Musk says H100 rental prices are higher than factory prices, and payback period may shrink to 6 months next year

On October 21, 2026, in his latest interview, Musk offered a judgment: the rental price of Nvidia's H100 is now more expensive than when it was brand new from the factory, and he stated that it is not entirely impossible for the payback period of computing hardware to shorten to 6 months next year. He explained that SpaceX only signs short-term contracts when renting out computing power, because the useful intelligence produced per watt of electricity rises year by year, and short-term contracts are renewed at a higher price per watt upon expiration. He also mentioned that the team wanted to outsource part of its inference computing power, and after asking around about GB300, GB200, Google TPU, and Amazon Trainium, none were available; even H100s in overseas data centers had all been rented out. The related report also reminded that Musk is both a lessor of computing power and carries the valuation narrative of Starship and space computing infrastructure, and his original words also emphasized that a 6-month payback is not certain to happen. Currently, this judgment has no subsequent factual developments.

AI-generated from public reports

1. Oct 21· 1 reports

   Musk says H100 rental price is higher than factory price, payback period may shrink to 6 months next year

   Source:Ayi AI Notes