Intel's Not-So-Secretive Expansion Into Bitcoin Mining Hardware Is Already Paying Off
At the upcoming 2022 International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC), Intel is scheduled to talk about its entry into the potentially lucrative world of Bitcoin mining with Bonanza Mine, an ultra-low-voltage (ULV) energy-efficient Bitcoin mining ASIC it will soon offer. It's not clear how close Intel is to having it ready, but it already has a major client line up.
In a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Griid revealed it inked a contract with Intel last September to buy ASIC hardware from the company.
"We have entered into a definitive supply contract with Intel to provide ASICs that we expect to fuel our growth. The initial order will supply units to be delivered in 2022 and Griid will have access to a significant share of Intel’s future production volumes," the company stated.
Griid is a Bitcoin mining startup headquartered in Ohio. According to the filing, Griid has existing relationships with Bitmain and MicroBT, the two largest suppliers of ASIC hardware, and has deployed thousands of each of their products. That's notable because it suggests Intel is making quick work of establishing itself as a viable competitor.
At present, Griid operates three industrial scale facilities across three states, including two in Tennessee and one in New York. The three locations combine for 48 megawatts of aggregate contracted power availability, with a "blended mix that is approximately 74 percent carbon-free at a globally competitive blended cost."
The startup expects to significantly grow its capacity to 734 megawatts by the end of next year, which amounts to a staggering 1,429 percent increase. It's a massive opportunity for a company that is on the verge of going public on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), with an estimated $3.3 billion valuation.
"We are building an American infrastructure company with the largest pipeline of committed, carbon-free power among public bitcoin miners at the lowest cost of scaled production. Our team has demonstrated a track record of successful execution over the past three years since starting the company, and we look forward to delivering expansion of capacity through this transaction," Griid CEO Trey Kelley said last November.
Griid is obviously confident that mining Bitcoin will remain worthwhile. And so is Intel, despite Bitcoin having dropped from a high of more than $67,000 last November to around $43,298 now. That's the nature of cryptocurrency, though—wild swings in value, though Bitcoin has remained the strongest form of crypto.
The filing with the SEC (PDF) doesn't specific how much the contract with Intel is worth or how many ASIC units it plans to purchase.
