Oracle vs. Microsoft: Big Tech's AI Cloud Battle Has a New Underdog

Microsoft (MSFT) and Oracle (ORCL) are both legacy tech companies, but the AI cloud race has reshuffled expectations. The article argues Microsoft gained an early edge through Azure’s scale and its partnership with OpenAI, and it cites fiscal 2026 results: Microsoft Cloud revenue above $214 billion and Azure revenue over $100 billion, with total revenue up 18% year over year to $331.8 billion and adjusted earnings rising 22%. It also highlights infrastructure expansion—31 new data centers across five continents, bringing the total to 88, and capacity increased by another gigawatt—plus reduced GPU deployment times and access to more than 11,000 AI models. The piece also points to Microsoft’s Foundry platform reaching 100,000 customers.