The AI Gold Rush: Bitcoin Miners Seek New Revenue
The 2024 Bitcoin halving event significantly impacted miners, slashing block rewards and intensifying the pressure to find new revenue sources. A trend has emerged: Bitcoin mining companies are increasingly pivoting towards the burgeoning field of Artificial Intelligence (AI), a move that has yielded mixed results and unveiled a fascinating diversification strategy.
Core Scientific: A Revival Story
One of the most notable success stories is Core Scientific. Facing Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2022, the company re-emerged, relisted on the Nasdaq, and executed a significant shift. Core Scientific transformed from a pure Bitcoin miner into a colocation service provider. They began leasing out their data centers to AI firms. Their $3.5 billion deal with CoreWeave in June 2024 to host high-performance computing (HPC) operations shows how this pivot provided a lifeline, generating crucial revenue. While Q1 2025 revenue dropped, partially due to the halving, the company’s stock price soared post-halving, indicating market confidence.
Hut 8: Balancing Bitcoin and AI
Hut 8 took a more measured approach. In September 2024, they launched Highrise AI, a subsidiary offering GPU-as-a-Service. They deployed over 1,000 Nvidia H100 GPUs to power cloud-based AI compute services. Despite a quarterly net loss, the company’s continued investment in its Bitcoin business and its significant Bitcoin holdings highlight its core focus, with AI currently serving as a complementary income stream. This highlights the strategic approach of leveraging AI without abandoning the foundational Bitcoin operations.
Iren and Hive: AI Revenue Grows
Miners like Iren and Hive are starting to see meaningful revenue from AI. Iren started purchasing Nvidia GPUs in early 2024, signing its first AI contract. The AI business at Iren is growing alongside its Bitcoin production. Hive took its AI plunge in mid-2023, rebranding and focusing on Nvidia-powered compute clusters. For its 2025 fiscal year, Hive generated $115.3 million in revenue, with $10.1 million — triple the prior year — from AI and HPC hosting. This demonstrates that AI can significantly boost revenue.
Riot Platforms and MARA Holdings are two of the largest Bitcoin mining entities. Riot began exploring AI and HPC workloads, potentially converting its Corsicana, Texas facility into high-performance infrastructure. MARA rebranded its strategy as an “edge computing” play, piloting HPC test sites. These larger miners are focused on setting the foundation for a post-mining future, recognizing the increasing importance of diversifying their operations to offset revenue fluctuations.
Canaan: The Contrarian Approach
While many miners embraced AI, ASIC manufacturer Canaan took a different path, closing down its AI chip division. With a modest share of the ASIC market, Canaan is focusing on core mining hardware, demonstrating a conviction to remain squarely within the Bitcoin mining sector, a different approach that could potentially be resilient long-term.
The Verdict?
The integration of AI into the Bitcoin mining landscape is a dynamic trend. While its overall impact is still unfolding, it offers a fascinating glimpse into the future of Bitcoin mining and the diversification strategies employed by key players in the industry. The ability to adapt and seek alternative revenue streams will be crucial for miners navigating the evolving economic climate.
