# Meeting brief: Cerebras Systems (Nasdaq: CBRS)

**Meeting:** intro call with Cerebras investor relations, Tue Nov 10, 2026.
**Prepared:** Nov 2, 2026 by the meeting-prep-brief skill. **Status:** DRAFT. Checked by: ________
**Inputs used:** company name and meeting date only. Nothing about the family's holdings, terms, or strategy.

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## Who they are
- Makes wafer-scale AI chips and sells AI inference as a cloud service. Based in Sunnyvale, Calif. [8-K, Aug 12][q2]
- CEO Andrew Feldman, CFO Bob Komin, CTO Sean Lie. [8-K, Aug 12][q2] [Startup Fortune, Nov 2][sf]
- IPO'd May 14, 2026 at $185 a share, raising $5.55B before the underwriters' option. The biggest IPO of 2026. [Motley Fool, Sep 21][fool] [Yahoo Finance][yf]

## What changed in the last 90 days
- **Aug 12:** Q2 results. Revenue $180.1M (+74%). GAAP net loss $450.5M. Full-year "core" targets raised. [8-K][q2]
- **Aug to Oct:** lockup releases every two weeks. CTO sold about 710,000 shares (~$147.6M) on Aug 20 under a pre-set plan. [Fool][fool] [Startup Fortune][sf]
- **About Oct 27:** Oracle will offer Cerebras inference in its cloud from 2027. Stock +10%. [The Next Web][tnw] [TIKR, Oct 29][tikr]
- **Oct 29:** short seller Culper Research published a report on chip lifespan. Stock about -10%. [TIKR, Oct 29][tikr]
- **Oct 30:** closed at $109.18, 41% below the IPO price and 72% below the $386.34 high. Market cap about $25.9B. [Fool quote, Oct 30][fool]
- **Coming:** final lockup release Nov 9. Q3 results Nov 12 after the close. [Fool][fool] [Cerebras, Oct 20][date]

## Key numbers
| | | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Q2 revenue | $180.1M, up 74% | [8-K, Aug 12][q2] |
| Q2 gross margin | 14% GAAP vs. 41% "core" | [8-K, Aug 12][q2] |
| Q2 net loss | $450.5M GAAP vs. $6.9M "core" | [8-K, Aug 12][q2] |
| Q2 stock-based pay | $377M | [Startup Fortune, Nov 2][sf] |
| Backlog (RPO) | $25.4B; about 22% expected within 24 months | [8-K][q2] [Startup Fortune][sf] |
| 2026 core revenue guide | $880M to $890M | [8-K, Aug 12][q2] |

## Red flags
1. **One customer, one contract.** One university customer (MBZUAI) was 62% of 2025 revenue. A $20B+ OpenAI deal anchors most of the backlog. [Barchart][bc] [Startup Fortune][sf]
2. **Two sets of numbers.** GAAP margin is 14%; the "core" number they lead with is 41%. Ask what's excluded.
3. **CLAIM, not fact:** Culper says IPO drafts put system life at 1.5 to 3 years, then changed it to 3 to 5 years without explanation. Longer life means lower depreciation and better margins. No company response found. [TIKR, Oct 29][tikr]
4. **Supply overhang.** About 67M more shares may unlock Nov 9 (an estimate, not a company figure). Insiders have been selling. [Fool][fool]
5. **History.** A 2024 IPO filing was withdrawn during a national-security (CFIUS) review over reliance on G42. [Barchart][bc]

## 5 questions to ask
1. How much of the $25.4B backlog is OpenAI, and what happens if OpenAI scales back?
2. Why did the useful life of your systems change in the IPO drafts, and what would margins be under the old range?
3. Walk us from 14% GAAP gross margin to 41% "core." What's left out?
4. Which customers were more than 10% of revenue this year?
5. Do insiders plan more sales after the Nov 9 lockup release?

## What we don't know
- Q3 results. They come out Nov 12, two days after this call. IR may be in a quiet period and unable to discuss the quarter. (Inference, not confirmed.)
- OpenAI's share of the backlog. Not disclosed in what we found.
- Cerebras's answer to the Culper report. None found as of Nov 2.
- Terms of the Oracle deal.

## Sources disagree
- Startup Fortune's headline says the stock is "39% from its peak." Its own prices ($386.34 high, $109.18 close) put it 72% below. **Use the prices.**
- TIKR refers to a "June listing." The IPO was May 14 (Fool, Startup Fortune). **Use May 14.**

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*Public sources only. Green on the data-sorting slide. A person checks every fact before the meeting.*

[q2]: https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/0002021728/000162828026056186/cbrsannouncesfinancialresu.htm
[date]: https://www.cerebras.ai/press-release/cerebras-systems-announces-date-of-third-quarter-2026-financial-results-3384934
[fool]: https://www.fool.com/investing/2026/09/21/cerebras-shares-are-coming-out-of-lockup-in-waves-here-s-the-date-that-matters-most/
[sf]: https://startupfortune.com/cerebras-stock-has-fallen-39-from-its-peak-as-lockup-and-earnings-collide/
[tikr]: https://www.tikr.com/blog/cerebras-sinks-10-as-short-seller-culper-claims-its-wafers-break-down-after-just-2-years
[tnw]: https://thenextweb.com/news/oracle-cerebras-ai-inference-cloud-2027
[bc]: https://www.inkl.com/news/cerebras-stock-just-hit-the-markets-in-the-largest-ipo-of-2026-nvidia-investors-be-warned
[yf]: https://finance.yahoo.com/markets/stocks/articles/cerebras-raises-5-5b-kicking-163002320.html