AI Boom: Global Cloud Market to Exceed $500 Billion in 2026

Over the past few years, as more and more IT services were moved to the cloud, the market for cloud infrastructure services grew manifold. According to Synergy Research, cloud infrastructure service revenues jumped $90 billion to $419 billion last year, an almost ninefold increase since 2017. And while the market's growth had gradually and naturally slowed to just below 20 percent in 2023, the rise of generative AI and the corresponding cloud computing needs have led to a re-acceleration of growth - which is remarkable given the market's size. Last year, the global cloud market grew at a rate of 27 percent, which was the highest since 2022. In Q1 2026, the market further accelerated to 35-percent growth, putting it on track to fly past $500 billion this year.

"The Q1 market is now fifteen times larger than it was a decade ago and continues to expand at 35 percent annually. Reaching a half-trillion-dollar run rate underscores the far-reaching impact of cloud computing and AI on the IT landscape," John Dinsdale, chief analyst at Synergy Research Group said in a statement. "Our forecasts point to sustained strong growth in the years ahead, with AI continuing to drive usage, unlock new use cases, and boost cloud provider revenues."

In terms of market share, Amazon (AWS) and Microsoft (Azure) remain the market leaders, with Amazon alone accounting for 28 percent of cloud infrastructure revenue in the most recent quarter. Amazon's cloud arm is on track to reach $150 billion in revenue and tens of billions in profit this year. In 2025, AWS generated $45.6 billion in operating profit, accounting for almost 60 percent of Amazon's total operating profit.