Updated

Updated · Business Insider · Jun 15

Cursor Agrees to Potential $60 Billion SpaceX Sale as Anthropic Rivalry Intensifies

Updated

Updated · Business Insider · Jun 15

Cursor Agrees to Potential $60 Billion SpaceX Sale as Anthropic Rivalry Intensifies

Q: With its supercomputer's energy permits expiring in 2027, what is SpaceX's plan to power its AI ambitions?

SpaceX’s plan is to move Colossus off its current heavy dependence on gas turbines and onto a mix of grid power, batteries and solar, while pursuing a longer-term bet on orbital data centers. In the near term, xAI—the SpaceX affiliate operating Colossus—has been building out utility connections through two Memphis Light, Gas and Water substations on the campus, including a 150-megawatt substation completed on an accelerated schedule. The site already draws roughly 250 megawatts from the grid, and the company is pairing that with large-scale Tesla Megapack battery storage to stabilize supply and cover peak demand. Colossus 2 is also being designed around a major Megapack deployment. To reduce reliance on the gas turbines whose permits expire in 2027, xAI also plans a 500-acre solar farm near the Memphis site. That would give the cluster a more durable local power source as regulatory pressure grows over turbine emissions and air permits. Beyond that, Musk’s broader answer appears to be space-based compute. SpaceX, Cursor and Anthropic have all been exploring “orbital AI compute capacity” as land, cooling and power constraints tighten on Earth. The idea is to use SpaceX launch capacity to support solar-powered data centers in orbit, creating a long-term hedge against terrestrial energy and permitting limits. So the practical plan is terrestrial diversification now—grid, batteries, solar—and an eventual shift toward orbital, solar-powered AI infrastructure.

3 articles · Updated · Business Insider · Jun 15

$60 billion is the valuation Michael Truell agreed to in a potential later-this-year sale of AI coding startup Cursor to SpaceX, according to the latest report.
The deal followed Cursor's push for more computing power and less dependence on Anthropic after Claude Code surged, prompting a January emergency all-hands and a deeper effort to build Cursor's own models.
SpaceX's S-1 shows an unusual structure: if either side walks away, SpaceX would pay Cursor a $1.5 billion termination fee and provide $8.5 billion in free computing power.
Cursor gets access to SpaceX's vast AI infrastructure, while SpaceX gains a stronger foothold in coding AI; Musk has said Grok improved after training on substantial Cursor data.
Cursor remains independent for now, with Forbes reporting revenue doubled in three months to $4 billion as the 700-employee company serves 60% of the Fortune 500.

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Business Insider4h ago

Cursor CEO Michael Truell Agrees to Potential $60 Billion SpaceX Acquisition

CNBC4h ago

Microsoft looked at buying Cursor before SpaceX deal, sources say

The Information4h ago

Behind Cursor's Deal With SpaceX, Anthropic and Compute Costs Loomed Large — The Information

4 Sources

How will SpaceX manage conflicts of interest while leasing its supercomputer to both Cursor and its rival Anthropic?

With its supercomputer's energy permits expiring in 2027, what is SpaceX's plan to power its AI ambitions?

Is the future of AI innovation reserved for startups that agree to be acquired by tech giants?

SpaceX’s $60 Billion Cursor Call Option: Reshaping the AI Coding Landscape Ahead of IPO

Overview

SpaceX is making a bold move in artificial intelligence by securing a $60 billion call option to acquire Cursor, a fast-growing AI coding startup. This comes as SpaceX prepares for its historic IPO and builds on Elon Musk’s vision for advanced AI, following the earlier acquisition of xAI. Cursor already relies on xAI’s powerful data centers for computing, and two of its top engineers recently joined xAI. With Cursor’s enterprise business tripling in early 2026 and access to xAI’s massive Colossus supercomputer, SpaceX is positioning itself at the forefront of the AI arms race, blending strategic investment with technological integration.

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