Shares of Alphabet Inc. (GOOGL) rose 1.86% on Wednesday as investors responded to continued growth in the company’s Waymo autonomous vehicle business and reports that Google is exploring orbital artificial intelligence data centers alongside SpaceX.
The benchmark index S&P 500 was up 0.04% while the Nasdaq Composite gained 0.44%.
The stock traded near $395, extending a powerful rally that has seen shares climb 147% over the past year.
TD Cowen reiterated its Buy rating on Alphabet and maintained a $450 price target, pointing to improving operational metrics at Waymo as a key growth driver.
The bullish outlook came as new details also emerged regarding Google’s broader ambitions in AI infrastructure, including plans tied to space-based computing and orbital data centers.
Waymo expansion boosts investor confidence
TD Cowen analyst John Blackledge maintained a positive stance on Alphabet after new data showed strong growth in Waymo’s autonomous ride-hailing operations in California.
Waymo vehicles completed 1.36 million passenger trips in California during March 2026, representing a 92% increase compared with the same period last year.
The figure also increased from 1.26 million trips recorded in December 2025.
The service reached 308,000 weekly trips across California, while passenger miles per trip rose 4% quarter over quarter during the first quarter of 2026.
The increase reflected Waymo’s geographic expansion efforts in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Operational efficiency also improved.
Vehicles spent 88% of total miles either transporting passengers or traveling to passenger pickups, compared with 85% in the fourth quarter.
TD Cowen said the operational improvements reinforced confidence in Alphabet’s autonomous vehicle strategy and long-term monetization opportunities.
Waymo has increasingly become one of Alphabet’s most closely watched growth businesses as competition intensifies across the autonomous driving industry.
Google explores orbital AI data centers
Investor attention also turned toward reports that Google and SpaceX are discussing the possibility of launching orbital data centers into space.
According to a report from The Wall Street Journal on Tuesday, the companies are in talks regarding Google’s plans for space-based AI infrastructure.
Neither company immediately commented on the report.
The discussions build on Google’s previously announced “Project Suncatcher,” a research initiative introduced in November focused on developing orbital data centers powered by solar energy.
The concept reflects growing interest within the technology industry around the future energy demands of artificial intelligence systems and the long-term scalability of computing infrastructure.
Meanwhile, SpaceX founder Elon Musk has also outlined ambitions involving space-based computing capacity.
SpaceX is expected to pursue a major midyear IPO that could value the company at as much as $2 trillion.
Some of the planned fundraising is reportedly expected to support orbital AI infrastructure initiatives.
Space race adds new layer to AI competition
The potential collaboration also highlights the increasingly interconnected relationship between artificial intelligence, cloud infrastructure, and the commercial space industry.
SpaceX currently dominates the global launch market and accounts for more than half of all orbital launches worldwide.
The company’s fully reusable Starship rocket system remains central to Musk’s longer-term vision of dramatically reducing the cost of moving cargo into low Earth orbit.
The rocket is designed to lower launch costs by as much as 90% compared with the Falcon 9 rocket, which itself significantly reduced launch expenses relative to the Space Shuttle era.
At the same time, SpaceX and Alphabet increasingly compete across artificial intelligence markets following SpaceX’s merger with xAI earlier this year.
Despite that rivalry, Alphabet’s reported interest in orbital data centers is seen by some investors as validation of the broader commercial potential for space-based AI infrastructure.
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