Public Bitcoin Miners Cut Hashrate 13.4% as AI Revenue Grows

Bitcoin miner Bitdeer Technologies Group is accelerating its strategic transition toward artificial intelligence infrastructure, seeking to diversify revenue away from pure-play cryptocurrency mining. As Bitcoin block reward halvings tighten profit margins across the industry, mining companies are leveraging their power contracts and high-performance computing centers to support enterprise AI workloads. Bitdeer’s dual-track approach represents a pivotal test case for whether legacy crypto miners can successfully reinvent themselves into high-demand cloud computing providers.

Despite reporting revenue growth and expanding its second-quarter Bitcoin mining output by nearly fivefold, Bitdeer shares sank 15% amid investor caution over capital expenditures tied to its AI expansion. Nevertheless, Wall Street equity research firm Benchmark reiterated a bullish stance, projecting over 150% upside for the stock. Benchmark cited Bitdeer’s expanding proprietary mining capacity alongside its growing high-performance AI hosting capabilities as key catalysts for long-term valuation re-rating.

Bitcoin miners have been repurposing power, land and data-center infrastructure for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing hosting, seeking steadier revenue after Bitcoin’s April 2024 halving reduced mining rewards. The strategy matters because long-term AI contracts could lessen the industry’s exposure to volatile cryptocurrency prices and shrinking mining margins, while positioning operators as suppliers of scarce, power-ready computing capacity.

The latest analysis shows that announced AI and HPC hosting contracts are growing in scale, but Wall Street’s initial enthusiasm is fading. The average share-price gain on announcement days has dropped to about 10% in recent deals from roughly 24% during the pivot’s earlier phase. Investors are increasingly rewarding operators that can secure financing, deliver capacity on schedule, attract credible customers and convert contracts into operating cash flow.

Bitcoin miners remain exposed to swings in token prices, network difficulty and power costs, making earnings volatile even when production rises. MARA Holdings and CleanSpark are seeking to reduce that dependence by redeploying access to power, land and data-center capacity toward AI and high-performance computing. The strategy matters because long-term infrastructure contracts could provide steadier cash flows than mining, but require large capital commitments and proof that crypto-era sites can meet hyperscaler standards.

On Aug. 6, both companies reported results for the quarter ended June 30, 2026. MARA’s revenue fell about 27% to $174.9 million, even as bitcoin production rose 3% to 2,422 coins; it swung from an $808.2 million profit a year earlier to a $611.3 million net loss as Bitcoin’s decline drove fair-value losses. CleanSpark’s revenue fell 30.5% to $138.0 million and it posted a $239.8 million net loss while advancing a 20-year, $6.6 billion triple-net lease at its Sandersville AI campus.

Bitcoin’s protocol recalibrates mining difficulty every 2,016 blocks, roughly every two weeks, to keep block production near 10 minutes. Falling difficulty signals that computing power is leaving the network as weaker mining economics force operators to shut machines. The shift matters beyond crypto: power-rich miners and data-center owners are increasingly reallocating electricity and capital to artificial intelligence and high-performance computing. CoinShares said in March that listed miners had announced more than $70 billion of AI and HPC contracts, turning energy access into the industry’s key competitive asset.

On July 25, the network cut difficulty 0.74% at block 959,616 to 126.23 trillion, its 15th adjustment of 2026. That left difficulty 13.82% below the year’s 146.47 trillion high, a decline of about 14%, after nine reductions and six increases. Estimated hashprice, or daily miner revenue per petahash per second, fell to $32.21 from $37.39 at the start of the year, while bitcoin was down 26%. The revenue squeeze is accelerating the diversion of megawatts and investment toward AI infrastructure and cloud-computing customers.

Bitcoin miners are increasingly repurposing power-rich sites and data-center expertise for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing as mining economics weaken. Operators such as Hut 8 and IREN can bring capacity online faster than many greenfield developers because they already control grid connections, land and infrastructure. Long-term AI leases and cloud contracts also promise steadier revenue than cryptocurrency mining, making the transition a central driver of investor valuations across the sector.

