Compute Becomes an Asset Class
Jake O@jo_wintermute
−19.3%
since Sep 30
The idea
I believe GPU compute is turning into its own asset class, something owned, leased, financed, and traded the way real estate is, and that the next two to three years will reprice the companies that own and finance it. So I built a basket around the owners, the ex-crypto miners now converting into compute landlords, steadier data center operators as ballast, and the financiers lending against GPUs and data centers. I keep 12% in cash to add on the sharp drops this group tends to have, and I'm sizing across many names rather than betting on one winner.
What it owns
- These companies own graphics processing units and rent them out by the hour, treating compute infrastructure as income-producing property. · CoreWeaveIt buys graphics processing units, finances them with debt, and rents the capacity to customers, making it the purest public form of compute treated as owned property., Nebius GroupIt owns and leases GPU capacity as an alternative to major cloud providers, directly competing to be a landlord of compute infrastructure., IREN LimitedIt owns power generation and land from prior mining operations and now leases GPU capacity on top of those assets, converting existing infrastructure into compute income., Applied DigitalIt builds data center facilities for AI customers and signs leases before construction finishes, converting development projects into owned, income-producing compute assets.32%
- Former bitcoin mining operators are converting their power generation and facilities into AI compute hosting, often still valued by the market as cryptocurrency companies. · TeraWulfIt operates facilities powered by nuclear energy and is converting them from mining to compute hosting, with cost-effective power as the foundation for financeable compute contracts., Cipher MiningIt owns power and sites originally built for mining but can host compute workloads, and remains mispriced if the market treats it primarily as a cryptocurrency company., Hut 8It is shifting its power and facility capacity from mining toward compute hosting, with the repricing opportunity tied to how much revenue comes from compute contracts., Core ScientificIt has already signed long-term, fixed-revenue compute hosting contracts, demonstrating that compute capacity can generate steady rental income like traditional property., Bitdeer TechnologiesIt owns power and data center capacity still mostly valued by the market as a mining company, with upside if that capacity gets revalued once compute hosting contracts become visible.23%
- These firms lend against GPU and data center assets and raise capital for compute infrastructure, creating a financing layer around compute as property. · Galaxy DigitalIt lends against GPUs and data centers and trades compute-related infrastructure deals, functioning as a financing layer for compute assets before a formal public market exists., Blue Owl CapitalIt originates large loans secured by data center real estate and compute hardware, positioning itself as the mortgage lender for infrastructure that underpins the compute-as-property take., Apollo Global ManagementIt provides credit and financing for compute infrastructure and data center operators, playing the role large lenders played in real estate financialization.19%
- These companies own the physical buildings where compute infrastructure operates, providing steady cash flows from leasing space to tenants. · Digital Realty TrustIt owns and leases data center buildings where compute infrastructure operates, providing ballast as an established property owner already treated as real estate by investors., EquinixIt owns interconnection facilities where networks and compute infrastructure meet, the most established version of compute real estate with long-term customer contracts.13%
- Cash13%