AKAM · 10-Q · 2026Q3 · Full report
Research and Development Expense
AKAMAI TECHNOLOGIES INC · 2026-11-06 · Importance 54 · Surprise 40 · Matches filing data
Third-quarter 2026 research and development expense increased 13% year over year to $141.4 million; nine-month expense increased 15% to $431.8 million. The increases primarily reflected higher payroll and stock-based compensation from headcount growth tied to strategic initiatives and annual merit increases. Stock-based compensation also increased because a new 2026 retirement benefit reduced the service period for retirement-eligible employees and the company achieved its performance-based compensation plan. Akamai expected R&D costs to increase during the remainder of 2026 to support faster-growing security and cloud infrastructure services, including employees acquired through recent acquisitions.
Key facts
- Akamai's research and development costs for the three months ended September 30, 2026 were $141.419 million, compared with $124.720 million in 2025. source
- Akamai's research and development costs for the nine months ended September 30, 2026 were $431.816 million, compared with $374.107 million in 2025. source
- Akamai capitalized $100.7 million of stock-based compensation in the nine months ended September 30, 2026, compared with $87.8 million in the same period of 2025. source
- Akamai capitalized $31.7 million of stock-based compensation in the three months ended September 30, 2026, compared with $29.4 million in the same period of 2025. source
- Akamai expects research and development costs to increase during the remainder of 2026 compared with 2025, particularly payroll and related costs, including stock-based compensation, supporting security and cloud infrastructure services and employees acquired through recent acquisitions. source
- Akamai's research and development expenses increased primarily due to higher payroll and related costs and stock-based compensation from strategic-initiative headcount growth and annual merit increases. source
Impact estimates
| metric | direction | stage | expected | basis |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| operating_income | negative | realized | -5.1% | Akamai's research and development costs for the nine months ended September 30, 2026 were $431.816 million, compared with $374.107 million… |