NEW YORK, February 4, 2026 — Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, reported robust fourth-quarter results on Tuesday, with revenue climbing 12% year-over-year to $96.5 billion and earnings per share of $2.12, beating analyst expectations on both top and bottom lines.
The performance was fueled by continued momentum in Google Cloud and accelerating contributions from AI-powered features across Search, YouTube, and Workspace. Google Cloud revenue grew 35% to $12.3 billion, surpassing $10 billion for the second consecutive quarter, as enterprises increasingly adopt Gemini models for productivity and analytics.
Search advertising revenue rose 11% to $48.1 billion, supported by AI Overviews and improved ad targeting. YouTube advertising grew 13% to $10.5 billion, benefiting from Shorts monetization and AI-enhanced content recommendations.
CEO Sundar Pichai highlighted AI’s role in driving engagement: “Our investments in AI are delivering meaningful value to users and customers across every product.”
The company generated $23.6 billion in free cash flow for the quarter, bolstering its cash position to more than $110 billion. Capital expenditures reached $13.2 billion, primarily for AI infrastructure, data centers, and next-generation chips. Alphabet maintained its full-year guidance for continued strong growth in 2026.
Shares rose 4% in after-hours trading following the release. The results come amid heightened scrutiny of Google’s AI strategy, including recent regulatory challenges in Europe and the U.S. over antitrust concerns and content moderation.
Google continues to expand Gemini’s capabilities, with new multimodal features and enterprise integrations announced in recent months. The company also reported progress in reducing AI training costs through custom silicon and efficient data center designs.
Analysts noted that while AI is accelerating growth, margin pressures from heavy infrastructure spending remain a focus. The strong quarter reinforces Google’s leadership in search and cloud, even as competition intensifies from OpenAI, Anthropic, and Microsoft.
