Meta in Talks to Sell $10B in AI Compute to Anthropic

Meta is in early discussions to sell up to $10 billion worth of computing capacity to AI startup Anthropic over two years, according to a report from the New York Times citing three people familiar with the talks.

Anthropic initiated the proposal in June, and Meta is currently reviewing the arrangement. Both companies declined to comment on the discussions, which remain preliminary and may not result in a final agreement. The New York Times first reported the details, with CNBC independently confirming the talks are underway.

Why it matters

This potential deal represents Meta's most concrete step toward monetizing its massive AI infrastructure investments. With capital expenditures projected to reach $145 billion by 2026—more than double last year's $72 billion—the company faces pressure to demonstrate returns beyond its core advertising business. Selling compute capacity would create a new revenue stream while validating the scale of Meta's buildout.

Structure of the proposed arrangement

Under the terms being discussed, Anthropic would pay Meta in monthly installments across the two-year period. Either party could exit the agreement early. CNN confirmed the conversations but noted that specific dollar figures remain speculative at this stage.

The deal would supplement rather than replace Anthropic's existing infrastructure partnerships. In May, Anthropic signed a $45 billion, three-year compute agreement with SpaceX, gaining access to the Colossus 1 data center in Memphis. A Meta arrangement would provide additional GPU capacity on top of that foundation.

Meta's cloud computing ambitions take shape

The Anthropic negotiations signal that Meta is moving beyond exploration and toward active participation in the cloud computing market. CEO Mark Zuckerberg indicated in May that the company was considering cloud services as a way to generate AI-related revenue for investors.

Internal efforts are already underway under the working name "Meta Compute." The company recently hired Dave Brown, a former senior executive at Amazon Web Services, suggesting the initiative extends beyond one-off leasing arrangements.

Zuckerberg foreshadowed this direction in October, noting that "companies regularly" inquire about purchasing Meta's compute capacity at a premium. What sounded hypothetical then now appears to be materializing into active business discussions.

Meta's stock declined as much as 6% on July 17 following the report before recovering to close down approximately 2%.

The company has restructured operations to support its AI infrastructure expansion, cutting 8,000 jobs in May while redirecting billions toward data center construction and hardware acquisition.

The New York Times first reported the Meta-Anthropic discussions, with additional confirmation from CNBC and CNN.