According to CRN, Microsoft, Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud collectively generated $79 billion in total cloud revenue during the third quarter of 2025. All three tech giants reported their Q3 2025 financial results last week, with cloud sales continuing to soar across Azure, AWS and Google Cloud Platform. Microsoft’s Azure revenue is included within its Intelligent Cloud group rather than broken out separately, while Google and AWS provide more transparent cloud-specific numbers. The earnings cover the same three-month span that ended September 30, with Microsoft’s reporting aligning with its first-quarter 2026 results. Significant AI investments across all platforms are now driving substantial portions of cloud revenue, with CEOs Andy Jassy, Satya Nadella and Sundar Pichai all emphasizing AI’s growing role in their cloud businesses.
<h2 id="ai-cloud-fusion”>The AI-Cloud Fusion Is Complete
Here’s the thing – we’re way past the “AI is coming” phase. We’re now in the “AI is the business” era for cloud providers. All three companies have been injecting AI capabilities throughout their platforms for years, and now we’re seeing the payoff. Basically, if you’re buying cloud services from any major provider today, you’re almost certainly using AI-powered features whether you realize it or not.
And that’s the real story behind these numbers. The cloud revenue growth isn’t just about storage and compute anymore – it’s about AI services, machine learning models, and intelligent automation. When Microsoft talks about Intelligent Cloud revenue, they’re not just selling server space – they’re selling AI-powered solutions that businesses can’t easily replicate elsewhere.
The Transparency Problem
Now, there’s an interesting wrinkle here that’s worth calling out. Microsoft still doesn’t break out pure Azure revenue separately – it’s all bundled into that Intelligent Cloud category. Meanwhile, AWS and Google Cloud provide clearer visibility into their core cloud businesses. So what’s Microsoft hiding? Or rather, what advantage do they gain by keeping Azure numbers somewhat opaque?
I think it gives them flexibility in how they position their cloud success. When you combine Azure with other enterprise services, you can tell a broader story about digital transformation rather than just infrastructure. But for investors and analysts trying to make direct comparisons, it’s frustrating. You’re left wondering how much of that growth is pure Azure versus other cloud-adjacent services.
The Enterprise AI Bet Is Paying Off
Look at what these CEOs are emphasizing in their remarks. They’re not talking about basic cloud storage anymore – they’re all-in on enterprise AI solutions. Jassy, Nadella and Pichai are essentially making the same bet: that businesses will pay premium prices for AI-enhanced cloud services that promise efficiency gains and competitive advantages.
And honestly, they’re probably right. We’re seeing companies across every industry scrambling to implement AI, and the cloud providers are the obvious beneficiaries. Why build your own AI infrastructure when you can rent it from AWS, Azure or Google Cloud? The barrier to entry for sophisticated AI is just too high for most organizations.
Where Does This Go From Here?
So where does this leave us? Well, the cloud market continues to consolidate around these three giants, and AI is accelerating that trend. Smaller players simply can’t match the AI research budgets and infrastructure scale that Microsoft, Amazon and Google bring to the table.
The real question is whether this growth is sustainable. $79 billion in a single quarter is staggering, but enterprises are still figuring out which AI use cases actually deliver ROI. If the AI hype cools and businesses become more selective about their cloud AI spending, we might see growth rates moderate. But for now? The cloud providers are riding the AI wave, and it’s generating some seriously impressive numbers.
