Some Bitcoin mining companies are moving away from cryptocurrency and using artificial intelligence. NPR's Indicator podcast explains why.
MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:
There are big changes happening in the world of cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin mining companies believe their resources are better spent on artificial intelligence. Our colleagues at The Indicator Stephen Bisaha and Darian Woods explain.
STEPHEN BISAHA, BYLINE: One of the bitcoin mining companies we're talking about is called Bitfarms, and its CEO is Ben Gagnon.
BEN GAGNON: We had four co-founders, two of them from Argentina, who were actually mining Bitcoin and Ether in a small hotel in Argentina.
BISAHA: I think the stereotypical image of people who have been mining Bitcoin for so long was like a hotel room with a bunch of servers duct-taped together. That's how it all started for you?
GAGNON: I think it started in the basement. But yes, it was definitely at the hotel.
DARIAN WOODS, BYLINE: Bitfarm has since moved from the basement to large data centers. The company has a dozen of them in North America.
GAGNON: Energy is an asset. All value lies in energy. And Bitcoin miners were exactly how we used energy and monetized it. But it was energy that was the main value.
BISAHA: So what I hear is: don't call us a Bitcoin mining company. Don't call us an artificial intelligence company. Call us at the power company.
GAGNON: Yes. Call us at the energy and infrastructure company. We solve energy problems. Gaining access to energy in the United States takes years, and so having that access to energy means you can start moving much faster and with more confidence.
WOODS: Now we should mention that both Bitcoin and AI use enormous amounts of energy. This drives up electricity prices across the country and often results in the release of greenhouse gases. And we know it's bad for the climate.
BISAHA: Yes. Energy companies are also racing to produce more electricity to meet all this demand. But at the moment the supply is limited.
WOODS: So if you're a company that has access to this energy and you had to choose whether to use it for Bitcoin or AI, it's not hard to choose AI. I mean, it's cutting-edge technology that's driving the stock market right now. This is how Nvidia became a $5 trillion company.
BISAHA: Yes. Bitcoin mining, on the other hand, requires a roller coaster ride of the Bitcoin price up and down. Do this for years and it can go from exciting to tedious.
WOODS: So you can stay on the roller coaster or…
GAGNON: You can move to a business that is not volatile and predictable, has higher revenues, higher profits, higher cash flows.
BISAHA: I think it's much better for your blood pressure.
GAGNON: It definitely can't hurt.
WOODS: But all this talk of an artificial intelligence bubble may raise some investors' blood pressure. Ben is still an optimist.
GAGNON: We all believe in Bitcoin. We all own Bitcoin. So this is not a decision that anyone made lightly.
BISAHA: Speaking to Ben as a Bitcoin proponent and not Ben as the CEO of Bitfarms, I – or I think both – what does it mean to you to be a Bitcoin proponent and think, well, are we moving away from it?
GAGNON: You know, I don't know if there's a conflict here, right? For example, you may believe in Bitcoin, but it may also not be suitable for you or the company. This doesn't mean I'm selling my Bitcoin. This doesn't mean I don't believe in Bitcoin anymore. But this simply means that the company itself has better capabilities.
BISAHA: So, Darian, there's a lot of optimism about the future of AI technology. I mean, Ben Gagnon even dismissed fears of an AI bubble by saying that there was a dot-com bubble in the 90s, and yet today we still have a huge network economy.
WOODS: Yeah, if I was looking for optimism, the dot-com bubble would be the last place I'd look.
BISAHA: Stephen Bisaha.
WOODS: Darian Woods, NPR News.
(SOUNDBITE OF SHUK'S “INFINITE”)
© 2025 NPR. All rights reserved. Visit our website terms of Use And permissions pages in www.npr.org for more information.
The accuracy and availability of NPR transcripts may vary. Transcript may be modified to correct errors or accommodate audio updates. Audio on npr.org may be edited after it is originally broadcast or published. The authoritative recording of NPR programs is the audio recording.
