Concerns grow over AI giants’ hidden debts | Semafor
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Concerns grow over AI giants’ hidden debts
Jul 21, 2026, 7:10am EDTJul 21, 2026, 7:10am EDT<br>PostEmailWhatsappCopy link
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Jeenah Moon/Reuters
Tech stocks rebounded from a recent slump driven by fears of an AI bubble, although concerns are growing about industry giants’ off-balance-sheet debt.<br>Shares in chipmakers Samsung and TSMC in particular saw big gains from comparative lows, as investors bet that semiconductor demand would continue; tech-heavy benchmarks in South Korea, Taiwan, and China all rose.<br>But according to Nikkei, financial statements from Alphabet, Amazon, Meta, Microsoft, and Oracle revealed hidden debt of $1.65 trillion — up eightfold in four years — as they race to build data centers. Though the firms expect future earnings to exceed those debts, the market has “begun to show concern,” the outlet reported; Morgan Stanley and Moody’s both also highlighted the issue in reports.
— Tom Chivers
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