Riot Platforms Jumps 13% After Signing $28 Billion AI Data Center Lease With Anthropic

Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms has signed a $28 billion AI data center lease with Anthropic, sending its shares up more than 13% on expectations of long-term rental income from its mining infrastructure.

Cointelegraph reported on Nov. 4 that Riot signed a 15-year lease covering 910 megawatts of power capacity at its Corsicana, Texas, facility. The tenant named in the company’s quarterly filing is AI firm Anthropic. Including this agreement, Riot’s three data center lease deals signed this year are expected to generate about $38 billion in total revenue.

Riot will provide the site and power infrastructure originally developed for mining. Anthropic will own and operate the computing equipment and bear operating costs. Once all signed agreements are up and running, most of Riot’s expected cash flow will come from long-term leases with major companies in the AI ecosystem, Chief Executive Officer Jason Les said.

Total capital costs for the project are estimated at about $5.5 billion. Riot is weighing debt financing backed by lease payments as its main funding source, though it has not finalized a financing plan. The first phase is due for completion in September 2027, and rent payments will begin within 60 days of delivery.

Riot is also adjusting its mining business to align with the AI shift. Bitcoin mining at Corsicana could be reduced in stages starting in the summer of 2027, Les said. Riot sold 10,599 Bitcoin in the third quarter to help fund data center expansion. Revenue for the period rose 1% from a year earlier to $181.4 million.

By contrast, rival Hut 8 saw its shares plunge more than 22% intraday after weak earnings. Third-quarter revenue fell 15% from a year earlier to $71.1 million, below market expectations of $75.8 million. The company secured $7.5 billion in project bonds to develop two AI data centers, but has yet to generate lease revenue from them.

Chief Financial Officer Shaun Glennon said Hut 8’s existing revenue base is no longer its main growth engine, while income from large contracted infrastructure projects remains tied to delivery schedules.