Crusoe abandons $1.25B plan to use Boom turbines at AI data centers
Crusoe, a Denver-based AI data center operator that raised $3.9 billion, has dropped a planned $1.25 billion order for 29 of Boom Supersonic’s 42-megawatt Superpower turbines. Boom CEO Blake Scholl said the turbine launch partnership was shelved because turbines are no longer part of Crusoe’s near-term primary power mix at its Abilene and other sites.
Why It Matters
The collapsed deal removes a high-profile launch customer for Boom’s stationary gas-turbine business, which the company intended to scale to help fund its supersonic jet program. It also highlights shifting energy strategies among large AI data-center builders as they mix grid, renewables and on-site generation.
Key Facts
- Crusoe funding: $3.9 billion recent raise
- Original deal value: $1.25 billion
- Number and size of turbines ordered: 29 Superpower turbines, 42 MW each
- Planned initial delivery year: 2027
- Boom near-term delivery target: About 250 MW of Superpowers next year
Crusoe, the Denver firm that transitioned from field bitcoin mining to building large AI data centers, has ended a planned purchase of Boom Supersonic’s new stationary gas turbines. The original agreement had Crusoe committed to spending $1.25 billion for 29 of Boom’s 42-megawatt Superpower units, with initial deliveries expected to start in 2027.
Boom launched the Superpower turbine business last year as an offshoot of the engine it is developing for its Overture supersonic jet; the company says about 80% of Superpower parts are shared with the jet engine, Symphony. Boom raised $300 million in the prior year largely to commercialize the stationary power product and had aimed to use profits from that business to support its aircraft program.
In a post on X, Boom CEO Blake Scholl said the two companies would not move forward with the launch partnership because turbines are no longer part of Crusoe’s near-term primary power mix at Abilene and other sites. Scholl added that Boom still has other customers in its pipeline and that the company expects to deliver roughly 250 megawatts of Superpower capacity next year and target 1 gigawatt in 2028.
Crusoe confirmed to TechCrunch that it is no longer working with Boom. A company spokesperson described Crusoe’s approach as selecting energy solutions that fit each campus as needs evolve, and noted that its portfolio includes turbines as well as wind, solar, batteries and grid power. Crusoe’s initial 1.2-gigawatt data center in Abilene — built for Oracle and OpenAI — is grid-powered with a gas-turbine plant used for backup, and the company is also building a 900-megawatt Abilene site for Microsoft that will use on-site gas turbines.
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