Boom Supersonic secures $300M to produce natural-gas turbines for Crusoe’s data centers

Boom Supersonic announced Tuesday that it plans to sell a stationary version of its turbine engine, with data-center startup Crusoe set to be its first customer.

Crusoe has agreed to purchase 29 of Boom’s 42-megawatt turbines for $1.25 billion, enough to supply 1.21 gigawatts of power to its data centers. Boom said it will share more information about a new turbine factory next year, with initial deliveries slated for 2027.

To bring its new stationary turbine — called Superpower — to market, Boom raised $300 million in a round led by Darsana Capital Partners, with participation from Altimeter Capital, Ark Invest, Bessemer Venture Partners, Robinhood Ventures, and Y Combinator.

Boom says Superpower shares about 80% of its components with Symphony, the turbine designed for its aircraft. Earlier this year, the company’s XB-1 demonstrator became the first privately developed civil aircraft to break the sound barrier.

Superpower targets 39% efficiency, in line with rival simple-cycle turbines. Combined-cycle systems can surpass 60% efficiency by capturing exhaust heat.

Like other aeroderivative generators, Superpower will ship in a standard container, leaving developers such as Crusoe responsible for installing gas and electrical connections as well as emissions controls.

Initial Superpower units will be produced in Boom’s current facilities while it builds a larger plant. The company aims to manufacture 1 gigawatt of turbine capacity in 2028, ramping to 2 gigawatts in 2029 and 4 gigawatts in 2030 — a notable expansion of supply if achieved.

Boom still faces major hurdles. Should it succeed, commercial supersonic flights may arrive sooner than the company anticipated. But scaling complex hardware is notoriously difficult, and many startups stumble in the “valley of death” between prototypes and full-scale production.