Akamai Technologies shares rally on $11.6 billion Anthropic deal
- Akamai Technologies signed a seven-year cloud services agreement with Anthropic valued at $11.6 billion.
- Akamai shares rose 21% premarket after the announcement, while brokerages raised price targets on the stock.
- The company said the agreement will require about $5.5 billion in initial capital spending commitments and increase 2026 capex by around $1.7 billion.
Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ:AKAM) shares rose 21% premarket after the company signed an $11.6 billion, seven-year cloud services agreement with AI company Anthropic, with the deal including a warrant that could allow Anthropic to acquire a stake of up to 5% in Akamai.
The agreement expands Akamai’s cloud infrastructure business as demand for computing capacity from artificial intelligence companies increases, following more than $2.8 billion in multi-year cloud infrastructure commitments announced across its customer base earlier in 2026.
The company said the initial commitment will require approximately $5.5 billion in capital expenditures, including an estimated $1.7 billion increase to its 2026 capital spending, while the agreement includes potential expansion of the relationship by up to an additional $9 billion.
Akamai operates cloud infrastructure, cybersecurity, and content delivery services, with the company expanding its cloud business as enterprises increase their use of artificial intelligence and distributed computing resources.
The company has continued to invest in cloud infrastructure services through customer agreements and capacity expansion, with the Anthropic contract adding another large-scale commitment to its cloud strategy.
