Amazon, Alphabet, Meta, and Microsoft Lead $403 Billion Surge in U.S. Investment, PPI Finds

September 18, 2025
Michael Mandel
Andrew Fung

WASHINGTON — Today, the Progressive Policy Institute (PPI) released its annual Investment Heroes report, “Investment Heroes 2025: The Shape of the AI-Enabled Economy,” revealing a sharp rise in domestic capital investment by large U.S. companies, led by a wave of AI-driven spending. The top 25 firms invested an estimated $403 billion in the U.S. economy in 2024 — an increase of 23% over the previous year — outpacing the 5.3% growth in overall nonresidential investment.

Amazon tops the Investment Heroes 2025 list for the sixth consecutive year with $63.6 billion in U.S. capital expenditures, followed by Alphabet ($41.1 billion), Meta ($36.1 billion), and Microsoft ($26.5 billion). These four tech giants alone accounted for $167 billion in domestic investment, up nearly 66% from 2023.

“The AI-enabled economy is reshaping corporate investment priorities,” said Dr. Michael Mandel, PPI’s chief economist and co-author of the report. “This year’s Investment Heroes reflect a fundamental shift, with leading firms building out the physical and digital infrastructure needed to power next-generation AI.”

The report identifies four key investment trends defining the AI-enabled economy:

Tech leaders are massively expanding data centers and purchasing AI-supporting hardware.
Broadband providers AT&T, Verizon, Comcast, and Charter invested $65 billion in 2024, maintaining strong capital spending on their fixed and wireless broadband networks and providing the connective tissue of the AI-enabled economy.
Power utilities are scaling up future capital spending plans to meet the rising energy needs of data-intensive applications.
Manufacturers are cautiously increasing domestic investment amid policy uncertainty, including new tariffs.

“AI adoption is not just a software story; it is also an investment story,” said Andrew Fung, co-author and senior economic and tech policy analyst at PPI. “Companies are putting real money into hard assets that anchor AI growth here in the United States.”

The report also notes that capital expenditures by big tech firms reached an annualized rate of $360 billion in the first half of 2025, marking a 73% jump year-over-year.

Read and download the report here.

Founded in 1989, PPI is a catalyst for policy innovation and political reform based in Washington, D.C. Its mission is to create radically pragmatic ideas for moving America beyond ideological and partisan deadlock. Find an expert and learn more about PPI by visiting progressivepolicy.org. Follow us @PPI.

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Media Contact: Ian O’Keefe – iokeefe@ppionline.org