AI Infrastructure Investments Set To Lift Global IT Spending To $6.37 Trillion In 2026

Artificial intelligence infrastructure is expected to remain the biggest driver of technology spending next year, with worldwide IT expenditure forecast to rise 14.2% to $6.37 trillion in 2026, according to research firm Gartner. The report indicates that enterprises and hyperscale cloud providers are accelerating investments in computing capacity, cloud platforms and AI-enabled software as businesses expand AI adoption.

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Data Centre Investments Lead Spending Growth

Gartner said data centre systems will register the strongest expansion among all technology segments. Spending in this category is projected to climb 62.5% year-on-year to $822 billion in 2026 as organisations continue to build infrastructure capable of supporting advanced AI workloads.

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), which includes cloud offerings from providers such as Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, is expected to increase 29.3% to $287 billion. Software spending is forecast to grow 15.5% to $1.47 trillion, reflecting continued demand for AI-enabled enterprise applications and platforms.

AI Spending Reshapes Technology Budgets

According to Gartner, investment priorities have shifted away from traditional technology categories toward infrastructure needed to deploy AI at scale. The research firm said enterprises are allocating more budgets to AI-ready servers, cloud infrastructure and enterprise software, while consumer devices and conventional IT services are expected to grow at a comparatively slower pace.

John-David Lovelock, Research Vice President and Distinguished Analyst at Gartner, said in a company statement that building the computing capacity required for artificial intelligence represents the largest infrastructure initiative undertaken by the technology industry. He added that cloud providers and enterprises are rapidly expanding next-generation data centres to meet increasing demand for AI computing.

Spending Growth Varies Across Technology Segments

Gartner noted that the expansion in IT spending will not be uniform across the industry despite the strong overall outlook. The firm said technology budgets continue to face pressure from inflation, supply constraints, higher hardware and memory costs, dedicated AI investment programmes and changing business priorities.

The latest forecast also reflects an improvement over Gartner’s previous projections, with AI infrastructure accounting for much of the upward revision. While AI-related categories continue to record strong growth, several traditional technology segments are expected to post more moderate gains.

Forecast Based On Global Vendor Data

Gartner said its projections are based on sales information collected from more than 1,000 technology vendors worldwide, along with primary research and secondary market analysis covering hardware, software, IT services and telecommunications.

The report suggests that AI infrastructure will remain at the centre of enterprise technology spending in 2026, with organisations continuing to prioritise investments in computing capacity and cloud platforms even as broader budget pressures and supply challenges persist.