The tech powerhouse is all about cost control and aggressive AI bets to jump-start falling revenue growth.

Google parent Alphabet reported earnings that made investors wary of the giant’s dominance over online advertising. The search veteran posted $69.79bn in overall sales, of which $54.55bn came from advertising. The numbers narrowly beat Wall Street’s forecast for $68.89bn and $53.71bn, respectively.

The ad sales figure was Google’s second drop in a row and the tech giant’s third such miss year-over-year since it went public in 2004. To spark some excitement over its forward-looking growth projections, Alphabet’s board authorized a $70bn share buyback and more cost-cutting.

Adding to the pressure, however, is the AI war with Microsoft and a flock of other rivals. The enormous popularity of CharGPT (where Microsoft was able to swoop in with $10bn), forced Alphabet to desperately try and catch up with the not-so-great launch of its AI bot Bard.