UBS expects global AI capital expenditure to approach $1.0 tln in 2026 and rise
to about $1.4 tln in 2027, driven primarily by large memory price increases. UBS
estimates memory-related spending will climb from $71 bln in 2025 to $367 bln
this year and $923 bln in 2027. Other AI-related costs are forecast at $631 bln
in 2026, falling to $525 bln in 2027. UBS says memory cost increases accounted
for roughly 60% of this year’s AI capex uplift; by 2027, with other component
spending declining, memory’s rise could exceed the entire net increase in AI
capex.
