How Victoria’s Secret’s Les Wexner Made $2 Billion In 3 Months From AI Giant CoreWeave

Key Concepts

• Les Wexner's investment in Coreweave
• Coreweave's business model (GPU cloud access for AI)
• Coreweave's financial performance (revenue growth, net loss, valuation)
• IPO lockup period
• Florence Capital Advisers lawsuit
• Wexner family's other assets

Les Wexner's AI Investment and Wealth Surge

• Background: Les Wexner, former chairman of L Brands (Victoria's Secret), significantly increased his wealth due to an investment in Coreweave, an AI company.
• Wealth Increase: Wexner's net worth rose by $2.2 billion in three months, from $7.9 billion to $10.1 billion, primarily due to Coreweave's soaring valuation.
• Coreweave Stake: Wexner holds a 4% stake in Coreweave, now worth $2.8 billion.
• Initial Investment: A trust for Wexner's children invested $1 million in Coreweave in 2019 and an additional $600,000 in a Series A funding round in 2021.

Coreweave's Business and Financials

• Business Model: Coreweave provides cloud access to GPUs, essential for building AI models, to companies like Microsoft, IBM, and Meta. They help companies build data centers and loan out cloud access to much sought-after graphics processing units or GPUs.
• Revenue Growth: Coreweave's revenue in Q1 of the current year was $982 million, a 420% increase year-over-year.
• Net Loss: Despite high revenue, Coreweave reported a net loss of $315 million during the same period.
• Valuation: Coreweave's market capitalization has almost tripled since its March IPO to nearly $73 billion.
• Core Scientific Acquisition: Coreweave announced it is buying crypto miner Core Scientific in roughly $9 billion all stock deal.
• IPO Lockup: Major shareholders, including Wexner, cannot sell their shares until the IPO lockup period ends in September.

New Billionaires

• Coreweave's success has created at least four new billionaires:
  • Michael Intrator: $9.9 billion
  • Brian Venturo: $6.1 billion
  • Brandon McB: $4.5 billion
  • Jack Kogan: $3.5 billion

Florence Capital Advisers Lawsuit

• Lawsuit Details: Florence Capital Advisers sued Wexner's Family Trust, claiming they are owed nearly $7 million for advising the trust to invest in Coreweave in its early stages.
• Counterclaim: Wexner's Family Trust filed a counterclaim accusing Florence Capital Advisers of "fraudulent conduct" and "multiple breaches of fiduciary duty."
• Ongoing Litigation: The case is ongoing, and representatives for both parties have declined to comment.

Wexner's Other Assets

• L Brands Shares: Wexner and his family pocketed over $2 billion after tax from selling their LBR shares between 2020 and 2021.
• Real Estate: The Wexner family owns a New Albany-based real estate development firm with an estimated $950 million worth of land in central Ohio.
• Art Collection: They possess an estimated $1.4 to $4 billion art collection.
• Luxury Assets: The family owns a nearly 300 ft yacht, a Ferrari collection, and a roughly $300 million portfolio of luxury homes worldwide.

Conclusion

Les Wexner's investment in Coreweave, an AI-focused cloud computing company, has significantly boosted his wealth. Coreweave's rapid revenue growth and high valuation, driven by the demand for GPUs in AI development, have made Wexner and other early investors billionaires. A lawsuit related to the initial investment highlights the complexities and potential disputes in early-stage venture capital deals. Despite a net loss, Coreweave's growth trajectory and strategic position in the AI infrastructure market suggest continued success.