Alphabet posts first negative free cash flow since 2004 IPO

Alphabet reported negative free cash flow of $5.9 billion in Q2 2026, its first since its 2004 IPO, after capex doubled to a record $44.9 billion. CFO Anat Ashkenazi raised full-year capex guidance to $195-205 billion. Google Cloud revenue grew 82% to $24.8 billion, and backlog hit $514 billion.