Crusoe
Crusoe
Sustainable AI Cloud Infrastructure | Denver, Colorado | Founded 2018
Crusoe is a premier AI cloud infrastructure company that combines high-performance GPU computing with sustainable energy sourcing to power the next generation of artificial intelligence. Originally founded as a cryptocurrency mining company that harnessed stranded natural gas from oil fields, Crusoe has strategically pivoted to become one of the top three GPU cloud providers in the United States. A key partner in OpenAI's $500 billion Stargate initiative, Crusoe is building the backbone of American AI infrastructure. For investors seeking to buy Crusoe stock or gain exposure to the AI infrastructure buildout, Crusoe represents a uniquely differentiated and ESG-aligned opportunity.
Company Overview
| Founded | 2018 |
| Headquarters | Denver, Colorado |
| Industry | AI Cloud Infrastructure / Sustainable Computing |
| Total Funding | ~$3.9 billion |
| Current Valuation | $10+ billion (October 2025) [1] |
| Revenue | $276 million (2024, up 82% YoY) [2] |
| Employee Count | 501–1,000 |
| Website | crusoe.ai |
Highlights for Crusoe
- Sacra estimates Crusoe generated $276 million in revenue in 2024, up 82% year-over-year, with projections of ~$500 million in 2025. [2]
- Selected as a key partner in OpenAI's $500 billion Stargate AI infrastructure initiative, with Crusoe's Abilene, Texas campus expected to generate $250 million in revenue for 2026. [2]
- Raised $1.375 billion in its Series E at a $10+ billion valuation in October 2025, co-led by Mubadala Capital and Valor Equity Partners. [1]
- Project Jade - a $50 billion investment in a 2.7-gigawatt data center campus in Cheyenne, Wyoming - would be America's largest data center project. [2]
- Crusoe Cloud bookings grew approximately 5x in the first three quarters of 2025 versus the prior year. [1]
- Divested bitcoin mining operations to NYDIG in late 2024, completing its strategic pivot to focus entirely on AI cloud infrastructure. [2]
- Power pipeline exceeds 45 gigawatts across wind, solar, flared gas, nuclear, and hydropower sources. [2]
Product & Technology
Core Offerings:
- Crusoe Cloud: A GPU cloud platform providing on-demand and reserved compute instances featuring NVIDIA H100, L40S, MI300X, and HGX systems. Pricing starts at $2–3 per GPU per hour on-demand, with 3-year commitments offering up to 81% savings. [2]
- Managed Inference: Launched November 2025, delivering up to 9.9x faster time-to-first-token and 5x higher throughput versus vLLM benchmarks, powered by Crusoe's proprietary MemoryAlloy KV-cache technology. [2]
- 1-Click Clusters: Production-scale HGX H100 and B200 GPU clusters for distributed model training workloads. [2]
- Enterprise Infrastructure: Custom dedicated deployments with 3,200 Gbps InfiniBand networking, used by customers including Sony Research (GT Sophy AI project), Databricks, Codeium, Together AI, and Luma AI. [2]
Technology Stack:
- Proprietary Digital Flare Mitigation™ (DFM) and Digital Renewable Optimization™ (DRO) technologies for sustainable energy sourcing. [3]
- Modular data center architecture deployable at remote oil field and renewable energy sites. [3]
- MemoryAlloy KV-cache technology enabling industry-leading inference latency and throughput. [2]
- Standard API and management tools including CLI, REST APIs, Terraform, and Kubernetes integrations. [2]
Competitive Advantages
- Sustainable Energy Access: Crusoe has identified approximately 7 GW of potential power capacity from stranded gas, wind, solar, nuclear, and hydropower - enabling structurally lower power costs than grid-dependent competitors. [2]
- Stargate Partnership: As an unmentioned Stargate partner, Crusoe is directly embedded in OpenAI and Oracle's $500 billion AI infrastructure buildout, providing massive, multi-year revenue visibility. [2]
- Vertical Integration: By owning its data centers, energy infrastructure, and cloud software, Crusoe achieves projected 45% IRR and a 5x return on data center investments on a 10-year hold. [2]
- ESG Differentiation: ESG-focused enterprises pay a premium for Crusoe's carbon-friendly compute, supporting pricing power. [2]
Market Opportunity
Goldman Sachs projects data center power demand will grow at a 15% CAGR through 2030, with data centers consuming up to 8% of total U.S. electrical power by decade's end. NVIDIA's data center revenue grew 409% year-over-year in its most recent quarter, reflecting the explosive demand for AI compute. The GPU cloud market is experiencing clear consolidation around a handful of well-capitalized players - with Crusoe positioned alongside CoreWeave and Lambda Labs as one of the top three independent GPU cloud providers by scale. [2]
Market Trends:
- Unprecedented growth in AI/ML workloads creating insatiable demand for GPU compute.
- Hyperscaler partnerships (Microsoft, Oracle, OpenAI) creating large, long-duration revenue contracts for GPU clouds.
