Meta's strong earnings report sent its stock soaring after hours. The company also made it clear that the AI talent wars come with a hefty price tag.

Earnings per share for Meta rose to $7.14 versus Wall Street’s consensus estimate of $5.88, according to FactSet, and up from $5.16 last year. Revenue for the quarter reached $47.5 billion, well above expectations of $44.8 billion, and up 22% on the year.

Recent Q2 earnings reports have brought unexpected good news for both Meta (META) and Microsoft (MSFT). The stronger-then-expected reports have caused a broader market rally, pushing tech index Nasdaq to new record levels.