Editorial companion

What stands out

Eddie Ghabour warns that rapid AI-driven spending at big tech is widening corporate balance sheets and making Wall Street uneasy as Alphabet and Microsoft report results while the Federal Reserve pauses interest-rate moves. He singles out AI capital expenditures and R&D as the drivers behind higher debt levels, and positions that risk against the two companies’ earnings news. The clip matters because it links the familiar earnings calendar to a broader funding concern: firms betting on future AI revenue are taking near-term leverage that some market participants now view as a risk.