Anthropic has unveiled a landmark partnership with Google and Broadcom to secure multiple gigawatts of next-generation computing capacity, set to come online from 2027. This significant commitment underscores the company's rapid revenue growth, which has soared to a $30 billion annual run rate from $9 billion at the end of 2025. The massive scale of AI computing demands is now directly competing with bitcoin mining for the same limited resources, including grid connections, land permits, cooling infrastructure, and affordable electricity.
A recent estimate suggests that bitcoin mining globally consumes between 13 to 25 gigawatts of continuous power, depending on hardware efficiency. Anthropic's acquisition of multiple gigawatts, in addition to its existing capacity across various platforms, demonstrates the rapid emergence of AI as a major competitor for the energy infrastructure that miners rely on.
Furthermore, other companies like OpenAI are also building extensive infrastructure portfolios, contributing to the aggregate AI compute buildout, which has become one of the largest sources of new electricity demand in the United States. This development coincides with bitcoin miners reassessing their operations and considering whether to mine bitcoin or rent their infrastructure to AI companies. An increasing number of miners are opting for the latter, with companies like Core Scientific, Iris Energy, and Hut 8 expanding their AI and high-performance computing revenue. The decision to rent infrastructure to AI companies often yields more predictable and lucrative cash flows than mining bitcoin, particularly given the current bitcoin price and network difficulty.
While this shift does not signify the demise of bitcoin mining, the industry's landscape is evolving, with successful miners potentially transforming into infrastructure companies that happen to mine bitcoin while renting their cheap power assets to the burgeoning AI industry.