Bitcoin's mining difficulty has risen by 14.73% amid a decline in hash price, prompting miners to pivot towards AI infrastructure.
Bitcoin's mining difficulty has surged by 14.73%, climbing to 144.4 trillion hashes following the latest recalibration. This increase is one of the most significant since 2021, when China's mining ban led to substantial network disruptions and a subsequent 22% difficulty rise as conditions improved.
The recent uptick in difficulty comes after an 11% drop caused by a winter storm in the U.S. that temporarily halted operations for many major miners. Currently, Bitcoin's hash rate remains strong, exceeding 1 zettahash per second, with a seven-day moving average of 1.01 zettahashes.
Foundry USA leads the global hash rate with a 33.62% share, followed by AntPool at 14.35% and ViaBTC at 12.42%. However, the hash price has seen a notable decline, dropping from $33.5 to $29.7 per petahash per second.
Despite the decreased profitability, miners with access to affordable energy sources continue to grow their operations. For instance, unrealized profits from Bitcoin mining in the UAE have reached $350 million, showcasing the resilience of well-capitalized firms even amid lower cryptocurrency prices, currently around $67,900.
The Shift Towards AI Capacity
In response to diminishing cryptocurrency mining revenues, 14 major mining companies are planning to add approximately 30 gigawatts of new capacity focused on AI workloads, nearly tripling their current 11 gigawatts. This strategic pivot is driven by the ongoing low hash prices, prompting companies to leverage their energy access for more profitable AI infrastructure opportunities.
However, most of this proposed capacity is still in preliminary stages, existing primarily on paper or in early implementation phases. Analysts caution that while this infrastructure could rival the energy supply of a small nation, the actual deployment may not meet expectations.
“The announced megawatts are not a guarantee of success, but merely a formal figure,” stated TheEnergyMag.
The mining sector is undergoing a significant transition. Whereas competition once centered on the efficiency of ASIC miners and electricity costs, new critical factors include:
- access to capital;
- ability to connect to power grids;
- timely delivery of data centers.
Shifting towards AI introduces additional complexities, as monetization is no longer automatic. Unlike mining, where equipment generates revenue upon connection, AI infrastructure requires leasing computing power to clients, hinging on demand, service quality, and competitive pricing.
Ultimately, miners are evolving into infrastructure providers, where energy access is a basic requirement but does not ensure stable revenue.
“This is a race for megawatts in the era of the AI boom. However, its outcome depends on demand stability and companies' ability to monetize the infrastructure they are currently planning to build,” experts concluded.
Earlier this month, Bitcoin miner Cipher Mining announced it had secured $2 billion to enhance its AI computing capabilities.