- Increasing regulatory and enterprise pressure to source carbon-neutral compute, benefiting Crusoe's energy positioning.
- GPU cloud consolidation rewarding large, vertically integrated providers with capital advantages.
Financial Overview
Revenue: Sacra estimates Crusoe generated $276 million in revenue in 2024, up 82% year-over-year from $152 million in 2023. The company projects approximately $500 million in revenue for 2025, with Crusoe Cloud representing the vast majority going forward. [2]
Revenue Model: Crusoe generates revenue through GPU compute rental (on-demand and reserved instances billed by the second), data center infrastructure leases (15-year NNN leases), power purchase agreements, and anticipated third-party tenant revenue. A 100 H100 GPU customer on a 1-year commitment generates approximately $2.23 million in annual revenue. [2]
Long-Term Projections: Crusoe projects revenue growth to $2 billion in 2026, $3.6 billion in 2027, and $5.5 billion in 2028, representing a ~105% CAGR from 2023–2028. [2]
Funding History and Investment Rounds
Key Investors: Founders Fund, Fidelity, Mubadala Capital, NVIDIA, Valor Equity Partners, Ribbit Capital, Long Journey Ventures [1][5]
| Round | Amount | Total Raised | Valuation | Notable Investors |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seed | $0.6M | $0.6M | $2M | N/A |
| Seed II | $4.5M | $5.1M | $15.5M | N/A |
| Series A | $70M | $75M | $100M | N/A |
| Series B | $128M | $203M | $448M | Valor Equity Partners |
| Series C | $505M | $708M | $1.75B | Founders Fund, Nvidia |
| Mezzanine | $200M | $908M | N/A | N/A |
| Series D | ~$600M | $1.5B | $2.8B | Founders Fund, Nvidia, Fidelity |
| Series E | $1.375B | ~$3.9B | $10B+ | Mubadala Capital, Valor Equity Partners |
Leadership Team
- Chase Lochmiller, CEO & Co-Founder: Previously General Partner at Polychain Capital and Quantitative Trader at Jump Trading Group. B.S. Physics and Mathematics, MIT; M.S. Computer Science and AI, Stanford University. [6]
- Cully Cavness, Co-Founder, President & COO: Previously VP of Finance at Highlands Natural Resources and Energy Investment Banking Associate at Petrie Partners. B.A. Geology, Middlebury College; MBA, University of Oxford. [6]
- Matthew DeNezza, CFO: Previously CFO at Meritage Midstream and Eclipse Resources; Managing Director of Natural Resources at Deutsche Bank. B.A. Government, Harvard University; MBA, NYU Stern. [6]
Investment Considerations
Growth Drivers:
- Stargate partnership provides multi-year revenue visibility and positions Crusoe at the center of U.S. AI infrastructure buildout. [2]
- Project Jade - a $50 billion, 2.7-gigawatt Cheyenne data center campus - represents transformational scale-up potential. [2]
- Diversified sustainable energy sourcing creates structural cost advantages versus grid-dependent competitors.
- Strong unit economics: data center investments projected at 3.7x MOIC on a 10-year hold, jumping to 8.7x with leverage. [2]
Risks and Challenges:
- Capital structure risk: Significant debt financing with interest expenses projected to reach $297 million in 2025. [2]
- GPU pricing volatility: Rental rates have already declined from $8 to $2 per GPU per hour; further compression could pressure margins. [2]
- Power source reliability: Dependence on oil and gas drilling activity for flared gas could be impacted by regulatory changes or shifts in drilling practices. [2]
Future Outlook:
- Revenue trajectory toward $5.5 billion by 2028 positions Crusoe for a potential IPO at a multi-billion-dollar valuation. [2]
- Crusoe Spark modular data center program and atNorth Iceland campus expansion to support European AI demand. [2]
- Continued deepening of hyperscaler partnerships as AI compute demand accelerates. [2]
References
[1] Source: Crusoe.ai / Bloomberg.com
[2] Source: Sacra.com
[3] Source: Businesswire.com
[4] Source: Grandviewresearch.com
[5] Source: Pitchbook.com
[6] Source: LinkedIn.com
Rainmaker Securities, LLC ("RMS") is a FINRA (FINRA.org) registered broker-dealer and SIPC (SIPC.org) member. Find this broker-dealer and its agents at brokercheck.finra.org. Our relationship summary can be found at rainmakersecurities.com/disclosures.
RMS is engaged by its clients to make referrals to buyers or sellers of private securities ("Securities"). If such client closes a Securities transaction with a buyer or seller so referred, RMS is entitled to a success fee from the client. Such success fee may be in the form of cash or in warrants to purchase securities of the client or client's affiliate. RMS or RMS representatives may hold equity in its issuer clients or in the issuers of securities purchased or sold by the parties to a transaction.
This communication is confidential and is addressed only to its intended recipient. This communication does not represent an offer or solicitation to buy or sell Securities. Such an offer must be made via definitive legal documentation by the seller of securities.