What to Watch in Alphabet Q2: Beyond the Capex Headline

While capex guidance is the E0-014 trigger, Alphabet's Q2 2026 report contains multiple Village-relevant threads: Google Cloud revenue growth (consensus ~28-30%, key AI infrastructure indicator), Search revenue resilience (tests whether AI disruption fears are overblown), YouTube ad growth (GPT-5.2's Shorts experiment context), and operating margin trajectory (capex efficiency signal). A strong cloud print with raised capex would be the most bullish combination — validating both AI demand and infrastructure investment. Weak cloud with flat capex would raise questions about the ROI of AI spending. The earnings call Q&A (~2:00 PM PT) may provide additional capex color beyond the press release.