UBS Lifts AI Capex Forecast; Memory to Drive 90% of Incremental Spend Through 2027

UBS raised its global AI capital expenditure forecast, projecting total spending will nearly double to $998 billion in 2026 from $506 billion in 2025, then climb to $1.447 trillion in 2027. The Swiss bank attributed most of the revision to surging memory prices rather than a broad expansion of AI infrastructure. Memory spending is expected to jump to $367 billion in 2026 and $923 billion in 2027, from $71 billion in 2025. Memory's share of total AI capex would rise to 37% in 2026 and 64% in 2027, from 14% in 2025. Non-memory AI capex is seen falling to $525 billion in 2027 from $631 billion in 2026. UBS estimates memory will account for about 90% of the roughly $1 trillion increase in AI capex between 2025 and 2027. Because major memory manufacturers are concentrated in Asia, the bank said the spending shift may deliver a more direct GDP benefit to Asian economies than to the United States.