CoreWeave Restarts Core Scientific Acquisition Talks Stock Surges 71%

CoreWeave, an AI cloud infrastructure provider backed by Nvidia and serving clients like Microsoft and OpenAI, has restarted negotiations to acquire Core Scientific, a Bitcoin miner. This renewed interest comes nearly a year after Core Scientific's board rejected CoreWeave's initial offer of $5.75 per share, totaling $1 billion, deeming it significantly undervaluing the company. The terms of the latest negotiations remain undisclosed, but the market responded positively, with Core Scientific's stock surging, pushing its valuation close to $4 billion.

The renewed pursuit by CoreWeave appears to be driven by the need to secure the infrastructure necessary to compete in the AI race. CoreWeave, which recently completed a $1.5 billion IPO, is engaged in a fierce competition for computing power with rivals like Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud. Unlike these giants, CoreWeave does not own extensive data center networks. This is where Core Scientific's assets become valuable. Core Scientific's facilities, primarily located near abundant and cheap power sources, are already equipped for high-density computing, making them ideal for AI workloads.

Core Scientific's infrastructure is not just about raw computing power; it includes valuable energy infrastructure. The existing 200-megawatt deal between the two companies, signed last year, was just the beginning. Owning Core Scientific outright would give CoreWeave direct control over power contracts, bypassing the current bottleneck in data center capacity that is hindering AI expansion.

For Core Scientific, the timing of this potential acquisition is strategic. The company emerged from bankruptcy in early 2024 with a leaner operation and a stronger balance sheet. However, Bitcoin's halving in April reduced mining rewards, squeezing margins across the industry. While some miners are selling off assets or pivoting to AI hosting, Core Scientific's management has held out for a bigger play. Their first-quarter profit of $580 million, driven by Bitcoin's price rebound and efficient operations, demonstrated that they are no longer a distressed asset but a strategic one.

Whether the deal closes or collapses, the return of CoreWeave to the negotiating table highlights a broader realignment in digital infrastructure. The boundary between Bitcoin mining and AI compute is thinning, not because the technologies are converging, but because they share the same scarce foundation: power. In this context, Core Scientific's real value may not be its mining rigs but the grid connections beneath them.

CoreWeave and Core Scientific have a long-standing partnership, with Core Scientific providing hosting capacity through 12-year contracts. A potential merger would create a powerful entity in both cryptocurrency mining and AI infrastructure. Core Scientific's position as one of North America's largest digital infrastructure operators for Bitcoin mining and high-performance computing makes it an attractive acquisition target, especially given the industry's increasing focus on AI capabilities.

The broader market context shows strong momentum in the cryptocurrency sector, with Bitcoin maintaining levels above $107,000 and the total crypto market capitalization reaching $3.31 trillion. This environment, combined with increasing institutional adoption and the evolution of blockchain technology in traditional finance, provides a favorable backdrop for the potential merger. The consolidation between these two companies would represent a significant development in the convergence of the cryptocurrency mining and AI infrastructure sectors, potentially creating a more resilient and diversified entity capable of capitalizing on both markets.