Core Scientific to Sell Bitcoin Holdings for Major AI Pivot

Core Scientific shifts strategy, plans to liquidate Bitcoin holdings by 2026 to fund a $10B AI partnership with CoreWeave and expand infrastructure.

Core Scientific has announced a complete reorientation of its corporate strategy, liquidating nearly its entire BTC portfolio in favor of aggressive expansion into the artificial intelligence sector. In January, the company sold 1,900 BTC, and management is clear: the remaining holdings of fewer than 1,000 tokens—estimated by some at around 630—will follow the same path. The proceeds are specifically earmarked for capital expenditures to build out AI infrastructure.

The driving force behind this decision is a long-term hosting agreement with CoreWeave valued at over $10 billion over 12 years, covering 590 megawatts of capacity. At the time of the quarterly report, over 350 MW had been activated, with nearly 200 MW already generating revenue. Full execution of the contract is expected by early 2027, at which point the average annual revenue run rate is projected to be approximately $850 million.

Financial Results: Missed Targets as AI Segment Accelerates

The fourth quarter of 2025 brought mixed signals. Revenue of $79.8 million fell significantly short of the consensus forecast of approximately $122 million, while the loss per share of $0.42 exceeded the expected $0.08 by a wide margin.

The reported net profit of $216 million is misleading—it resulted almost entirely from a one-time non-cash adjustment of $330.3 million in the fair value of liabilities and does not reflect operational reality. Further noise was introduced by the disclosure of an accounting error related to property and equipment, which will appear as a “material weakness” in reports for the next four quarters, though it does not affect revenue or cash flow.

Among the positives, AI revenue stood out, jumping 268% year-over-year to $31.3 million—this line of business represents the company’s strategic core. Total liquidity at the end of the year amounted to approximately $530 million.

Expansion and the Broader Industry Context

To move beyond the existing contract, Core Scientific acquired a massive site in Hunt County, Texas, designed for an additional 430 MW of power, with commissioning slated between 2027 and 2029.

This transformation is not an isolated case. The most recent halving squeezed margins in the mining sector, forcing participants to seek more stable revenue streams. Riot Platforms sold approximately $200 million in Bitcoin for its own diversification. IREN—the rebranded Iris Energy—secured a deal with Microsoft for AI cloud services worth $9.7 billion. CoinShares predicts that for mining companies with active AI contracts, the share of BTC revenue will shrink from about 85% at the start of 2025 to under 20% by the end of 2026.

Bitcoin is being sold. Data centers are being built. The only remaining question is whether the infrastructure will be ready in time to justify the valuation the market has already priced in.