Anthropic signs $1.8 billion cloud deal with Akamai as AI demand surges

AI startup Anthropic has signed a $1.8 billion computing deal with Akamai Technologies to meet growing demand for its AI software. The agreement, first reported by Bloomberg News citing people familiar with the matter, represents one of the largest cloud infrastructure deals in the AI sector.

The news sent Akamai shares soaring. The stock jumped 25% on Thursday after the company disclosed the long-term cloud deal in its earnings statement, though it didn’t name Anthropic at the time. Shares continued climbing on Friday, rising about 28% to $149.05 in regular trading.

This massive deal shows how AI companies are scrambling to secure the computing power they need to train and run their models. As AI applications become more popular, companies like Anthropic need access to thousands of powerful processors to handle the workload. The agreement also positions Akamai, traditionally known for content delivery and cybersecurity, as a major player in the AI infrastructure space.

Both companies declined to comment on the Bloomberg report. Akamai forecast second-quarter revenue of between $1.08 billion and $1.10 billion, which matches analyst estimates of $1.10 billion according to LSEG data.

CEO Tom Leighton told Reuters that Akamai is well-positioned to secure access to all the necessary components, including CPUs and GPUs, even as prices for these parts have increased. This capability is becoming more valuable as AI companies compete for limited supplies of specialized chips.

The deal comes just days after Anthropic announced another partnership to access computing resources from Elon Musk’s SpaceX. That agreement marked a surprising partnership between Anthropic and Musk, who has previously criticized the company. The back-to-back deals show how Anthropic is working to secure multiple sources of computing power as competition in AI heats up.

For Akamai, the partnership represents a major shift in its business model. The company built its reputation delivering web content faster and protecting websites from attacks. Now it’s betting big on AI infrastructure as a growth driver. The $1.8 billion deal could provide steady revenue over several years while helping establish Akamai as an alternative to cloud giants like Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure.

The infrastructure race in AI is intensifying as companies realize they need massive computing resources to stay competitive. Training advanced AI models can cost millions of dollars and require thousands of specialized chips working together for months. This creates opportunities for infrastructure providers but also highlights the enormous capital requirements in the AI industry.