On July 20, Hut 8 announced a second 15-year, $9.8 billion lease at its Beacon Point campus in Texas, taking the site's combined base-term contract value to $19.6 billion. IREN disclosed $2.8 billion of new multi-year cloud contracts and raised its year-end 2026 AI Cloud annualized revenue target to more than $4 billion, with about 85% under contract. Hut 8 and IREN shares rose more than 16% and 17%, respectively, while several mining peers gained at least 11% in early trading.

AI training and inference are driving a surge in data-center electricity demand, but building new substations and securing grid connections often takes years. Bitcoin miners already control large-scale power contracts, land, substations and fiber connectivity, allowing them to take on AI and high-performance computing workloads faster than projects built from scratch. Success still depends on cooling systems, building retrofits and long-term customers.

A June 30 report said mining sites' grid connections had evolved from a cost of Bitcoin production into an AI asset. On February 26, 2025, Core Scientific expanded its CoreWeave contract to 590 MW, with estimated revenue of $10.2 billion over 12 years. On January 16, 2026, Riot Platforms signed a 10-year, $311 million lease with AMD, beginning with 25 MW and offering expansion to as much as 200 MW.

Bitcoin completed its fourth halving on April 20, 2024, cutting the block reward from 6.25 to 3.125 Bitcoin. Combined with high energy and equipment costs, the reduction has continued to squeeze mining margins. Large miners are therefore converting their existing power capacity, facilities and cooling systems into AI and high-performance computing data centers in pursuit of more stable, long-term revenue.

Shares of miners making major bets on AI have recently far outperformed Bitcoin, but valuations have begun to diverge based on power capacity, financing capabilities and progress in delivering data centers. Nvidia’s plan to issue $20 billion in bonds to fund its AI expansion underscores strong demand for computing infrastructure. It also highlights the substantial capital spending and execution risks miners still face in making the transition.

Bitcoin undergoes a halving roughly every four years. In April 2024, the block reward fell from 6.25 bitcoin to 3.125 bitcoin, while CoinGecko estimated the cryptocurrency’s price at about $63,000 at the time. The reward is expected to fall again to 1.5625 bitcoin in April 2028. With energy costs and competition for computing power rising, miners need revenue from AI, high-performance computing and diversified power sources to reduce their reliance on mining alone.

From March 4 to March 25, 2026, MARA Holdings sold 15,133 bitcoin worth about $1.1 billion to repurchase $1 billion of convertible debt, a move expected to reduce its debt by about 30%. Bitdeer’s bitcoin holdings had fallen to zero as of February 20. Cango, meanwhile, plans facilities that can switch between AI and mining, while miners that have secured HPC contracts now command revenue multiples more than twice those of pure-play miners.

Bitcoin mining relies on miners deploying computing equipment to secure the network with hashrate and compete for block rewards. As energy, equipment and financing costs have risen and mining revenue has come under pressure, large U.S. miners have begun redirecting capital and power resources toward AI data centers. The shift could reduce hashrate concentration and make the Bitcoin network more decentralized.

Bitcoin's network hashrate fell about 4% from the previous period in the first quarter of 2026, ending five years of growth and marking its first first-quarter decline since 2020. With mining economics deteriorating, several miners are adjusting capital spending and converting existing sites to meet demand for AI infrastructure. The reports did not identify individual companies or disclose investment amounts.

After Bitcoin's April 2024 halving, mining rewards shrank while network hashrate and electricity costs climbed. CoinShares estimates that listed miners' average cash cost per BTC reached $79,995 in the fourth quarter of 2025, above Bitcoin's roughly $68,000–$70,000 price in March 2026. Miners can repurpose their existing power capacity and data centers for AI computing, making the shift consequential for both corporate finances and Bitcoin network security.

As of March 2026, listed miners' combined BTC holdings had fallen by more than 15,000 coins from their peak. Core Scientific sold about 1,900 BTC worth $175 million in January, while Bitfarms cut its holdings from a peak of 3,301 BTC to 1,827 BTC. The industry has signed more than $70 billion in AI and high-performance computing contracts, including Core Scientific's 12-year, $10.2 billion agreement with CoreWeave.