Bandwidth posts record Q2 revenue as enterprise Voice AI spending accelerates

The enterprise shift toward AI-enabled voice and messaging infrastructure is translating into measurable volume gains for the cloud communications layer that sits between AI applications and the public telephone network. Bandwidth Inc. (NASDAQ: BAND), reporting second-quarter 2026 results from Raleigh, N.C., delivered revenue of $220 million, up 22% year-over-year, with Adjusted EBITDA of $28 million, up 27%, at a record quarterly margin of 18%.

Network capacity meeting AI-driven traffic demand

The quarter produced a GAAP net income of $2 million, compared to a net loss of $5 million in the second quarter of 2025. Non-GAAP gross margin held at 59%, up one percentage point year-over-year. GAAP gross margin came in at 36%, four points below the prior-year period, reflecting the cost structure of operating owned network infrastructure across approximately 70 countries. Free cash flow was $24 million.

CFO Daryl Raiford pointed to demand across Voice and Messaging, combined with the structural advantage of Bandwidth's owned-and-operated global network, as the drivers of another quarter of margin expansion. That network reaches territory representing 90% of global GDP.

AI-native enterprise wins across sectors and markets

Every $1 million-plus customer win and expansion in the second quarter included Bandwidth's Maestro orchestration platform or AI services. A healthcare system operating hospitals and clinics across the Midwest selected the Communications Cloud and Maestro to replace legacy infrastructure. A European appliance care and warranty provider consolidated communications from multiple markets onto the platform. A global electronic brokerage serving investors in more than 200 countries extended its relationship into global voice. One of the largest text messaging platforms in the U.S., serving approximately 2,500 brands, moved more than 95% of its messaging traffic onto Bandwidth.

CEO David Morken described the dynamic as enterprises standardizing on Bandwidth as AI-native innovators, Global 2000 companies, and hyperscalers build out their communications stacks.

Raised guidance and the cross-border growth argument

Bandwidth lifted its full-year 2026 revenue outlook to a range of $900 million to $910 million and raised its Adjusted EBITDA target to $123 million to $125 million. Third-quarter guidance calls for revenue of $231 million to $235 million and Adjusted EBITDA of $32 million to $34 million.

The macro read-through is clear enough: enterprises building AI-driven contact centers need compliant, carrier-grade infrastructure capable of operating across dozens of regulatory environments. Bandwidth's owned network is one of the few platforms at that scale. The caveat worth watching is the spread between GAAP and non-GAAP gross margin, which ran at more than 20 percentage points in the second quarter, a gap that reflects how capital-intensive that infrastructure position actually is.

In the first half of 2026, Bandwidth reported revenue of $429 million.

Related reading

• SK Hynix shares slide as AI sector sets a bar that exponential growth cannot clear
• UPS beats Q2 estimates and raises full-year guidance as CEO says company has cleared its 'bumps'
• MIT study: global experts put one-in-five odds on catastrophic AI harm by 2030