Griffin

Ken Griffin, the billionaire hedge fund manager and CEO of Citadel, recently turned heads after making a striking observation about Alphabet (GOOG 0.21%) (GOOGL 0.28%). During an interview at Stanford Business School, Griffin proclaimed that Alphabet wields comparable levels of computational power as the fifth-largest country in the world.

This is not mere hyperbole. Griffin’s remark underscores the vast scale of Alphabet’s technological infrastructure and its dominance in shaping the artificial intelligence (AI) revolution.

For investors, this comment is more significant than a memorable sound bite. It highlights Alphabet’s role at the center of AI’s growth, where demand for compute power and data processing is only accelerating.

Ken Griffin just made a bold statement about Google

When most people think of Alphabet, Google Search and YouTube are usually the first properties that come to mind. But the company’s influence stretches far beyond the internet.

Today, Alphabet operates across a diverse set of industries — ranging from cybersecurity through its investment in Wiz, to cloud computing with Google Cloud Platform, consumer electronics with Android, autonomous driving via Waymo, and even custom AI hardware with its tensor processing units (TPUs). In effect, Alphabet has quietly engineered one of the most powerful computing backbones in the world.

By comparing Alphabet’s resources to those of a nation, Griffin underscores the staggering scale of its capabilities in processing, storage, and advanced data workloads. For perspective, the world’s fifth-largest country in terms of electricity consumption falls between Japan and Russia — industrialized economies that power hundreds of millions of people.

If a single company like Alphabet commands that level of computational power, it signals just how central the company has become to the global digital economy.

Image source: Getty Images.

Alphabet is purpose-built for the AI infrastructure era

At the heart of Alphabet’s AI strategy is TensorFlow, its open-source framework for machine learning. TensorFlow is more than a toolkit — it’s an ecosystem powering advanced applications in natural language processing (NLP), robotics, computer vision, and more.

Griffin’s observation ties directly to this computational muscle: Alphabet’s vast infrastructure is the foundation for training and deploying AI models, at a scale few rivals can match. This isn’t simply about producing isolated AI-powered products — it’s about providing the tools, frameworks, and cloud infrastructure that enable developers, enterprises, and entire global communities to innovate.

That network effect is what strengthens Alphabet’s competitive moat. Just as Google Search became the default gateway to the internet two decades ago, Alphabet’s AI backbone is positioning the company as an enduring platform on which the next era of computing is built.

The impact on investors

Griffin’s comment underscores why Alphabet should no longer be seen merely as a cyclical play on digital advertising. Viewed through the lens of AI, Alphabet emerges as a long-term compounder — an essential force powering the AI economy. For investors, the takeaway is clear. Griffin’s perspective shines light on Alphabet’s deeply entrenched position across various corners of the AI landscape.

The company’s ability to marshal computational power on par with a nation highlights not only the durability of its entire business, but stresses the importance of its competitive advantages across both hardware and software — domains with enormous capital requirements and high barriers to entry.

GOOGL PE Ratio (Forward) data by YCharts

Yet despite its technological leadership, the stock continues to trade at a steep discount relative to other megacap tech peers based on forward earnings multiples.

This disconnect suggests that the broader market has yet to fully price in Griffin’s astute insight — leaving long-term investors with meaningful upside potential as Alphabet’s position in the high ground becomes even more pronounced, while rivals scramble to keep pace.

American Ben Griffin warmed up for the Ryder Cup by moving into a three-shot lead at the end of the second round of the Procore Championship.

Griffin, who is part of a 12-strong United States team to play the Ryder Cup from 26-28 September in New York, shot a second round 66 in Napa, California.

The 29-year-old sank six birdies without dropping a shot as he moved to 14 under.

“I’ve been pretty focused on this golf tournament,” said Griffin, who was a captain’s pick by US Ryder Cup skipper Keegan Bradley and will be making his debut in the event.

“Without a doubt, off the golf course hanging out with the guys and stuff, there’s been some Ryder Cup presence. But once I get on the first tee, I’m thinking I’m trying to play well here.

“This week I’m trying to literally do the same stuff I’m doing. I’m trying to stay confident, stay motivated and keep the pedal down.”

While the World Cup will dominate Griffin’s early days, come the autumn the RFU’s governance reform will return to the headlines.

After a tumultuous period last season, when RFU chief executive Bill Sweeney survived a vote of no confidence, her role will focus on helping English rugby evolve.

“I do believe that all parts of the game want us to evolve and improve our governance,” she said.

“That’s really, really important – and a lot of that is in response to societal changes. The world doesn’t stand still, and neither can we.

“It won’t move as fast as people maybe think it should, but then I don’t think that’s a problem.

“We won’t have another major governance review, probably for another 10 years or more. So it’s really, really important – I’d rather get this right.”

The results of the governance review will go to the RFU Council in the autumn but work on giving more devolved power to different regions could come sooner.

Having visited clubs across England in her previous roles with the RFU, she wants the union to become more agile and responsive to each region’s needs.

“I think people want to have more influence over conversations and decisions that are being made regionally,” she said.

“One solution for Cumbria is not the same as the solution for Hampshire. We’ve been working on this for several years in terms of how we can make those decisions, particularly around the growth of rugby at more local levels.

“We have to move on with that regionalisation, and the governance has to be aligned with that. You can’t do everything all at once. So we very much want to get the regionalisation under way in the next season.”

Canadian Nick Taylor shot an impressive four-under-par round of 68 to take a share of the lead at the Memorial Tournament in Columbus, Ohio.

The 37-year-old made four birdies during his second round as he joined overnight leader Ben Griffin, who carded an even-par 72, at the top of the leaderboard.

Griffin’s fellow American Akshay Bhatia is a further two shots behind the pair in third at five under.

World number one Scott Scheffler is within striking distance after he finished the day at four under following back-to-back rounds of 70 at the Muirfield Village Golf Club.

Ireland’s Shane Lowry is the heading the European challenge a further shot back, four off the lead.