Earlier this month, xAI finalized a significant compute agreement with Anthropic, committing substantial funds monthly for the exclusive utilization of Anthropic’s Colossus cluster. This arrangement was widely regarded as a strategic success for both entities, providing xAI with crucial revenue while simultaneously bolstering Anthropic's competitive position in the ongoing pursuit of advanced compute resources.
However, Elon Musk recently provided a statement on X, appearing to temper the extent of SpaceX’s commitment to this deal.
“SpaceX has not committed to leasing Colossus for years, although it’s possible that may be what happens,” Musk stated in response to a user query. He elaborated, “This is a 180 day lease with 90 day notice mutual cancellation thereafter. The short term was our request, not Anthropic’s. We won’t leave them hanging and will provide a reasonable off-ramp, but if compute gets super tight I said we might need it back at some point.”
Musk’s assertion directly contrasts with SpaceX’s recent S-1 filing, which acknowledges the standard 90-day cancellation clause but characterizes the agreement as a three-year commitment. Page F-62 of the regulatory filing details:
On May 3, 2026, the Company entered into a cloud services agreement with Anthropic PBC, an AI research and development public benefit corporation, with respect to access to compute capacity. Pursuant to this agreement, the customer has agreed to pay a monthly fee through May 2029, with capacity ramping in May 2026 at a reduced fee. The agreement may be terminated by either party upon 90 days’ notice. The customer will retain ownership and intellectual property rights in its content, AI models, and related data.
The crucial detail highlighted here is that Anthropic “has agreed to pay a monthly fee through May 2029,” which unequivocally describes a three-year lease. This specific phrasing is consistently reiterated on page F-96 and appears in a slightly varied form, "the customer has agreed to pay us $1.25 billion per month through May 2029," on pages 13 and 146, confirming its deliberate inclusion rather than a typographical error.
xAI did not provide a response when contacted for clarification on the matter.
While one might debate whether Anthropic's agreement to pay for a service is synonymous with SpaceX's agreement to provide that service, this interpretation typically diverges from the standard definition of a "lease." Furthermore, the rationale for a unilateral payment commitment, given that either party can terminate the agreement with three months' notice, raises questions regarding the deal's structure.
Without direct access to the complete agreement, the precise terms remain unconfirmed. Neither SpaceX nor Anthropic has publicly commented on the duration of the deal in their official announcements. Nevertheless, the factual specifics should be clear, and making potentially misleading statements during a company’s quiet period is generally ill-advised.
It is often observed that the SEC may not take action in such instances, and even if it did, the impact on Elon Musk might be negligible. However, this situation appears to constitute a material misrepresentation made during the marketing of a security, which at the very least, carries significant ethical implications.
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