Bitcoin hashrate hits seven-month high as AI shift fails to ease mining competition
According to BlocksBridge, Bitcoin’s mining difficulty is rising despite the industry’s AI transition, with smaller operators potentially absorbing equipment abandoned by larger competitors.
Bitcoin's mining difficulty has surged 5.92% since October 16, with projections of another 5.16% increase in the next adjustment, potentially due to competition not easing despite AI integration, according to BlocksBridge. The network hashrate, a measure of computing power securing Bitcoin, has climbed to a seven-month high of 1 zettahash per second (ZH/s), its highest level since March 3.
This recovery suggests that smaller miners may be absorbing equipment abandoned by larger competitors, intensifying competition among remaining network miners. The shift towards AI has led to a 23% decline in publicly traded miners' realized hashrate, while AI and high-performance computing revenue has increased by 52%. Some of the displaced capacity may be returning to the network through smaller and mid-sized miners purchasing equipment from larger operators, potentially due to cheaper electricity costs.
This hashrate recovery has been viewed by some industry observers as an "indirect bullish signal" for Bitcoin, indicating continued institutional investment in mining companies.
Written by urgent.news from Cointelegraph's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
