Bitcoin hashrate slides 287 days as miners pivot to AI hosting

Bitcoin's network hashrate has declined for 287 consecutive days as miners shift capacity to AI hosting, while miner stocks gained on the transition.

Daniel Roberts, co-CEO of IREN Limited, said customer demand for the company's computing capacity exceeds what it can build, with signed contracts covering 85 percent of its $4 billion-plus 2026 annualized revenue run-rate target.

IREN jumped 30 percent on July 30 after securing $2.8 billion in AI cloud contracts with Microsoft, NVIDIA, Perplexity and Figure AI. Customer prepayments cover roughly 45 percent of related GPU capital costs, easing concerns over how the company funds its buildout. The stock had fallen more than 30 percent in the prior month alongside peers TeraWulf and Applied Digital, reflecting a broader correction across bitcoin miners pivoting to AI hosting.

The sustained hashrate decline reduces mining competition but raises network security concerns, as fewer miners dominate the network. IREN's 1.2 gigawatt 2027 capacity target will test whether contracted revenue converts into cash flow, while the concentration of hashrate among AI-focused miners introduces decentralization risks.

Miner stocks rebound on AI contracts

Trading volume on IREN's rebound hit nearly 73 million shares, well above its roughly 53 million average, consistent with a short-covering squeeze layered on top of the fundamental news. Roberts said thousands of workers are on site "pouring concrete and racking GPUs," with construction crews actively building out the company's data centers.

The AI pivot is not unique to IREN. Across the sector, bitcoin miners have been repurposing their power infrastructure and cooling systems for GPU hosting, attracted by contracted revenue that is less volatile than mining income tied to Bitcoin's price and difficulty adjustments.

Network security trade-off

The 287-day hashrate decline reflects a structural shift rather than a temporary dip. As miners redirect power to AI workloads, the Bitcoin network's computational security relies on fewer active participants. This concentration risk could affect Bitcoin's decentralization assumptions, even as the AI pivot stabilizes miner revenues through contracted, recurring income.

The broader crypto market has faced similar headwinds. Coinbase reported second-quarter revenue of $1.22 billion, missing consensus estimates of $1.29 billion, as Bitcoin fell roughly 14 percent during the quarter and ether lost about 25 percent. Robinhood's crypto trading revenue dropped 38 percent year over year to $100 million from $160 million, reflecting the industry-wide slowdown in spot trading activity.

The divergence between falling hashrate and rising miner stocks captures the market's bet that AI hosting revenue will outpace Bitcoin mining income. Whether that bet pays off depends on execution: IREN's 1.2 gigawatt 2027 capacity target requires converting $4 billion in contracted revenue into cash flow, while the broader sector watches whether other miners can secure similar AI deals.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute investment advice.