Jim Chanos Questions Space Data Center Hype
Written by Emily J. Thompson, Senior Investment Analyst
Updated: 4d ago
0mins
Should l Buy CRWV?
Source: Benzinga
- Skepticism on Space Centers: Renowned short-seller Jim Chanos criticized the narrative surrounding 'space data centers,' suggesting that if orbital computing is the future, the current multi-billion dollar terrestrial infrastructure build-out is fundamentally doomed, indicating a pessimistic outlook on the industry's future.
- Terminal Shorts on Ground Investments: Chanos questions whether hyperscalers and former Bitcoin miners racing to build land-based capacity are effectively 'terminal shorts,' reflecting his skepticism about their valuations and future prospects in a potentially obsolete market.
- Launch Capacity Bottleneck: At the Cisco AI Summit, Garman highlighted that server racks weigh around 1,000 pounds, and the cost of launching such payloads is currently massive, indicating that there aren't enough rockets to launch a million satellites, which underscores the practical challenges facing the space data center concept.
- Earth vs. Space Comparison: Chanos' comments sarcastically reflect on the valuation of companies heavily investing in terrestrial hardware, suggesting that until the concept of space data centers matures, ground infrastructure will remain critical, showcasing a profound reflection on the current state of the industry.
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Analyst Views on CRWV
Wall Street analysts forecast CRWV stock price to rise over the next 12 months. According to Wall Street analysts, the average 1-year price target for CRWV is 123.23 USD with a low forecast of 68.00 USD and a high forecast of 180.00 USD. However, analyst price targets are subjective and often lag stock prices, so investors should focus on the objective reasons behind analyst rating changes, which better reflect the company's fundamentals.
25 Analyst Rating
12 Buy
13 Hold
0 Sell
Moderate Buy
Current: 74.650
Low
68.00
Averages
123.23
High
180.00
Current: 74.650
Low
68.00
Averages
123.23
High
180.00
About CRWV
CoreWeave, Inc. is a cloud infrastructure technology company. The Company offers the CoreWeave Cloud Platform, which consists of software and cloud services that deliver the automation and efficiency needed to manage complex artificial intelligence (AI) infrastructure. Its CoreWeave Cloud Platform is an integrated solution that is purpose-built for running AI workloads such as model training and inference. Its solutions include infrastructure services, managed software services, and application software services. Its Infrastructure Services provide its customers with access to advanced graphics processing unit (GPU) and central processing unit (CPU) compute, highly performant networking, and storage. Its Managed Software Services include CKS, a flexible virtual private cloud and a bare metal service that runs kubernetes directly on high-performance servers. Its Application Software Services build on top of its infrastructure and managed software services, integrating additional tools.
About the author

Emily J. Thompson
Emily J. Thompson, a Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) with 12 years in investment research, graduated with honors from the Wharton School. Specializing in industrial and technology stocks, she provides in-depth analysis for Intellectia’s earnings and market brief reports.
- Campaign Launch: CoreWeave debuted its first integrated brand campaign, “Ready for Anything, Ready for AI,” during the Winter Olympics, featuring Chance the Rapper, which showcases its core position as the essential AI cloud aimed at attracting investors to push the boundaries of AI innovation.
- Clear Market Positioning: The campaign highlights CoreWeave's unique role in the AI industry as it transitions from experimentation to large-scale production, demonstrating how its purpose-built technology supports the realization of big ideas, thereby enhancing the company's competitiveness in the rapidly growing AI market.
- Strategic Vision Articulated: CoreWeave's CMO, Jean English, stated that the campaign reflects a deep understanding of innovators' needs, emphasizing the importance of performance, scale, and durability in AI cloud solutions, aiming to lay the groundwork for future AI developments.
- Rapid Growth Momentum: As CoreWeave continues to expand its platform organically and through acquisitions of companies like Weights & Biases, OpenPipe, and Monolith, it establishes a unified brand narrative that further solidifies its leadership position in the AI sector.
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- Stock Surge: Applied Digital's stock price surged by 25.50% after pivoting to AI infrastructure, rising from $7.10 to $34.95, indicating strong market recognition of its new strategy and reflecting investor confidence in AI growth potential.
