Riot shares surge on $28B AI lease as Hut 8 sinks on revenue miss

Shares of Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms surged more than 13% Wednesday after the company announced a $28 billion AI data center lease, its largest agreement to date as it accelerates its expansion into artificial intelligence infrastructure.

The 15-year agreement covers 910 megawatts at its Corsicana, Texas, facility, bringing its total future contracted data center revenue to approximately $38 billion across three leases signed this year. The agreement represents a major step in Riot’s AI infrastructure strategy as it moves away from relying primarily on Bitcoin mining revenue.

“A year ago, our cash flow depended on the price of Bitcoin, and now, at full deployment of currently executed deals, nearly all of our expected cash flow will be generated from long-term leases with leading players in the AI ecosystem,” CEO Jason Les said during Wednesday’s earnings call.

Source: Yahoo Finance

According to Riot’s third-quarter earnings release, Riot will provide land and power infrastructure originally developed for Bitcoin mining, while the AI tenant, identified as Anthropic in the company’s quarterly filing, will own and operate the computing equipment and cover operating expenses.

Riot estimates the project’s total capital costs at $5.5 billion, financed primarily through debt backed by lease payments, although financing has not yet been secured. The first phase is expected to be delivered in September 2027, with rental payments beginning within 60 days of delivery.

Riot also reported third-quarter revenue of $181.4 million, up just 1% year over year, and sold 10,599 BTC during the quarter to help finance its data center expansion. During Wednesday’s earnings call, CEO Jason Les said Bitcoin mining at Corsicana could begin winding down in summer 2027.

Related: Bitcoin miners face widening AI financing costs as lenders scrutinize deals 

Hut 8 shares tumble as AI transition weighs on revenue

Meanwhile, shares of fellow Bitcoin miner Hut 8 plunged more than 22% at one point on Wednesday after the company reported weaker-than-expected quarterly revenue amid its transition toward AI infrastructure.

Third-quarter revenue fell 15% to $71.1 million, missing analysts’ estimates of $75.8 million, according to MarketBeat data. During Wednesday’s earnings call, CFO Sean Glennan attributed the decline partly to asset sales and lower revenue per Bitcoin mined, while cash administrative expenses also rose year over year.

“The legacy revenue base is no longer the main growth driver, while the larger contracted infrastructure revenues remain tied to delivery milestones,” Glennan said.

Source: Yahoo Finance

CEO Asher Genoot also pointed to the complexity and expense of traditional AI data center construction as the company looks to develop projects on a larger scale.

“Many of today’s data centers resemble NASA rocket programs—remarkable engineering, but complex, expensive, and slow to deliver,” Genoot said.

According to the company’s third-quarter earnings presentation, Hut 8 has already secured $7.5 billion in project bonds to fully finance two major AI data center developments, although neither has begun generating lease revenue.

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