Big Tech has already issued around $220B of AI-related debt this year. Bond buyers are finally starting to push back.

I knew the AI buildout was getting debt-heavy, but I didn’t realize the number had gotten this big. Big Tech has already issued around $220B of AI-related debt this year, up from roughly $12.5B over the same period last year. And bond investors are starting to make them pay up for it. Tech credit spreads have widened, recent deals have needed bigger concessions, and some institutional buyers are apparently getting close to their exposure limits. The weird part is these aren’t junk companies. Amazon, Alphabet and the other big issuers still have enormous cash flows and strong credit. There’s just a ridiculous amount of debt coming at the market at once. So maybe the interesting question isn’t whether Big Tech can keep borrowing. It’s how expensive the next $200B gets.