal shift to artificial intelligence and battles regulators trying to topple its internet empire. The latest evidence of Google's prosperity emerged Tuesday with the release of its corporate parent Alphabet Inc.'s results for the July-September period. Both Alphabet's profit and revenue increased at a brisker pace than industry analysts anticipated, thanks primarily to a moneymaking machine powered by Google's ubiquitous search engine. Alphabet earned $26.3 billion, or $2.12 per share during the most recent quarter, a 34% increase from a year ago. Revenue rose 15% from the same time last year to $88.27 billion. The profits would have been even higher if Google wasn't pouring so much money into building up its AI arsenal in a technological arms race that includes other industry heavyweights Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Facebook parent Meta Platforms and rising star OpenAI. The AI investments are the primary reason Google's capital expenditures in the past quarter soared 62% from the same time last year to $13.1 billion. Investors seemed pleased with the performance as Alphabet's stock price climbed nearly 4% in extended trading after the numbers came out. But a 4-year-old antitrust case brought by the U.S. Department of Justice has cast a cloud of uncertainty over Google's future. After weighing the evidence presented during a high-profile trial last year, a federal judge declared Google's search engine is an illegal monopoly -- a decision that has opened the door for a major shake-up. Earlier this month, the Justice Department suggested it might seek to break up Google as part of penalties that will be determined by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta next summer. Besides the legal assault on its search engine, Google also has been ordered to tear down the barriers protecting its Play Store for Android smartphone apps. That ruling came earlier this month after a jury decided that operation also was an illegal monopoly. Google is also nearing the end of another antitrust trial in Virginia revolving around the technology underlying its digital ad network. As if the regulatory headaches aren't enough, Google is also in the midst of a major makeover of its search engine that is putting an increasing emphasis on highlight results produced by artificial intelligence in response to competitive threats to alternative options relying on the same potentially revolutionary technology. For now, at least, Google remains a financial behemoth. "The momentum across the company is extraordinary," Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said in a statement.

Google's Moneymaking Machine Still Pumping Out Massive Profits Despite Multiple Threats

SAN FRANCISCO (AP) -- Google is still thriving while the company navigates through a pivotal shift to artificial intelligence and battles regulators trying to topple its internet empire. The latest evidence of Google's prosperity emerged Tuesday with the release of its corporate parent Alphabet Inc.'s results for the July-September period. Both Alphabet's profit and revenue increased at a brisker pace than industry analysts anticipated, thanks primarily to a moneymaking machine powered by Google's ubiquitous search engine. Alphabet earned $26.3 billion, or $2.12 per share during the most recent quarter, a 34% increase from a year ago. Revenue rose 15% from the same time last year to $88.27 billion. The profits would have been even higher if Google wasn't pouring so much money into building up its AI arsenal in a technological arms race that includes other industry heavyweights Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Facebook parent Meta Platforms and rising star OpenAI. The AI investments are the primary reason Google's capital expenditures in the past quarter soared 62% from the same time last year to $13.1 billion. Investors seemed pleased with the performance as Alphabet's stock price climbed nearly 4% in extended trading after the numbers came out. But a 4-year-old antitrust case brought by the U.S. Department of Justice has cast a cloud of uncertainty over Google's future. After weighing the evidence presented during a high-profile trial last year, a federal judge declared Google's search engine is an illegal monopoly -- a decision that has opened the door for a major shake-up. Earlier this month, the Justice Department suggested it might seek to break up Google as part of penalties that will be determined by U.S. District Judge Amit Mehta next summer. Besides the legal assault on its search engine, Google also has been ordered to tear down the barriers protecting its Play Store for Android smartphone apps. That ruling came earlier this month after a jury decided that operation also was an illegal monopoly. Google is also nearing the end of another antitrust trial in Virginia revolving around the technology underlying its digital ad network. As if the regulatory headaches aren't enough, Google is also in the midst of a major makeover of its search engine that is putting an increasing emphasis on highlight results produced by artificial intelligence in response to competitive threats to alternative options relying on the same potentially revolutionary technology. For now, at least, Google remains a financial behemoth. "The momentum across the company is extraordinary," Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai said in a statement. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Google parent Alphabet enjoys profit rise as focus on AI 'paying off' | BreakingNews.ie

