Nvidia vs. CoreWeave: The Better AI Supercycle Stock Might Surprise You

Key Points
Nvidia leads the way in AI, but its size could become an impediment to growth.
CoreWeave has made waves with its AI-tailored cloud ecosystem, but it faces a costly build-out to meet demand.
- 10 stocks we like better than Nvidia ›
Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) and CoreWeave (NASDAQ: CRWV) often draw comparisons due to their influence over the artificial intelligence (AI) industry. Nvidia remains the dominant design company for AI accelerators, while CoreWeave has attracted business with its cloud infrastructure tailored toward AI.
Investors should note that Nvidia and CoreWeave are not competitors. In fact, Nvidia is a major CoreWeave investor. Nonetheless, the two AI stocks compete for investor attention, making an evaluation of which one is a better AI supercycle stock a relevant question to ask.
Will AI create the world's first trillionaire? Our team just released a report on the one little-known company, called an "Indispensable Monopoly" providing the critical technology Nvidia and Intel both need. Continue »
The case for Nvidia
At first glance, Nvidia might be the stock of choice, as companies built the AI supercycle around its AI accelerators. Since just before OpenAI released GPT-4, Nvidia's revenue and stock price have shot into the stratosphere.
In fiscal 2026 (ended Jan. 26), its revenue rose by 65%, and this occurred after rising 78% in the previous fiscal year. Despite a slight pullback, Nvidia stock is up by around 1,360% over the last 3.5 years.
Additionally, its price-to-earnings (P/E) ratio is 35. In comparison, the S&P 500's average earnings multiple is 27, and considering Nvidia's revenue growth, it is arguably a cheap stock.
Unfortunately, Nvidia may be a victim of its success. Its growth took its market cap to just under $4.1 trillion, making it the world's largest among publicly traded companies.
Indeed, 65% revenue growth is impressive considering the difficulty of such an achievement for a large company. Still, that also means a doubling of the stock would take the market cap to $8.2 trillion, a high bar given that Nvidia is the only company that has reached the $5 trillion mark.
Such conditions arguably make Nvidia attractive to conservative investors. Its nearly $63 billion in liquidity and almost $97 billion in fiscal 2026 free cash flow give it one of the most solid balance sheets of any company trading in today's market.
Why investors might consider CoreWeave stock
CoreWeave benefits from tremendous demand for its cloud infrastructure, which it specifically designed for AI workloads. Both investors and customers have warmed to the company. Despite heavy volatility, its stock is up by almost 85% since its March 2025 debut.
Moreover, it continues to deliver eye-popping growth made all the more appealing by its comparatively modest $39 billion market cap. In the fourth quarter of 2025, its backlog rose to $67 billion. With that, it generated more than $5.1 billion in revenue in 2025, a 167% yearly increase.
Unfortunately, CoreWeave faces tremendous risks in meeting that demand, and it sits on only around $3.9 billion in liquidity, which will not meet its needs. In 2025, the company spent more than $10 billion in capital expenditures (capex). Although it increased its outstanding shares by 13% to nearly 526 million, it turned primarily to debt for financing.
Consequently, its total debt now exceeds $21 billion. This is up from around $7.9 billion in the previous year and is a huge burden for a company with only $3.3 billion in book value.
Amid massive losses, it does not have a P/E ratio. Some speculative investors may like its recent 6.1 price-to-sales (P/S) ratio, an objectively low level for a fast-growing company. Still, with its massive debt levels, CoreWeave stock could be seen as cheap for a reason in the eyes of some investors.
Nvidia or CoreWeave?
The choice between Nvidia and CoreWeave appears to come down to investment tolerances.
Objectively speaking, CoreWeave offers considerable growth potential in percentage terms. Since CoreWeave's market cap is less than 1% of Nvidia's, it can grow at higher-percentage rates more easily, at least in theory. Also, if it can cover the costs of its growth without destroying itself financially, the stock could be worth a fortune by 2030.
However, CoreWeave's high debt levels and need for further investment make its growth uncertain, a situation in stark contrast to a company like Nvidia. Despite its size, Nvidia has delivered massive absolute growth and a high level of liquidity that gives it control of its destiny. When also factoring in Nvidia's relatively low P/E ratio, it is probably a more suitable choice for conservative investors.
Thus, investors with a higher risk tolerance should probably choose CoreWeave, but Nvidia is an excellent choice for growth at a reasonable price if one wants to play it safe.
Should you buy stock in Nvidia right now?
Before you buy stock in Nvidia, consider this:
The Motley Fool Stock Advisor analyst team just identified what they believe are the 10 best stocks for investors to buy now… and Nvidia wasn’t one of them. The 10 stocks that made the cut could produce monster returns in the coming years.
Consider when Netflix made this list on December 17, 2004... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $532,066!* Or when Nvidia made this list on April 15, 2005... if you invested $1,000 at the time of our recommendation, you’d have $1,087,496!*
Now, it’s worth noting Stock Advisor’s total average return is 926% — a market-crushing outperformance compared to 185% for the S&P 500. Don't miss the latest top 10 list, available with Stock Advisor, and join an investing community built by individual investors for individual investors.
*Stock Advisor returns as of April 5, 2026.
Will Healy has positions in CoreWeave. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Nvidia. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.