Alphabet loses nearly $500 billion in market value as AI spending worries hit Google parent

Alphabet lost roughly $500 billion in market value Thursday after shares plunged nearly 13% on disappointing quarterly earnings, marking the second-largest single-day loss in stock market history. The sell-off followed third-quarter revenue of $127.6 billion, up 25% year-over-year but below expectations, fueling investor fears over massive AI spending and slowing search ad growth. Google Search revenue rose just 12%, down from 17% last quarter, while capital expenditures hit $51.4 billion. Google Cloud revenue more than doubled to $30.7 billion, beating estimates, but CFO Anat Ashkenazi warned of near-term margin pressure. The decline surpassed Alphabet's prior record loss of $275 billion in July, with Nvidia holding the top spot at $589 billion in January 2025.