Anthropic has announced a significant partnership with Google and Broadcom, securing multiple gigawatts of next-generation TPU compute capacity set to come online starting in 2027. This commitment marks the company's largest to date, with revenue growth accelerating to a $30 billion annual run rate from $9 billion at the end of 2025.
The scale of AI compute demand now directly competes with bitcoin mining for scarce resources such as grid connections, land permits, cooling infrastructure, and affordable electricity. A deal of this magnitude underscores how quickly AI is becoming a major competitor for the same energy infrastructure that miners rely on. With Anthropic securing multiple gigawatts and other companies like OpenAI expanding their infrastructure, the aggregate AI compute buildout represents one of the largest sources of new electricity demand in the United States.
This development coincides with bitcoin miners deciding whether to mine bitcoin or rent their infrastructure to AI companies, with an increasing number opting for the latter due to more predictable cash flows. The revenue earned by renting a gigawatt of capacity to an AI company can exceed that of mining bitcoin, especially considering the fluctuating price of bitcoin and rising energy costs. While this does not signify the demise of bitcoin mining, the industry may evolve, with surviving miners potentially transitioning into infrastructure companies that mine bitcoin while renting their primary asset – affordable power at scale – to the rapidly expanding AI industry.