SpaceX spends $329M on Tesla Megapacks as AI data center costs surge

SpaceX's first-half 2026 spending on Tesla Megapacks reached $329 million, according to a quarterly SEC filing. Second-quarter purchases alone were $295 million, a sharp jump from $34 million in Q1, and the six-month total already represents about 65% of the $506 million SpaceX recorded for Megapacks in all of 2025. The filing also shows AI-related research and development costs increased by $2.53 billion year-over-year, with $1.74 billion attributed to infrastructure and cloud computing expenses tied to expanding data centers.

The spending spree highlights a critical but often overlooked part of AI infrastructure: power stability. AI data centers draw massive, fluctuating electrical loads, and Megapacks offer fast-response battery storage to smooth short-term spikes and outages. Critics note the batteries don't generate electricity on their own — they must be charged from grid, renewables, or on-site generation. SpaceX, which acquired xAI in February, also bought mobile power provider APR Energy and is pursuing gas-fired power for Mississippi data centers. Musk's dual leadership at both SpaceX and Tesla makes these related-party transactions, but the figures underscore how quickly power infrastructure costs are becoming as central to AI expansion as chips themselves.