Key Takeaways
IREN Limited (NASDAQ: IREN) announced the successful energization of its 1.4GW Sweetwater 1 data center in Texas, a critical step in its strategic pivot from Bitcoin mining to a large-scale AI cloud provider.
“Delivering Sweetwater 1 substation energization on schedule reflects our disciplined execution,” Daniel Roberts, Co-Founder and Co-CEO at IREN, said.
The energization marks the connection of the site’s substation to the ERCOT grid, supporting the company's plan to deploy 150,000 GPUs. IREN is targeting more than $3.7 billion in annualized AI Cloud revenue by late 2026, a strategy underpinned by a five-year cloud capacity agreement with Microsoft.
This transition is crucial for IREN to capture growth from the AI boom while managing heavy capital needs, a narrative that has created a split among Wall Street analysts. While the company’s stock has drawn interest, opinions on its valuation and execution risk vary widely.
Bernstein recently reiterated its “outperform” rating on IREN, calling it a “top pick among AI focused Bitcoin miners” despite slashing its price target to $100 from $125 per share. The firm projects IREN’s AI cloud revenue could surge from $16 million in 2025 to $1.4 billion in 2027, eventually reaching $6 billion by 2030 as Bitcoin mining operations are sunset.
This bullish outlook contrasts with more cautious views. Cantor Fitzgerald cut its price target by $21 on April 9, 2026, while Macquarie lowered its target by $25 on February 6, 2026, suggesting concerns about execution and valuation. More recently, Freedom Capital initiated coverage with a neutral rating on April 1.
The strategic shift leverages IREN’s extensive portfolio of grid-connected land and power across North America. By retrofitting sites for high-density GPU clusters, the company aims to capitalize on the intense demand for AI training and inference compute, a market where power availability is a primary constraint.
The successful energization provides tangible proof of IREN's operational progress on its ambitious build-out. Investors will now watch for further hyperscale customer contracts and the pace of revenue growth through 2026 to validate the company's AI-centric valuation.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.
