Bitcoin Miners Shift Focus to AI Data Centers

Core Insights - Bitcoin miners are transitioning to become artificial intelligence infrastructure providers, targeting over $70 billion in data center contracts that could significantly alter their business models within a year [2][10] - By the end of 2026, listed bitcoin mining companies could derive up to 70% of their revenues from AI and high-performance computing, a substantial increase from approximately 30% at the beginning of the year [3][10] Revenue Shift - The shift towards AI is driven by economic factors favoring AI over bitcoin mining, as hash prices remain near cyclical lows while AI infrastructure promises higher and more stable returns [6] - TeraWulf Inc. reported $12.8 billion in total contracted high-performance computing revenue, with 27% of its fourth-quarter revenue coming from AI, a significant rise from virtually zero a year prior [7] - IREN Limited achieved $17.3 million in AI cloud services revenue in the fourth quarter and is expanding its AI capacity with plans for up to 200 megawatts of liquid-cooled GPU infrastructure [8] Key Holdings - The CoinShares Bitcoin Mining ETF (WGMI) includes companies leading the transition to AI, with Cipher Digital Inc. as the largest holding at 17.5%, which has rebranded to reflect its evolution into a diversified digital infrastructure company [4][10] - Core Scientific Inc. generated the highest percentage of revenue from AI and high-performance computing at 39% of its fourth-quarter sales, expanding its CoreWeave contract to $10.2 billion over 12 years [9]