Nyse’s owner plans its own futures market for computing power

Intercontinental Exchange Inc., owner of the New York Stock Exchange, is adding futures contracts for computing power as the market for tracking the price of what’s driving AI technology continues to develop.
The exchange operator is teaming with financial-infrastructure firm Ornn and will use its index products that track graphics processing unit, or GPU, computing costs to underpin its new futures contracts, the companies said on Tuesday. The plans are subject to regulatory approval.

“As AI has rapidly moved from research labs and academic campuses to becoming one of the most important drivers for the global economy, the market for compute has evolved just as quickly and is in desperate need of a globally accepted pricing mechanism and risk management tool,” Trabue Bland, senior vice president of futures markets at ICE, said in a statement.


Computing power, also known as compute, has been in high demand as AI companies use it to power their systems. But as the cost of running AI technology rises, users have had little to no way to hedge against price swings. Futures contracts give investors the ability to bet on the value of a commodity, such as oil or metals, on a certain date. Soon, they could do the same with compute costs.

ICE’s move signals that more of the institutional marketplace is embracing compute as a tradable asset. Chicago-based CME Group Inc., which announced its own plans for compute futures contracts last week, will be another venue where futures contracts can change hands and help make costs more transparent.

Read More: CME to Create Futures Market for Computing Power Backing AI

ICE said its futures contracts will be US dollar-denominated and settle in cash, rather than physical delivery. The futures contracts will reference Ornn’s indexes, which cover a variety of major GPU types, the firms said.

“Compute has grown into a trillion-dollar market, yet it still lacks the pricing and risk-transfer infrastructure that every other major commodity relies on,” Kush Bavaria, co-founder and chief executive officer of Ornn, said in the statement.