- Revenue Explosion: The company's revenue skyrocketed from $55 million to $264 million over the last four reported quarters, demonstrating robust market demand in the AI data center sector, with commitments for up to $16 billion in revenue over the next 15 years, showcasing significant business expansion potential.
- Debt Risk: Despite impressive revenue growth, Applied Digital's debt soared from $42 million in Q1 2024 to nearly $2.6 billion, with most of it carrying a high interest rate of 9.25%, which could threaten the company's financial health, especially as profitability remains unachieved.
- Customer Concentration Risk: Applied Digital's heavy reliance on CoreWeave, which accounts for the majority of its future lease income, poses a significant risk, particularly as CoreWeave itself faces profitability and debt challenges, potentially exposing Applied Digital to substantial risks during market fluctuations.
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- Debt Surge: Applied Digital's debt skyrocketed from $44 million to $2.6 billion in under two years, resulting in a debt-to-equity ratio exceeding 125%, which significantly increases the cost and risk of future financing for the company.
- Customer Dependency Risk: The company's high-performance computing (HPC) business relies almost entirely on a single customer, CoreWeave, which poses a major risk as future revenue is heavily dependent on this relationship, leaving little room for negotiation.
- Construction Deadline Pressure: If Applied Digital fails to meet construction deadlines, CoreWeave can terminate the lease penalty-free, risking the loss of $11 billion in future revenue, which exacerbates the financial strain on the company.
- Lack of Profitability: Despite strong market demand for AI infrastructure, Applied Digital reported a loss of $125 million over the past 12 months, indicating insufficient operational capacity under high debt levels, prompting investors to carefully assess its future profitability potential.
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- Market Volatility: This week saw significant volatility in the stock market, particularly in tech stocks, with CoreWeave (CRWV) shares plunging 20% at one point but ending the week down only 3.4%, reflecting mixed investor sentiment regarding AI spending.
- AI Investment Expectations: The five largest hyperscalers are projecting $600 billion in AI capital spending for 2026, which theoretically benefits CoreWeave; however, investor fears of an AI bubble led to early-week sell-offs, impacting market sentiment.
- Nvidia's Confidence: Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang stated in a CNBC interview that the AI capital expenditures are appropriate and sustainable, predicting rising cash flows for major companies, which helped spread confidence in the market and aided CoreWeave's stock recovery.
- Investor Sentiment: Despite divergent views on AI spending, Huang's optimistic outlook provided confidence for CoreWeave, indicating that investments in the AI sector still hold potential long-term value.
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- Lawsuit Background: Bleichmar Fonti & Auld LLP has filed a class action lawsuit against CoreWeave and its executives for securities fraud, reflecting significant investor concerns regarding the company's transparency following substantial stock declines.
- Stock Price Plunge: CoreWeave's stock dropped 6% on October 30, 2025, from $139.93 to $131.06 after the merger agreement was not approved, indicating a lack of market confidence in its future prospects.
- Guidance Downgrade: On November 10, 2025, CoreWeave lowered its revenue and operating income guidance due to delays from a third-party data center developer, causing a 16% drop in stock price from $105.61 to $88.39, highlighting deficiencies in its operational capabilities.
- Delay Impact: On December 15, 2025, reports surfaced about construction delays at CoreWeave's data center in Texas, leading to a further 3% decline in stock price from $72.35 to $69.50, exacerbating investor skepticism about the company's management effectiveness.
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- Lawsuit Background: Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP has announced a securities fraud class action lawsuit against CoreWeave, Inc. for investors who purchased shares between March 28, 2025, and December 15, 2025, with a deadline to seek lead plaintiff status by March 13, 2026.
- Key Allegations: The lawsuit alleges that CoreWeave overstated its ability to meet customer demand and failed to adequately disclose its reliance on a single third-party data center, creating significant operational and delivery risks that impacted revenue expectations for investors.
- Investor Actions: Affected investors can contact Kessler Topaz Meltzer & Check, LLP for recovery options or choose to take no action and remain an absent class member in the lawsuit.
- Lead Plaintiff Process: Investors may seek to be appointed as lead plaintiffs before the deadline, representing all class members in directing the litigation and selecting appropriate legal counsel to maximize their interests.
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