Nvidia-backed CoreWeave targets 2028 profitability as AI demand surges

CoreWeave, an AI cloud company backed by Nvidia, announced on November 10 that it aims to achieve profitability on an adjusted basis by the first half of 2028. The company expects strong demand and customer commitments to support its debt-driven expansion. CoreWeave's shares rose by 5% in extended trading after it also stated that it does not anticipate any significant risks to its data center development due to potential changes in the regulatory landscape following the Democratic victory in the US midterms.

The company's shares have experienced a drastic decline of over 40% in the past month, as investors grew concerned about heavy borrowing for data center construction amidst rising interest rates and the slow return on massive investments. CoreWeave also decided not to tap unsecured debt markets due to current yields and had sufficient cash flow from customer commitments to repay existing debt and additional borrowing for contract fulfillment.

CEO Mike Intrator disclosed that the company held approximately US$46.9 billion in total debt as of September and expected to raise less than US$5 billion in additional capital through 2027. He emphasized that customer contracts come first, and investments follow, as customers help fund data center build-out. CoreWeave's revenue backlog reached US$132.5 billion at the end of September, up from US$104 billion at the end of June.

Meanwhile, quarterly capital spending surged to US$14.5 billion from US$9.4 billion in the previous quarter, necessary to bring capacity online to meet the surging demand.

Investors have been concerned about tech companies' data center expansion plans amid a potentially tougher regulatory environment following the Democratic win in the midterm elections. Public backlash has already increased in the US due to data centers' potential impact on local resources such as water and power. CoreWeave's CEO, however, believes that increased scrutiny will not require material changes in how the company builds its infrastructure, as it has been working diligently towards this goal for a year and a half.