Daily newsletter · Sat 26 Sep 2026
Akamai signed a US$11.6 billion deal with Anthropic and kept a fifth of the rally
Akamai closed at US$113.94 on Friday, up 3.20%. At the open it had been up as much as 16.4%, at US$128.46, after announcing a seven-year cloud contract with Anthropic late on Thursday. It finished ten cents above the day's low.
So what is Anthropic buying? Computing capacity on ordinary processors, which TechCrunch reports is for AI agents that carry out tasks. The contract is worth US$11.6 billion and can grow by another US$9 billion, to about US$20 billion.
That is large for Akamai. The company expects revenue of between US$4.445 billion and US$4.53 billion this year, and its cloud infrastructure line brought in US$99 million in the June quarter. It expects US$150 million to US$300 million from Anthropic in 2027, rising to a run rate of about US$1.7 billion a year in 2028.
The spending comes first. Akamai puts the capital cost of the deal at about US$5.5 billion, and it is adding about US$1.7 billion to this year's budget to lock in components, memory included. Anthropic also gets warrants over up to 5% of Akamai at US$111.33 a share, unlocking as its spending grows.
The same appetite reached the Texas oilfield. Atlas Energy Solutions, best known for frac sand in the Permian Basin, rose 13.47% after agreeing to buy about US$614 million of power equipment for data centres. An unnamed "frontier AI lab" is covering the cost.
AI labs are now signing with whoever can deliver power and servers soonest. I'd want to see that 2027 revenue range met, because it is the first proof that Akamai can build to someone else's timetable.
General information and commentary only, not financial advice. It does not take account of your objectives, financial situation or needs, and reflects the author's own reading of public information at the time of writing, which may be wrong. Sharespective, its people and its clients may hold positions in the companies covered. Do your own research and talk to a licensed adviser.