CoreWeave CEO responds to data center delays as stock plunges. Core Scientific shares fall

CoreWeave experienced a notable decline in its stock, falling 13% on Tuesday, as CEO Mike Intrator responded to issues regarding delays from a third-party data center provider. During an appearance on CNBC's "Squawk on the Street," Intrator stated, "Every single part of this quarter went exactly as we planned, except for one delay at a singular data center." He clarified that the situation involves a singular data center provider rather than a single facility, as CNBC's Jim Cramer highlighted delays at multiple locations in Texas, Oklahoma, and North Carolina. Despite the implications, Intrator did not explicitly confirm that Core Scientific was the provider in question, although he acknowledged ongoing collaboration with contractors to expedite the resolution of the issues. Earlier this year, CoreWeave attempted to acquire Core Scientific for $9 billion, but shareholders of Core Scientific rejected the proposal. On the same day, Core Scientific shares dropped 7%. During CoreWeave's earnings call, analysts inquired about the connection between the delays and Core Scientific, but Intrator refrained from naming the company directly, indicating that a single data center was responsible for the setbacks. CoreWeave's CFO Nitin Agrawal reiterated this point, stating that the delays were due to "a single provider, data center provider partner." However, when asked how many locations were impacted, CoreWeave did not disclose specific numbers, referring instead to Intrator's comments. Despite these challenges, CoreWeave reported a significant increase in third-quarter revenue, reaching $1.36 billion—a 134% rise from the previous year. However, the company has adjusted its 2025 revenue projections to between $5.05 billion and $5.15 billion, falling short of the average analyst forecast of $5.29 billion. In response to the delays, Intrator mentioned that CoreWeave's teams are actively working alongside contractors and Core Scientific at the affected sites to get operations back on track. He noted, "It became apparent to us in Q3 that there were delays at the facility. CoreWeave responded by deploying our own boots on the ground to ensure that everything was being done in order to move those facilities along as quickly as possible." Despite the setbacks, Intrator assured analysts that these delays would not hinder their backlog or the value derived from existing contracts. CoreWeave has been aggressively expanding its operations to support the burgeoning demand from tech companies and AI startups. Recently, the company announced a $14.2 billion agreement to provide AI cloud infrastructure to Meta, shortly after extending its partnership with OpenAI to a staggering $22.4 billion.