The sector of mining di Bitcoin is attracting growing interest from investors, driven by a significant scientific agreement in the AI field highlighted by JPMorgan.
In this context of renewed attention, Iris Energy emerges as one of the main players, positioning itself strategically to capitalize on the opportunities offered by high-performance computing and artificial intelligence, according to a recent report.
Let’s see all the details below.
Artificial intelligence (AI) news: JPMorgan highlights the potential of the Bitcoin mining sector
As anticipated, the Bitcoin (BTC) mining sector is attracting a wave of interest from investors following the agreement of Core Scientific (CORZ) with the artificial intelligence (AI) company CoreWeave.
According to what was stated by JPMorgan (JPM) in a recent research report. This agreement has led to a revaluation of the sector, highlighting the potential diversification opportunities for Bitcoin miners.
Core Scientific announced earlier this month a 200 megawatt (MW) artificial intelligence deal with CoreWeave, a cloud computing company.
This announcement triggered a positive reaction among investors. In particular, leading to a 22% increase in the total market capitalization of the 14 miners monitored by JPMorgan, equal to 4 billion dollars.
In comparison, the price of Bitcoin has decreased by 7% in the same period, while the S&P 500 stock index has recorded an increase of 3%.
The analysts at JPMorgan, Reginald Smith and Charles Pearce, emphasized that this reaction reflects the “alternative (and potentially more accretive) use cases for mining structures and the scarcity and value of access to energy.”
The agreement of Core Scientific validates and accelerates the diversification of the miner in high-performance computing (HPC) programs.
Iris Energy and other players in the sector
Among the companies in the sector, Iris Energy (IREN) emerges as one of the best positioned to take advantage of the new opportunities.
With an overweight rating from JPMorgan, the company has excess energy capacity and is not strictly tied to Bitcoin mining.
Iris Energy has been a pioneer in embracing the HPC trend, using graphics processing units (GPU) at its facilities.
The company has demonstrated a solid track record in the construction and management of high-quality data centers and has access to a considerable amount of energy.
Cipher Mining (IFR) stands out for its competitive energy costs and a strong operational history, but it has a smaller electrical pipeline compared to Iris Energy.
Riot Platforms (RIO), also with an overweight rating from JPMorgan, remains strongly committed to Bitcoin mining and has shown no interest in HPC, despite its abundant power capacity.
Marathon Digital (MARA) and CleanSpark (CLSK) are instead considered more expensive in terms of energy production.
In conclusion, the agreement between Core Scientific and CoreWeave highlighted the importance of diversification and access to energy in the Bitcoin mining sector.
Iris Energy, with its excess energy capacity and early adoption of HPC, is well positioned to take advantage of these new opportunities, while other players in the sector continue to focus on traditional Bitcoin mining.
The USA mining sector in expansion
The total market capitalization of the 14 Bitcoin (BTC) miners listed in the United States, followed by JPMorgan, reached the record level of 22.8 billion dollars on June 15.
The Wall Street bank highlighted this growth in a recent research report, indicating that almost all companies outperformed Bitcoin in the first two weeks of June.
Among the monitored miners, Core Scientific (CORZ) achieved the best performance, with an increase of 117%.
On the other hand, Argo Blockchain (ARBK) recorded the worst performance, with a decrease of 7%. The mining difficulty continued to decrease after the halving of rewards that took place in April.
The hashrate of the network, an indicator of competition in the sector and the difficulty of mining, has decreased by about 7 EH/s (1%) since May. This decline reflects a reduction in competition and less efficient operations among miners.
The miners listed in the United States have increased their share of the global network hashrate, now reaching approximately 23.8%.
This represents a gain of almost 1% compared to the previous month and marks the second consecutive month of hashrate growth for US miners.
The analysts Reginald Smith and Charles Pearce of JPMorgan have interpreted this data as a positive signal, indicating that the less efficient private operators are downsizing their operations following the halving.