Alphabet reported second-quarter earnings that topped Wall Street expectations, posting diluted earnings per share of $2.31 on revenue of $96.43 billion. Analysts surveyed by LSEG had forecast EPS of about $2.18 and revenue near $94 billion. Net income rose 19% from a year earlier to $28.2 billion, while the operating margin held steady at 32%. Advertising remained the company’s main engine, generating $71.34 billion, as Search and other revenue climbed 12% to $54.19 billion and YouTube ads contributed $9.80 billion. Google Cloud continued to accelerate, with revenue up 32% to $13.62 billion and operating profit of roughly $2.8 billion, underscoring rising demand for Alphabet’s artificial-intelligence services. Chief Executive Officer Sundar Pichai said the quarter was a “standout” and cited “strong and growing demand” for cloud and AI products. To support that demand, Alphabet lifted its 2025 capital-expenditure plan to about $85 billion, $10 billion higher than guidance given in February. Second-quarter capex reached $22.45 billion, and management signaled further increases in 2026 as new data-center capacity comes online. Alphabet’s shares slipped roughly 2% in late trading as investors weighed the sharper spending trajectory against the earnings beat. The results mark the company’s 11th consecutive quarter of surpassing consensus profit estimates, highlighting the balancing act between funding AI-driven growth and maintaining profitability.