Surges More Than 26% in a Single Day. Akamai Wins $1.8 Billion AI Deal From Anthropic

TradingKey - According to a Reuters report on May 8, AI startup Anthropic has signed a $1.8 billion contract with Akamai Technologies ( AKAM ). This deal represents the largest single contract in Akamai's history, and the news quickly ignited enthusiasm in capital markets. By the close of U.S. markets on Friday, Akamai's stock surged 26.58% in a single day to $147.71, hitting an intraday high of $149.76. Its current market capitalization stands at $21.475 billion, and the cumulative stock price gain over the past 12 months has expanded to 65%.

Akamai is a content delivery network (CDN) and cloud service provider, and is one of the world's largest distributed computing platforms, handling 15-30% of global web traffic. The company's clients include Apple ( AAPL ), Facebook, Microsoft ( MSFT ), and Twitter.

[Source: Google Finance]

This order validates Akamai's successful transformation from a traditional CDN (Content Delivery Network) provider to a distributed AI cloud service provider. The company's first-quarter earnings report showed that total revenue for the period grew 6% year-over-year, surpassing the $1 billion mark. Among its segments, cloud infrastructure services have become the fastest-growing business unit, with Q1 revenue jumping 40% year-over-year to $95 million.

If the order is successfully implemented, it will contribute an annual average of $257 million in additional revenue to Akamai over the seven-year cooperation period, representing 100% growth relative to the company's existing cloud infrastructure service revenue.

Prior to this, Anthropic had established computing power partnerships with Google ( GOOGL ), Amazon ( AMZN ), and SpaceX, with a strategic focus on large model training and core inference. The core objective of this partnership with Akamai is to rent its global distributed cloud resources to support edge inference, low-latency interaction, and the large-scale deployment of AI models, effectively addressing Anthropic's capability gaps on the edge.

In a landscape where traditional cloud giants like Amazon, Google, and Microsoft hold the dominant share of the AI computing market, Akamai's ability to break through and secure a massive order from a leading AI vendor lies in its differentiated edge computing capabilities, which precisely meet the emerging demands of the AI industry.

Compared to the centralized hyperscale data centers of traditional cloud providers, Akamai's edge network can compress inference response times to milliseconds, making it a perfect fit for low-latency AI scenarios such as AI agents, real-time dialogue, and cloud gaming. Additionally, the company disclosed that its distributed architecture can reduce AI inference costs by up to 86% compared to traditional hyperscale infrastructure.

In an interview with CNBC, Akamai Chief Technology Officer Robert Blumofe stated that the company has been expanding its cloud infrastructure business to meet growing AI workload demands and aims to establish its own industry brand and market position alongside leading global AI model developers like OpenAI and Anthropic.

He noted that the company operates the world's most widely distributed platform, with infrastructure spanning 4,300 nodes across 700 cities in 130 countries and regions. Previously used for content delivery and cyberattack defense, this network is now being empowered by artificial intelligence, allowing AI agents and applications to be deployed closer to users, significantly improving data response speeds and user experience.

Following the announcement of the order, several Wall Street investment banks immediately updated their ratings for Akamai, with overall price targets ranging between $135 and $195. KeyBanc analyst Jackson Ader raised the company's target by 62.50% to $195 while maintaining a Buy rating. Evercore analyst Peter Levine maintained a Buy rating and raised the price target from $130 to $165, while TD Cowen analyst Michael Elias maintained a Hold rating and raised the price target from $104 to $135.