Cerebras Systems, a company that makes AI chips and is seen as a rival to Nvidia, is set to begin its IPO roadshow on Monday. Shares are expected to be priced between $115 and $125, according to a source close to the matter who spoke.
This marks Cerebras’ second attempt to go public. The company had pulled its previous IPO filing last October, but now it’s back on track. Cerebras plans to list its shares on the Nasdaq stock exchange under the ticker symbol “CBRS.” A Bloomberg News report last week suggested that Cerebras could raise as much as $4 billion from the offering, aiming for a total company value of about $40 billion.
Based in Sunnyvale, California, Cerebras is well-known for its unique “wafer-scale engine” chips. These chips are designed to greatly speed up how quickly large AI models are trained and used. This puts Cerebras in direct competition with Nvidia and other companies that make hardware for artificial intelligence.
The company has shown strong financial growth. Its revenue grew to $510 million in the year that ended on December 31, a significant jump from $290.3 million the year before. Cerebras also reported a profit of $1.38 per share, which is a big turnaround from a loss of $9.90 per share in the previous year. This shift to profitability could make the IPO more attractive to investors.
Morgan Stanley, Citigroup, Barclays, and UBS are leading the team of banks that are helping Cerebras with its stock offering. Their involvement adds weight to the IPO process, indicating confidence in the company’s market potential.
This IPO comes at a time when the demand for AI hardware is booming, driven by the rapid development of large AI models across various industries. Cerebras’ specialized chips offer an alternative to traditional GPU setups, aiming to deliver extreme performance for AI workloads.
By going public, Cerebras aims to raise substantial capital to further its research, development, and market expansion. The success of this IPO will be closely watched as an indicator of investor appetite for specialized AI hardware companies.
