Key Points
Nebius currently exhibits a larger overall revenue profile, as its top-line results initially surpassed and then continued to outpace Cerebras Systems across recent quarterly reporting periods.
Over the last eight quarters, Nebius consistently demonstrated steep quarter-over-quarter revenue acceleration, while Cerebras Systems maintained a steady upward trend before experiencing a sequential decline for the quarter ended June 2026.
Investors analyzing these contrasting trends should watch whether these divergent quarter-over-quarter revenue trajectories persist or if the widening gap between the two companies begins to narrow in upcoming quarters.
Cerebras Systems: A Steady Upward Revenue Trend
Cerebras Systems (NASDAQ:CBRS) primarily generates its commercial revenue by developing and manufacturing computing hardware and software, delivering specialized infrastructure systems designed to handle intensive computational workloads for data centers and large global enterprise organizations.
On Aug. 19, 2026, it introduced a new rack-scale hardware accelerator to increase processing throughput, and it simultaneously announced formal plans to construct a new data center facility in Finland alongside a regional computing counterpart.
Nebius: Rapid Upward Trajectory in Recent Quarters
Nebius (NASDAQ:NBIS) primarily earns its core revenue by providing scalable cloud computing infrastructure and digital data solutions, equipping software developers and corporate enterprises with the technical tools needed to build, host, and deploy complex projects over the internet.
While navigating a recently filed shareholder derivative lawsuit concerning a specific data center site land transaction in September of 2026, it closed an upsized private offering of convertible senior notes generating approximately $5.75 billion in gross proceeds on Aug. 24.
Why Revenue Matters for Investors
Revenue enables everyday investors to evaluate whether a business is actively attracting paying clients and steadily expanding its day-to-day commercial operations. Closely tracking this top-line financial figure helps investors understand the total scale and growth trajectory of a business.
Quarterly Revenue for Cerebras Systems and Nebius
| Calendar quarter | Cerebras Systems Revenue | Nebius Revenue |
|---|---|---|
| Q3 2024 | $72.3 million (quarter ended Sept. 30, 2024) | $43.3 million (quarter ended Sept. 30, 2024) |
| Q4 2024 | $81.5 million (quarter ended Dec. 31, 2024) | $37.9 million (quarter ended Dec. 31, 2024) |
| Q1 2025 | $99.5 million (quarter ended March 31, 2025) | $55.3 million (quarter ended March 31, 2025) |
| Q2 2025 | $103.3 million (quarter ended June 30, 2025) | $105.1 million (quarter ended June 30, 2025) |
| Q3 2025 | $135.7 million (quarter ended Sept. 30, 2025) | $146.1 million (quarter ended Sept. 30, 2025) |
| Q4 2025 | $171.4 million (quarter ended Dec. 31, 2025) | $227.7 million (quarter ended Dec. 31, 2025) |
| Q1 2026 | $193.4 million (quarter ended March 31, 2026) | $399.0 million (quarter ended March 31, 2026) |
| Q2 2026 | $180.1 million (quarter ended June 30, 2026) | $582.3 million (quarter ended June 30, 2026) |
Data source: Financial Modeling Prep. Data as of Sept. 25, 2026.
Foolish Take
The quarterly revenue trends for Cerebras Systems and Nebius paint an insightful picture about these two young companies. In 2024, Cerebras' sales outpaced Nebius. Since then, that has reversed, demonstrating the massive demand for the cloud infrastructure provided by Nebius. This illustrates how the artificial intelligence boom has dramatically transformed Nebius' business.
Also noteworthy is how Cerebras was consistently delivering quarter-over-quarter sales growth, but that stopped in the second quarter of this year. This was the result of the amortization of customer warrant assets to the tune of $28 million, which is deducted from revenue. If not for this, Q2 revenue would have continued the company’s quarter-over-quarter growth trajectory.
That said, Nebius is operating at another level entirely at this point. Its Q2 sales of $582.3 million was an enormous 454% year-over-year increase. That's how much customer demand has soared in just the past year as tech companies jockey for AI dominance.
Robert Izquierdo has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has no position in any of the stocks mentioned. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.