A report from the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, published on November 10, 2026, reveals that 31% of nonfinancial investment-grade corporate debt issuance is now tied to advanced computing. Major cloud and technology operators, known as hyperscalers, are increasingly relying on debt to finance data centers, semiconductor chips, and power infrastructure.
The financial shift is evident in the balance sheets of these companies. The cash-to-assets ratio for hyperscalers declined from 35% in 2018 to 16% in 2026, while their investment-to-assets ratio nearly doubled during the same period. Companies such as Microsoft, Amazon, and Alphabet are identified as the primary drivers of this borrowing trend.
Data from Goldman Sachs indicates that US investment-grade bond issuance reached over $1.7 trillion in 2025. The firm estimates that AI-related borrowing accounted for approximately 30% of net investment-grade corporate bond issuance in late 2025, aligning with the Federal Reserve findings.
The scale of borrowing remains significant, with Goldman Sachs forecasting $500 billion in AI-related debt issuance for 2026. Projections for 2027 suggest an additional $440 billion in bond issuance from hyperscalers. This concentration of debt in a single industry has led to rising bond yields and wider spread premiums.
