Updates stock acvitity, adds context

** Shares of artificial intelligence startup CoreWeave CRWV.O rip higher and back above IPO price in third day of trading on Weds

** CRWV jumps as much as 25.3% to post-IPO high of $46.46 on the session. Stock on Mon hit post-debut low of $36 before ending down 7.3% at $37.08

** On Fri, Nvidia NVDA.O-backed firm's shares finished flat at $40 after $1.5 bln IPO was slashed in size and priced well below expectations

** CRWV among the top trending tickers on retail investor-focused social media stocktwits.com, along with conservative news channel Newsmax NMAX.N, which is extending its dizzying gains on Tues following its stunning NYSE debut on Mon

** AI poster child Nvidia, which had ~6% pre-IPO stake in CoreWeave, bought $250 mln worth of the offering's shares, Reuters reported

** CoreWeave, which has been unprofitable, posted more than eightfold rev increase in 2024 to $1.9 bln

** Microsoft MSFT.O, a competitor through its Azure unit and a customer, accounted for nearly two-thirds of CoreWeave's rev last year

** CoreWeave's IPO was viewed as a crucial barometer of investor appetite for new listings and sentiment for AI-related stocks after the launch of China's DeepSeek

** The combined disappointing performances of CoreWeave and liquefied natural gas exporter Venture Global VG.N, two major IPOs this year, could weigh on the new listings pipeline

(Lance Tupper is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own)

((lance.tupper@tr.com 1-646-279-6380))