Heavy AI investment risks sidelining other industries, says investor

Published: 2026-04-17 16:35:53 ET SPGI

Published on 04/17/2026 at 04:35 pm EDT

STORY: According to S&P Global, Big Tech companies planned to spend about $635 billion on data centers, chips, and other AI infrastructure in 2026, with many AI-related companies tapping credit markets to finance that spending.

As a result, Dhargalkar said it has become "a challenge for companies that are not as close to the AI trade, for lack of a better term, to be able to get the growth capital they might want from debt capital markets."

"What it should imply," he added, "is that the M&A transactions that do get done outside of the AI space are probably ones that are quite positive and quite accretive, ultimately, if debt investors are raising the bar on what those hurdles are going to be outside of the AI space."