Forget BTC Price: The Bitcoin Mining Boom Is Quietly Going Parabolic
Bitcoin network fundamentals, including difficulty and hash rate, are set to hit new records despite the cryptocurrency struggling to surpass $30,000. The mining difficulty, which reflects competition for block subsidies, will reach 48.91 trillion, an increase of approximately 2.1% on April 20, according to data from BTC.com. The hash rate is also expected to reach an all-time high of 418 exahashes per second on April 18. Some commentators continue to watch the metric keenly as it drifts ever higher, with Russia reportedly stepping up mining activity to become the world's second-largest miner in 2023. Meanwhile, data from Glassnode shows that on a rolling 30-day basis, BTC sales by miners are increasing.
Bitcoin Mining Stocks Are Crushing Tech Stock Prices in 2023
Bitcoin mining stocks have outperformed tech stocks and indexes in 2023, with 20 leading mining firms seeing their stocks double or more this year, according to BTC mining expert Jaran Mellerud. Core Scientific is the best-performing Bitcoin mining firm so far in 2023, with a gain of 455%, followed by Digihost, Cipher, Riot, Iris Energy, and Marathon. These gains have outpaced Bitcoin itself and the top tech stocks, with the tech-heavy NASDAQ 100 Index only managing a 20% gain so far this year. Mellerud predicted that if BTC price increased by an additional 40%, most mining stocks would rise by more than 50% from today's level.
Crypto Morning Briefing: Safemoon Hacker Strikes Deal With Developers to Return $7.1M
Microsoft Is Developing Its Own AI Chip To Power ChatGPT; Intel Signals End of Bitcoin Mining Chip Business Amid Cost-Cutting Effort; Apple Crypto Users Potentially Exposed to iOS, MacOS Vulnerabilities
Intel Signals End of Bitcoin Mining Chip Business Amid Cost-Cutting Effort
Intel will discontinue its Blockscale Bitcoin mining chip line, a year after it debuted the product.
Environmental Impact of AI Models Takes Center Stage Amid Criticism Against Bitcoin Mining
Recent reports and academic papers have criticized the carbon footprint of artificial intelligence (AI) software, including OpenAI's Chatgpt program. Bloomberg reported that AI uses more energy than other forms of computing, with a single AI model consuming more electricity than 100 US homes in a year. Meanwhile, an academic paper cited by the University of Colorado Riverside and the University of Texas Arlington claims that Chatgpt uses a lot of electricity and water to cool data centers. However, not everyone agrees with these studies and alarming headlines, with some arguing that climate alarmism is a lie. The Gatestone Institute, for example, claims that climate alarmism is harmful to the West. While bitcoin provides economic freedom as a censorship-resistant currency, it, too, has faced scrutiny over its environmental impact, with some arguing that it must address climate change concerns.
Bitcoin Mining and Increasing Energy Bills — Sen. Warren vs Crypto Twitter
Senator Elizabeth Warren blamed the Bitcoin mining industry for rising energy prices in American households based on a recent New York Times article. However, Crypto Twitter responded by trying to correct the misinformation, including Bitcoin podcaster Stephan Livera dismissing the article as "filled with disinformation" and Microstrategy founder Michael Saylor contradicting Warren's statement and explaining how Bitcoin mining reduces energy bills and does not create pollution. Some in the community even tagged Elon Musk, who has been actively trying to combat disinformation, in the conversation.
Crypto Raid: Kosovo Police Seize 174 Bitcoin Mining Rigs From Serbs
Authorities in Kosovo have cracked down on cryptocurrency mining in a predominantly Serb district in the north of the country, seizing 174 unregistered mining devices used to generate virtual currency. Kosovo has had trouble billing the Serb population in northern Kosovo for electrical consumption since it declared independence from Serbia 23 years ago, with unpaid electricity and water invoices in four Serb municipalities exceeding €300 million. The government of Kosovo has announced a temporary ban on crypto mining until the end of 2021 and has begun a crackdown on smuggled equipment in an effort to reduce unpaid power use. The action has the potential to increase tensions in the ethnically split Balkan state. The worldwide cryptocurrency mining market is projected to expand from $1.92 billion in 2022 to $7 billion by 2032.
Texas Senate Backs Bitcoin Mining Bill to Prioritize Residential Customers
The Texas Senate has given unanimous backing to the Bitcoin mining bill, SB-1751, which is set to make it through the State House of Representatives before being enacted.
Sweden Drives Final Nail Into Its Bitcoin Mining Industry With Tax Hike
Sweden, the last remaining stronghold of bitcoin miners in Europe, is abolishing tax incentives for data centers in July – potentially putting the last nail in the coffin for the industry in the region.
What Is Cryptocurrency Mining and How Does It Work?
Cryptocurrency mining is a critical part of Bitcoin and other PoW blockchains as it helps keep the network secure and the issuance of new coins steady.
