Microsoft is in talks to rent server infrastructure powered by its proprietary AI chips to Anthropic, according to The Information. The discussions are at an early stage and may not result in an agreement.

If completed, the deal would represent an important expansion of Microsoft’s push into custom AI hardware as cloud providers compete to supply alternatives to Nvidia chips, which remain constrained in supply and expensive amid rising AI demand. It would also place Microsoft alongside Alphabet and Amazon in monetizing internally developed accelerators for external customers.

Microsoft has been investing heavily in its Maia chip family, including the Maia 200 accelerator announced in January and built by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co on a 3-nanometer process.

The chip is designed with high-bandwidth memory and increased SRAM to improve performance in large-scale AI inference workloads, and reflects Microsoft’s strategy to reduce dependency on third-party chip suppliers while expanding its AI infrastructure offerings.