Updated version 3 - As demand for artificial intelligence remains strong, CoreWeave plans to achieve profitability by 2028

Supplemented details from the earnings call

Reuters, November 10 - CoreWeave (CRWV.O) executives said on Tuesday the company expects to achieve adjusted profitability in the first half of 2028. The AI cloud services company sought to reassure investors that strong demand and customer commitments can support its debt-driven expansion.

The company's shares, backed by Nvidia, rose about 5% in volatile after-hours trading.

Over the past month, CoreWeave shares have plunged by more than 40%, after the company became a focal point for mounting concerns about an AI bubble. Investors are worried about massive borrowing to build data centers in a rising interest rate environment, and about how quickly these large investments will pay off.

This dramatic sell-off has also triggered a broader crisis of confidence in the artificial intelligence sector, while the overwhelming victory of Democrats in the US midterm elections has further intensified this sentiment, fueling market expectations of stricter regulations on data center construction.

Earlier in the day, AI giant Anthropic launched its roadshow (link), targeting a stock sale valuation below previous expectations.

According to data compiled by London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG), CoreWeave has never been profitable, and as of the end of September, its total debt stood at about $46.9 billion.

On Tuesday, CoreWeave CEO Mike Intrator sought to ease some worries by revealing that the AI cloud company has $9 billion in customer prepayments and deposits expected to flow in over the next three months.

“Customer contracts come first, investments second. Because CoreWeave's investments are tied to committed demand, lenders have tangible collateral for loans, and customers typically help fund the expansion projects,” he said in a statement.

The company said it would not enter the unsecured debt market at current yield levels and has no need to, instead relying on cash flow from existing customer commitments to pay off outstanding debt and for additional borrowing needed to fulfill these contracts.

As of the end of September, CoreWeave’s signed revenue backlog was $132.5 billion, up from $104 billion at the end of June.

Meanwhile, its quarterly capital expenditure surged from $9.4 billion in the previous quarter to $14.5 billion.

Recent earnings reports from hyperscale cloud service providers have also suggested delays in data center projects and a slowing pace of spending. CoreWeave's customer list features major names such as Microsoft MSFT.O, Meta META.O, OpenAI, and Anthropic.

CoreWeave now expects 2026 revenue to be between $13 billion and $13.3 billion, up from a prior estimate of $12.4 billion to $13.2 billion.

The company also raised the lower end of its annual spending target by $2 billion, now expecting spending to be between $37 billion and $39 billion.

According to LSEG data, CoreWeave’s third-quarter revenue soared nearly 170% to $3.66 billion, beating expectations of $3.55 billion; loss per share was 95 cents, less than the expected $1.16.

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