Miners collectively transform into AI: Mining costs have inverted by nearly $20,000, selling Bitcoin to raise $7 billion for a shift in computing power.

BlockBeats news, on March 28, the latest industry report shows that the Bitcoin mining sector is undergoing a structural shift. By the fourth quarter of 2025, the average mining cost for listed mining companies is expected to rise to around $80,000 per coin, while the Bitcoin price hovers around $70,000, leading to a loss of nearly $20,000 per coin, making the industry’s profit model increasingly unsustainable.

In this context, mining companies are massively shifting towards artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure. So far, the industry has signed over $70 billion in related contracts, with some companies expecting that by the end of 2026, up to 70% of their revenue will come from AI business, gradually transforming into data center operators.

The funding for this transformation mainly comes from two sources: first, leveraged financing, and second, selling off Bitcoin reserves. Data shows that listed mining companies have cumulatively reduced their holdings by over 15,000 BTC, including Core Scientific, Bitdeer, and Riot Platforms, which are continuously selling their positions to support AI expansion.

However, this trend also poses potential impacts on cybersecurity. As miners shift computing power resources, the total Bitcoin network hash rate has fallen from a peak of about 1160 EH/s in 2025 to around 920 EH/s, with consecutive difficulty adjustments occurring.

Market pricing has also shown divergence: mining companies with AI business are valued at about 12.3 times their future revenue, while pure mining companies are only at 5.9 times, indicating a clear capital tilt towards AI transformation. Industry insiders believe that whether the Bitcoin price can return to $100,000 will be a key variable in determining whether mining represents a “short-term transformation” or a “permanent change.”