As AI infrastructure companies scramble to obtain the energy and data center capacity required to support soaring demand, CoreWeave (CRWV.O), opens new tab, announced Monday that it will purchase cryptocurrency miner Core Scientific (CORZ.O), opens new tab in an all-stock deal valued at roughly $9 billion.
AI firms looking to expand their processing infrastructure have made their sights set on the energy-intensive websites and power contracts used by Bitcoin miners, which were constructed during the cryptocurrency boom.
According to CoreWeave, the agreement will aid in the immediate removal of more than $10 billion in future lease overhead that will need to be paid for current contractual locations over the course of the following 12 years.
Core Scientific is valued at $20.40 per share in the offer, which is almost 66% more than the stock’s closing price prior to rumors of acquisition negotiations surfacing in late June. While Nvidia (NVDA.O), which recently opened a new tab-backed CoreWeave, saw a 4.5% decline in early trading, Core Scientific’s shares plunged 22%.
For every share they own, Core Scientific owners will receive 0.1235 newly issued CoreWeave shares. “This acquisition accelerates our strategy to deploy AI and HPC (high-performance computing) workloads at scale,” stated Michael Intrator, CEO of CoreWeave.
The ultimate price will be decided after the sale closes, which is anticipated to happen in the fourth quarter. “CoreWeave gets full control of Core Scientific’s entire 1.3 GW power contracted and future pipeline,” Chhugani stated.
CoreWeave began as an Ethereum-focused cryptocurrency miner in 2017 and switched to artificial intelligence a few years later. After Ethereum’s 2022 update, “The Merge,” reduced miner incentives, it shut down its mining operations.
According to its IPO prospectus, CoreWeave’s revenue has increased at a dizzying rate, more than doubling in the past year.
The transaction also represents a comeback for Core Scientific, which declared bankruptcy in late 2022 as a result of a precipitous decline in bitcoin prices and skyrocketing energy expenses.
