SpaceX Is Spending $2.8 Billion to Buy Gas Turbines for Its AI Data Centers

Key points

• Elon Musk’s SpaceX committed to spending over $2.8 billion in recent months to buy gas turbines to power data centers for its artificial intelligence unit, the company revealed in a regulatory filing on Wednesday.
• The relatively large investment shows that Musk is continuing to double down on gas turbines, even after SpaceX’s use of them prompted public complaints, a lawsuit, and regulatory inquiries into whether the company may be polluting the air with carbon emissions and dodging environmental requirements.
• A shortage of electricity is the leading constraint on an otherwise roaring data center boom happening across the US.
• Portable gas turbines—generators that can run without drawing power from the grid—have been viewed as quick and temporary solutions until more robust sources of energy come online.
• In addition to launching rockets and selling satellite internet, SpaceX also owns Musk’s xAI unit, which develops Grok.