Fermi Sale Sparks Boardroom War: Fired CEO Pushes Exit as Market Value Crashes

The boardroom of AI‑powerhouse Fermi is in turmoil as the Fermi sale proposal pits the newly installed leadership against former chief executive Toby Neugebauer, who also holds the largest block of stock.

Fermi Sale Debate Intensifies

Neugebauer, dismissed “without cause” last week, argues that an immediate sale would unlock value for shareholders, citing his family and allies’ ↑ 40% stake. The company’s market cap, once near ↓ $20 billion, has slumped to ↓ $3.2 billion as of April 21, according to Reuters.

Current chairman Marius Haas, a veteran of Dell and Intel, leads a four‑member board that argues the “Project Matador” data‑center campus in the Texas Panhandle still holds strategic promise. The plan envisions 11 GW of nuclear, solar and gas power to fuel a “HyperGrid” across 5,000 acres owned largely by the Texas Tech University System.

“A sale would derail momentum on Project Matador and jeopardize long‑term shareholder value,” the board said in a statement.

While Neugebauer and former CFO Miles Everson remain on the board, former Texas governor Rick Perry also sits among the seven directors. The firm has hired Heidrick & Struggles to vet a permanent chief executive, with COO Jacobo Ortiz and board observer Anna Bofa handling day‑to‑day operations.

Last December a prospective tenant walked away from a $150 million commitment, and a promised anchor tenant has yet to materialize, raising doubts about the timeline for revenue generation.

The dispute echoes earlier public sparring at the Nvidia GTC conference, where Neugebauer confronted Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick over perceived Korean investment roadblocks, a story Bloomberg covered.

Reported by Lyra Valance (Digital Assets & Web3 Insider).