Bitcoin Miners Surge Following Microsoft’s $17.4B AI Bet

Group 1 - Crypto mining stocks surged following Nebius Group's five-year agreement with Microsoft to supply graphic processing units valued at $17.4 billion, aimed at enhancing Microsoft's AI infrastructure [1] - The rally in mining shares occurred despite a 1% decline in bitcoin's price, indicating a shift in investor focus towards mining infrastructure's role in the AI boom rather than solely on bitcoin's price movements [2] - Bitfarms led the gains with a 22% increase, while Cipher Mining rose by 20%, and other companies like IREN, Hut 8, Riot Platforms, and TeraWulf saw mid-teens percentage increases; however, MARA Holdings, which has shifted focus to being a bitcoin treasury company, only increased by 4% [3] Group 2 - The mining industry's profitability is no longer primarily influenced by bitcoin's halving cycle, as companies now face challenges from rising power costs, hardware production, and increased competition [4] - AI is transforming the business model for miners, with those possessing large energy footprints and advanced computing infrastructure exploring leasing capacity to hyperscalers or pivoting to data center services; the Nebius-Microsoft deal underscores the growing value of GPU access [5]