C3.ai CEO Steps Down: A New Chapter or a Stock Market Mirage?

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I’ve always found stock market news most compelling when it arrives like a surprise party for my wallet-sudden, loud, and almost certainly missing balloons. When C3.ai’s CEO Tom Siebel announced his departure for health reasons, I nearly dropped my coffee. Not out of concern for his well-being, but because I’d recently been asked by a relative if I thought “AI stocks” were a good investment. I said “maybe,” which is what I say to everything these days. I was wrong.

Siebel’s exit, abrupt and unannounced, sent shares of C3.ai into a nosedive that would make a skydiver blush. On Monday, the stock closed at $23.19, a 20% plunge since the news. It’s the financial equivalent of ordering a latte and getting a lukewarm cup of motor oil. Investors, it seems, are less interested in Siebel’s health and more concerned with their own. Or so I imagine-my stock-picking acumen is roughly that of a goldfish with a calculator.

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Siebel, who founded C3.ai in 2009, has presided over a business that now boasts 130 “turnkey AI applications” for industries ranging from healthcare to, I assume, your local laundromat. The company’s revenue hit $389 million in its latest fiscal year-a 54% increase over three years. That’s impressive, unless you consider that $389 million is to profitability what a Monopoly board is to a savings account.

Since its 2020 IPO, C3.ai’s stock has plummeted 75%. I’ve seen more excitement at a tax audit. The irony, of course, is that the stock trades under the ticker “AI.” One might reasonably expect artificial intelligence to at least avoid basic arithmetic errors.

Could a new CEO help revive the stock?

There was a time when investors believed C3.ai could be the next big thing. Perhaps they were inspired by the company’s ticker symbol, which suggests both futuristic promise and the name of a discount appliance store. But with net losses climbing to $289 million in the latest fiscal year-up 50% in three years-the stock has become less of a bet on innovation and more of a high-stakes game of “How much can I lose before the music stops?”

A new CEO could, in theory, fix this. If they’re the sort who views “cost-cutting” as a verb and “profitability” as a destination, not a suggestion, then maybe. But let’s not forget: Siebel built this house of cards. His successor will inherit a business that’s grown like a weed in a hurricane-fast, chaotic, and doomed to collapse under its own weight.

Should you invest in C3.ai right now?

The stock is down over 30% this year. To a contrarian investor, that’s a screaming buy. To me, it’s a reminder that 30% is just 70% in disguise. The market is full of “buy the dip” advice, but I’ve yet to see a dip that looks like a bargain when you’re staring at a company that’s lost money faster than my cousin’s dating apps lose matches.

C3.ai still hasn’t proven it’s more than a speculative plaything. Its AI ambitions are as tangible as a mirage, and its path to profitability reads like a bedtime story for venture capitalists. The CEO’s exit adds another layer of uncertainty, but the truth is, the stock was already a Russian nesting doll of questions. Siebel’s departure just made the smallest doll a little more unstable.

I’ll admit, I’ve considered buying C3.ai. I imagine it’s like adopting a rescue dog-nervous, unpredictable, but with the potential for loyalty if you feed it enough hope. But then I remember the last time I bought a stock based on a ticker symbol. It was “BARK.” I lost 80%.

Until C3.ai can convince me it’s more than a tech bro’s fever dream, I’ll stick to my index funds and my skepticism. And if you’re still reading this, maybe you should too. 🤖

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2025-08-09 01:04