AI gold rush draws crypto firms away from Bitcoin
The price of Bitcoin has risen in August but is still far below its peak almost a year ago - and companies are refitting their mines.
Once driven by the quest for Bitcoin - a process known as mining - companies are now redirecting their powerful computer banks towards AI, as the value of Bitcoin has dwindled since its peak in October 2025. Mining firms, who previously invested heavily in large data centre infrastructure, are now signing deals with AI companies like Anthropic and laying the groundwork for the next generation of high-performance computing.
Bitcoin mining companies, such as TerraWulf, Ionic Digital, Core Scientific, Iris Energy, Bitdeer, Riot Platforms, and Hut 8, are progressively shifting their focus and investments from Bitcoin mining to AI. This pivot is partly due to the reduced rewards and dropped value of Bitcoin. For instance, Riot Platforms recently signed a 20-year compute deal with Anthropic for $9 billion.
Some companies are even rebranding to reflect their new priorities. TerraWulf, for example, changed its website to highlight its shift towards AI and high-performance computing, while Enegix announced plans to transition a significant portion of its business from Bitcoin mining to AI infrastructure. The transition, however, is costly and some firms have had to sell some of their Bitcoin holdings to fund the shift.
One industry analyst, Wolfie Zhao, predicts that even as the price of Bitcoin has risen recently, many large-scale miners will continue to wind down their Bitcoin mining operations. He expects the industry's pivot to AI will persist, but cautions that the switch is expensive and difficult to reverse, as significant upfront investment and long-term contracts are often involved.
Written by urgent.news from BBC Business's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
