SpaceX is seeking to raise $40 billion in debt, led by Apollo Global Management, to fund a multi-year purchase of Nvidia AI chips, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday.

The financing splits into roughly $10 billion in bank loans and $30 billion in investment-grade notes, with bond manager Pimco among lenders in talks, the FT said, citing people familiar with the transaction. The deal is targeted to close in 2027.

What's in the deal?

• Total raise: $40 billion
• Bank loan tranche: ~$10 billion
• Investment-grade bond tranche: ~$30 billion
• Lead arranger: Apollo Global Management
• Among lenders in talks: Pimco
• Targeted close: 2027

Apollo, Pimco, Nvidia and SpaceX declined to comment or did not immediately respond to requests for comment, Reuters reported.

Where do the chips go?

The order feeds SpaceX's AI compute operations. SpaceX absorbed Elon Musk's xAI before going public in June in an initial public offering worth about $86 billion. It runs the Grok AI model through its Colossus data centers. Musk has said SpaceX will use Nvidia hardware exclusively at those facilities, and said last month that the Colossus 2 site could more than double its Nvidia chip count by December.

SpaceX also rents Colossus capacity to other AI developers, chiefly Anthropic and Alphabet's Google, the FT reported.

How did the market react?

SpaceX shares fell about 1% in extended trading after the story surfaced. Nvidia gained roughly 0.5%. The muted moves suggest much of the strategic value of the order was already priced in.

Why is a chip order funded with bonds?

The deal puts a number on how debt-financed the AI buildout has become. Morgan Stanley estimates AI infrastructure will require $1.5 trillion in external financing by 2028. Nvidia stepped into the financing lane itself in August, joining Apollo, BlackRock, Blackstone, Brookfield, Goldman Sachs and KKR on platforms intended to mobilize more than $500 billion for AI infrastructure.

A debt-funded, exclusive-Nvidia order supports the demand outlook for Nvidia's AI accelerator family. A single $30 billion investment-grade deal from one technology borrower also becomes a credit-market test: how much more AI-linked paper can bond investors absorb before crowding out?

What does it mean for chip supply?

The chips earmarked for Colossus pull from Nvidia's AI accelerator pipeline through 2027. SpaceX's exclusive commitment removes those data centers as an addressable market for any competing AI silicon vendor and reinforces Nvidia's grip on high-end AI training capacity.

Where does this go next?

Goldman Sachs has cited heavy AI-driven corporate issuance as one force behind the recent climb in US Treasury yields. Morgan Stanley separately warned of rising caution among lenders. Pricing and take-up of the $30 billion bond tranche, and the chip delivery cadence disclosed when the financing closes, will show whether $40 billion sets the template for AI infrastructure funding or becomes the deal that exposes the bond market's appetite ceiling.