Anthropic has agreed to pay SpaceX $1.25 billion per month through May of 2029 for access to cloud computing infrastructure, revealing an extraordinary sum that highlights the critical role compute plays in AI development.

The deal gives Anthropic access to GPUs at Colossus and Colossus II, data centers spanning Tennessee and Mississippi with over one gigawatt of computing power. SpaceX had rushed to build these facilities for its xAI unit but now finds itself with excess capacity after Musk announced he doesn’t need all of it.

Despite the hefty fee, Anthropic’s revenue is expected to exceed $10 billion in the second quarter of 2026, underscoring the company's appetite for computing resources. SpaceX aims to use its data centers for its own AI models and expects to enter into additional similar services contracts.

Meanwhile, the S-1 regulatory filing details SpaceX’s plans for an initial public offering, aiming to raise around $75 billion at a valuation of $1.75 trillion. The company is pursuing the largest IPO in history and seeks multiple pathways to generate returns on invested capital through its compute infrastructure.

The deal raises questions about the future of AI development, with companies willing to pay astronomical sums for access to powerful computing resources. It also highlights the growing importance of data centers as a key battleground in the tech race.