CME Group Targets the AI Infrastructure Market With Plans for the World's First Compute Futures Contracts

Derivatives marketplace CME Group and GPU market intelligence firm Silicon Data have announced plans to launch what they describe as the first-of-its-kind compute futures market, subject to regulatory approval.

The partnership, revealed on 12 May 2026, will enable traders, financial institutions, AI developers and cloud-service providers to hedge price risk and manage volatility in the compute market, which the two firms characterise as a multi-trillion-dollar asset class in its own right.

Silicon Data, which is backed by global trading firm DRW, will supply the underlying index data. The firm operates what it describes as the world's first daily GPU benchmark for on-demand rental rates, providing standardised reference pricing across a market that has historically been fragmented and opaque.

Compute framed as the new commodity frontier

CME Group's chairman and chief executive Terry Duffy positioned compute as a foundational asset for the modern economy, drawing a direct parallel with oil.

"As the backbone of the digital economy, compute is the new oil of the 21st century. Every AI model trained, every transaction cleared, and every byte of data processed runs on compute, which is becoming a fast-emerging asset class in its own right. Investors need a trusted futures market to provide transparency, liquidity and effective risk management."

Terry Duffy
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, CME Group

Carmen Li, chief executive of Silicon Data, highlighted the structural problem the new market is intended to solve. GPU pricing currently varies significantly across providers, regions and contract structures, with no standardised reference point for market participants.

"Compute markets today are still highly fragmented, with pricing that can vary dramatically across providers, regions and contract structures. Partnering with CME Group brings the scale, market structure and credibility needed to help transform compute from an opaque operational cost into a more mature and risk-manageable financial market."

Carmen Li
Chief Executive Officer, Silicon Data

Don Wilson, founder and chief executive of DRW, who has long advocated for a compute hedging vehicle, pointed to the structural gap the futures market will fill.

"It has been clear to me for some time that compute will become the largest commodity in the world. The exponential growth in spending on data centres as we move towards that reality has been hampered by the lack of a hedging vehicle. The launch of a compute futures market is an important solution to that problem."

Don Wilson
Founder and Chief Executive Officer, DRW

What the futures market will cover

The new contracts will be based on Silicon Data's GPU benchmark indices, offering a standardised pricing reference for on-demand compute rental rates. CME Group will provide the exchange infrastructure, clearing and market structure. The firms have not yet confirmed a specific launch date beyond "later this year," pending regulatory review.

For institutional participants across financial services, AI infrastructure and cloud provision, the development marks a meaningful step towards treating compute capacity as a tradeable, hedgeable commodity rather than a pure operational expense.

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