Artificial intelligence continues to reshape the computing resources market. Anthropic, the company behind the Claude model, has proposed that Meta lease computing power worth up to $10 billion. According to my data, the potential agreement is set for two years, and the initiative was sent back in June of this year. Meta is currently reviewing the proposal, and the discussed format involves monthly payments. The parties have included provisions for early termination of the deal, but final terms have not yet been agreed upon. The process is complicated by the fact that Meta does not yet have a ready-made business for selling computing power — this is new territory for them.
For Meta, this agreement could open up an additional source of revenue beyond advertising. The company already leases capacity from providers such as CoreWeave and Nebius, and now it could become a competitor in this segment itself. In April, Meta signed a $21 billion contract with CoreWeave, and in March, a $27 billion contract with Nebius. In May, Mark Zuckerberg acknowledged that external firms regularly express interest in purchasing equipment from Meta, but the company has not sold it due to its own needs. However, now, given the rise in capital expenditures, which could reach $145 billion in 2026 — more than double last year's $72 billion — selling excess capacity becomes a reasonable step.
Investors are already criticizing Meta for its massive spending on AI infrastructure, and leasing capacity could justify these investments. The company acknowledges that it may build more data centers than it needs. Interestingly, Meta is already strengthening its cloud team: former Amazon Web Services top executive Dave Brown has joined. This is a clear signal of serious intentions to enter the cloud business.
Anthropic's demand for capacity is growing amid the popularity of the Claude Code tool. Earlier, the startup already struck a similar deal with Elon Musk's SpaceX for $45 billion over three years — $1.25 billion per month. For Anthropic, leasing from Meta is not just about access to resources but a strategic move in a supply-constrained environment that has sharply driven up prices. As Bloomberg Intelligence analyst Mandeep Singh notes, the shortage of resources forces AI companies to negotiate even with direct competitors.
My analysis: This move by Meta is not just an attempt to make money but a systemic response to Wall Street pressure. Selling excess capacity could become a key growth driver if the company manages to build a competitive cloud division. However, the risks are high: the market is already saturated with players like CoreWeave, and Meta will have to prove its efficiency. For Anthropic, this is a chance to diversify suppliers and reduce dependence on a single partner, which is critically important in the fierce competition for AI infrastructure.