The rapid expansion of artificial intelligence is creating demand for a new financial market centred on one of the technology’s most critical resources: computing power.
AI capital expenditure reached an estimated $765 billion in 2026, surpassing the $681 billion spent by the oil and gas industry, according to the report. With AI investment expected to nearly double by 2031, access to computing capacity is emerging as a strategic economic resource.
Against this backdrop, CME Group, one of the world’s leading derivatives marketplaces, and Silicon Data, a company focused on GPU market intelligence and benchmarking, have announced plans to launch compute futures contracts on October 5, 2026, subject to regulatory approval.
The proposed contracts would allow market participants to trade futures linked to computing capacity, potentially giving businesses a new way to manage the cost and availability of the infrastructure required to run AI models.
BlackRock CEO Larry Fink has previously argued that compute could develop into a new asset class, reflecting the growing importance of computing power in the global economy.
The move comes as technology companies, data-centre operators and AI developers compete for increasingly scarce GPU capacity. Unlike traditional commodities such as oil, compute is a rapidly evolving resource whose availability depends on semiconductor supply, data-centre infrastructure, electricity and advances in chip technology.
A futures market could provide greater price transparency and allow companies to hedge against fluctuations in compute costs. It could also give investors a new avenue to gain exposure to the expanding AI infrastructure economy.
The potential market is significant. Morgan Stanley estimates that the broader diffusion of AI across the global economy could create an economic opportunity worth $40 trillion.
If compute becomes a widely traded financial asset, the development could mark another step in the evolution of AI—from a technology sector into a major financial and industrial market.
