Hyperscaler AI capex hits $800bn, 2.4% of US GDP, dwarfing Manhattan Project
Unfair-Journalist-66 · reddit · 2026-10-25
A Reddit post lays out the staggering scale of the AI buildout: this year the top six US spenders will put $785-820bn into AI — about 2.4% of US GDP, more than the Russian government's annual budget and more than all but 11 governments spend — with $1.3tn projected next year.
- Google and Amazon are each spending 0.6% of US GDP, exceeding the Manhattan Project and Apollo Program at their peaks (0.4% each).
- The money funds thousands of data centers, the largest consuming city-scale power; gas pipelines are being rerouted and nuclear plants (including Three Mile Island) restarted. Data centers already use as much electricity as Britain, and 2023-2030 demand growth equals adding a top-ten power-consuming country.
The author argues decision-makers clearly believe the singularity is near: recouping these bets requires AI revenue to grow dramatically, fast. Open question: bubble, singularity, or both?
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