The artificial intelligence boom is pushing tech investors into unfamiliar territory, CNBC reported Saturday.

For years, big tech companies could rely on huge cash reserves and steady profits.

That let investors focus mostly on growth, software demand, and stock valuations.

But the race to build AI data centers is changing that.

Now investors must pay attention to more basic costs, including interest rates, copper wire, electricity, construction materials, and the debt needed to pay for massive data center projects.

"Tech investors are not as used to looking at rates," Peter Boockvar, chief investment officer of One Point BFG Wealth Partners, said during a podcast interview.

The shift comes as Amazon, Alphabet, Microsoft, and Meta are expected to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on AI infrastructure.

These projects require land, chips, power lines, cooling systems, and huge amounts of electricity.

They also require financing.

That means higher interest rates can hurt even the biggest tech companies because borrowing money becomes more expensive.

CNBC noted that Nvidia, Oracle, Amazon, Alphabet, and Meta have been turning to debt markets to help fund AI expansion.

"Tech investors are learning what it's like to be an investor in old-economy industrial businesses that are capital intensive," Boockvar said.

In simpler terms, AI has made Big Tech look more like heavy industry.

Building data centers is not just about code. It is about power, metal, concrete, financing, and cash flow.

Jeff Kilburg, CEO of KKM Financial, told CNBC there is "insatiable demand" for AI funding, adding that "tech leadership is embracing debt."

Still, CNBC reported that the risks vary by company.

Nvidia, for example, remains in a strong cash position, while Amazon is expected to face negative free cash flow because of heavy spending.

The larger point may be that while AI may be the hottest story in technology, investors must watch the less glamorous parts of the boom, from Fed policy and bond yields to the price of copper wire and the cost of keeping data centers powered.