Reflection AI Signs $6.3B SpaceX Compute Deal as Open-source Model Strategy Gains Momentum After Anthropic Ban

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Reflection AI has agreed to pay $150 million per month to SpaceX for access to Nvidia GB300 AI chips at the Colossus 2 data center near Memphis, Tennessee, in a deal worth up to $6.3 billion running from July 2026 through 2029. The agreement makes Reflection the third major AI lab to tap SpaceX’s compute infrastructure, following Anthropic’s $1.25 billion monthly contract and Google’s $920 million monthly deal, both running on similar terms.

Founded in 2024 by two former Google DeepMind researchers, Reflection has positioned itself as an open-weight alternative to closed frontier labs such as Anthropic and OpenAI. The compute deal is its first and, the company said, one of the largest announced open AI infrastructure commitments to date. Reflection’s open-source strategy has gained renewed relevance following the U.S. government’s ban on Anthropic’s Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models, an episode that prompted governments and enterprises to reassess the risks of depending exclusively on closed AI systems.

The Colossus 2 facility was originally built by xAI, Elon Musk’s AI company now absorbed into SpaceX, for its own model development. As xAI’s internal compute needs have evolved, SpaceX has increasingly monetised its substantial Nvidia chip holdings by leasing capacity to leading AI laboratories. Either party may exit the Reflection contract with 90 days’ notice after the first three months.

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