IREN stock exploded over 24% in premarket trading Monday after the former Bitcoin miner unveiled a landmark $9.7 billion GPU cloud services agreement with Microsoft, cementing its transformation from cryptocurrency operation to hyperscale AI infrastructure provider.
The five-year contract provides Microsoft with access to Nvidia’s advanced GB300 processors and validates IREN’s aggressive pivot into artificial intelligence cloud services, a strategic gamble that has sent shares soaring over 480% year-to-date.
The rally pushed IREN stock to $73.96 in premarket action, approaching its October 15 all-time high of $74.15. Dell Technologies shares rose 5% after announcing it would supply approximately $5.8 billion in Nvidia equipment to IREN for Microsoft’s use.
The stock’s performance represents one of 2025’s most spectacular turnaround stories, transforming a struggling post-halving Bitcoin miner into a $16.5 billion market capitalization AI infrastructure player.
IREN’s journey began in 2018 as Iris Energy, a renewable-powered Bitcoin mining operation founded by co-CEOs Daniel and William Roberts. The Sydney-based company built 2,910 megawatts of grid-connected capacity across North America powered by 100% renewable energy. When Bitcoin mining profitability collapsed following the April 2024 halving event, IREN stock plummeted to $5.13.
Management pivoted decisively. IREN changed its name from Iris Energy in November 2024 and repositioned toward AI cloud infrastructure, leveraging renewable power and data center sites originally built for Bitcoin mining to serve AI training and inference workloads.
The transformation accelerated through 2025. IREN purchased $674 million in GPUs in late September, doubling its AI cloud fleet to approximately 23,000 Nvidia GPUs. In October, the company announced multi-year AI cloud contracts covering 11,000 GPUs, implying roughly $225 million in annualized revenue, and raised $875 million through convertible notes.
Monday’s Microsoft agreement represents the capstone of this transformation. “[This partnership] not only validates IREN’s position as a trusted provider of AI Cloud services, but also opens access to a new customer segment among global hyperscalers,” Daniel Roberts stated. The company now targets over $500 million in AI cloud annualized revenues by Q1 2026.
The deal addresses Microsoft’s persistent AI infrastructure bottleneck. CFO Amy Hood acknowledged last week that Azure capacity shortages are depressing cloud revenue and will likely persist through at least mid-2026. Microsoft spent nearly $35 billion on capital expenditures in its July-September quarter.
Partnering with IREN allows Microsoft to sidestep heavy capital spending on rapidly depreciating chips while accelerating deployment.
Jonathan Tinter, Microsoft’s President of Business Development, explained.
“IREN’s expertise in building and operating a fully integrated AI cloud – from data centers to GPU stack – combined with their secured power capacity makes them a strategic partner,”
Microsoft provides a 20% prepayment to help finance IREN’s Dell procurement. Nvidia processors are scheduled for phased deployment through 2026 at IREN’s 750-megawatt Childress, Texas campus, featuring liquid-cooled data centers designed to deliver approximately 200 megawatts of critical IT capacity.
IREN stock’s rise has generated divergent Wall Street opinions. Cantor Fitzgerald analyst Brett Knoblauch more than doubled his price target to $100 in October, citing the company’s transformation into an infrastructure provider resembling CoreWeave’s business model.
B. Riley raised its target to $74 from $29, while Bernstein analysts predicted IREN could hit $75.
However, JPMorgan downgraded IREN to Underweight with a $24 target, arguing current prices overestimate AI cloud potential. Short seller Culper Research labeled IREN a “painfully transparent stock promotion” in July 2024, a call that has proven spectacularly wrong as IREN quintupled since.
The average 12-month price target stands at $60.38, ranging from $24 to $100. Nine analysts recommend buying, while two suggest selling.
Monday’s surge pushed IREN stock’s year-to-date gain to 496%. The company’s market capitalization now exceeds $16.47 billion, placing it alongside established technology infrastructure providers. IREN stock has rallied from a 52-week low of $5.13 in April to premarket levels near $74, a 1,343% rally in seven months.
The Microsoft deal validates IREN’s thesis that former cryptocurrency miners possess strategic advantages in AI infrastructure: secured power capacity, renewable energy access, existing data center sites, and experience managing energy-intensive computing workloads.
Bernstein analysts noted that Bitcoin miners collectively secured access to more than 14 gigawatts of power, positioning them as critical partners as hyperscalers face power allocation delays.
IREN stock faces its next test November 6, when the company reports quarterly earnings. Last quarter, IREN beat earnings estimates by 268%, posting $0.65 per share against expectations of $0.18.
Whether Microsoft’s $9.7 billion commitment accelerates IREN’s path to $500 million in AI cloud revenues and whether management can execute on demanding deployment timelines, will determine if IREN stock’s remarkable rally continues.
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