Google is still thriving while the company navigates through a pivotal shift to artificial intelligence (AI) and battles regulators trying to topple its internet empire. The latest evidence of Google's prosperity emerged on Tuesday with the release of its corporate parent Alphabet's results for the July-September period. Both Alphabet's profit and revenue increased at a brisker pace than industry analysts anticipated, thanks primarily to a moneymaking machine powered by Google's ubiquitous search engine. Alphabet earned 26.3 billion dollars (£20.2 billion), or 2.12 dollars per share, during the most recent quarter, a 34% increase from a year ago. Revenue rose 15% from the same time last year to 88.27 billion dollars (£67.82 billion). The profits would have been even higher if Google was not pouring so much money into building up its AI arsenal in a technological arms race that includes other industry heavyweights Microsoft, Amazon, Apple, Facebook parent Meta Platforms and rising star OpenAI. The AI investments are the primary reason Google's capital expenditures in the past quarter soared 62% from the same time last year to 13.1 billion dollars (£10 billion). "Our commitment to innovation as well as the long-term focus and investment in AI are paying off," Alphabet chief executive Sundar Pichai said during a call discussing the results. Investors seemed pleased with the performance as Alphabet's stock price climbed 4% in extended trading after the numbers came out. Investing.com analyst Thomas Monteiro said Alphabet's showing makes it likely more good news will be coming for Big Tech as this week progresses, with quarterly reports from Microsoft, Meta, Amazon and Apple still to come in the days ahead. But a four-year-old antitrust case brought by the US Department of Justice has cast a cloud of uncertainty over Google's future. After weighing the evidence presented during a high-profile trial last year, a federal judge declared Google's search engine is an illegal monopoly - a decision that has opened the door for a major shake-up. Earlier this month, the Justice Department suggested it might seek to break up Google as part of penalties that will be determined by US District Judge Amit Mehta next summer. Besides the legal assault on its search engine, Google has also been ordered to tear down the barriers protecting its Play Store for Android smartphone apps. That ruling came earlier this month after a jury decided that operation also was an illegal monopoly. Google is also nearing the end of another antitrust trial in Virginia revolving around the technology underlying its digital ad network. As if the regulatory headaches are not enough, Google is also in the midst of a major makeover of its search engine that is putting an increasing emphasis on highlight results produced by artificial intelligence in response to competitive threats to alternative options relying on the same potentially revolutionary technology. For now, at least, Google remains a juggernaut. The digital ads tied to Google's search engine remained the financial cornerstone. Revenue from that segment climbed 12% from a year ago to 49.39 billion dollars (£37.95 billion). And Google's cloud division is growing at an even more robust rate, thanks to demand for AI services. The cloud division generated 11.35 billion dollars (£8.72 billion) in revenue during the past quarter, a 35% increase from last year. But the regulatory questions dogging Google remain a worry among investors. Although Alphabet's shares have surged by more than 20% so far this year, Tuesday's closing price of 169.68 dollars remains well below their high of nearly 192 dollars reached in July before the search engine monopoly ruling came out.

Google parent Alphabet sees double-digit growth as AI bets pay off

Analysts expected 12% year-on-year revenue gains, but company reports 15%, buoyed by performance in ads and cloud services Alphabet, parent of Google and YouTube, saw a third straight quarter of gains as it reported earnings on Tuesday. The tech giant had largely exceeded analyst expectations for the previous two quarters, and Tuesday's results showed growth in both digital advertising and demand for Google Cloud. "The momentum across the company is extraordinary. Our commitment to innovation, as well as our long-term focus and investment in AI, are paying off with consumers and partners benefiting from our AI tools," said CEO Sundar Pichai. Analysts expected 12% year-on-year revenue growth, to $86.23bn, and earnings per share of $1.85. Alphabet reported 15% overall growth with $88.27bn in revenue for the quarter, and $2.12 earnings per share. Advertising revenue grew 10%, and cloud services revenue rose 35%. Pichai singled out growth at YouTube in both ads and subscriptions. Enthusiasm for new artificial intelligence products in recent years has buoyed Google's stock price, which has increased 20% in 2024 and more than 150% in the past five years. The company has been a leading player in the AI boom, although it is often seen as one step behind the cutting-edge offerings of OpenAI, which has partnered closely with rival Microsoft. In spite of its success, Google has faced a raft of legal troubles in 2024. The earnings call is the first since the company's landmark loss in its antitrust case against the US government. Lawyers for the US justice department are weighing a proposal to break up the Android maker after a judge declared it an illegal monopoly. Multibillion-dollar agreements between Google and other tech giants, a focal point of the trial, were deemed anticompetitive; the judge may undo them in the aftermath of the monopoly ruling or separate subsidiaries from the parent company entirely. Earlier this month, Google was ordered to overhaul the Google Play store as a result of another antitrust loss, to Fortnite maker Epic Games. Google must make Android apps available from competing sources and cannot forbid use of in-app payment methods, according to the judge's order. Yet another antitrust trial, which started in September, is ongoing. The US justice department alleges that Google built an illegal monopoly over online advertising. Google's self-driving car division, Waymo, has deployed a fleet of autonomous vehicles in several US cities and begun offering paid rides. The same day as the earnings report, the subsidiary announced it had raised $5.6bn in funding from both its parent and third-party investors. Though not a significant revenue driver compared with the billions generated by advertising, the self-driving car business holds growth potential, Pichai has said.