Microsoft added $450B in one session. Meta fell 8%. Same AI race. Different balance sheets. $MSFT : • Stock surged 16% • $19.6B in quarterly free cash flow • Lower dependence on debt $META : • Less than $800M in free cash flow • H2 cash flow projected to turn negative • First negative period since its 2012 IPO Wall Street hasn’t stopped rewarding AI spending. It is separating companies that can finance the build internally from those facing balance-sheet pressure. That matters when hyperscaler capex debt—excluding data-center deals—is projected at $250B this year, $400B in 2027 and another $1.3T over the following three years. Microsoft passed the cash-flow test this round. Meta did not. AI is no longer lifting every stock together. Revenue, free cash flow and financing capacity are deciding who keeps the premium.