Catenaa, Wednesday, May 20, 2026- Major bitcoin mining companies are rapidly transforming into artificial intelligence infrastructure providers as Wall Street analysts increasingly view crypto miners as part of the global AI computing supply chain, driven largely by soaring demand for power, data centers and high performance computing capacity.
Analysts at Bernstein issued “outperform” ratings on several major mining firms including IREN, Riot Platforms, CleanSpark and Core Scientific, arguing the companies are becoming increasingly valuable as AI infrastructure operators rather than pure cryptocurrency miners.
The report described bitcoin miners as an “integral part of the AI value chain” because of their access to large amounts of grid-connected electricity and existing industrial-scale infrastructure.
Bernstein analysts said AI cloud providers, hyperscalers and chip manufacturers have already signed more than $90 billion worth of AI infrastructure agreements with mining firms across roughly 3.7 gigawatts of computing capacity.
The research team led by Gautam Chhugani argued power availability has become the biggest constraint facing artificial intelligence expansion globally.
The analysts estimated miners collectively control access to more than 27 gigawatts of planned power capacity, much of it located in data center hubs including Texas.
Bernstein said securing one gigawatt of new power infrastructure in the US currently takes a median of roughly 50 months, making existing mining sites increasingly attractive to AI operators.
The report highlighted a recent agreement between IREN and Nvidia involving plans for five gigawatts of AI computing infrastructure built around Nvidia’s AI factory architecture.
The industry transformation comes as weaker bitcoin performance and rising competition pressure mining profitability.
Instead of idling mining rigs during weaker crypto cycles, many companies are now converting infrastructure toward AI cloud hosting, GPU colocation and high performance computing operations.
Bitdeer recently sold its bitcoin holdings to accelerate its AI infrastructure transition.
Cango also sold bitcoin earlier this year to finance expansion into AI computing services through its EcoHash subsidiary.
Company executives increasingly describe AI operations as offering longer-duration and more stable cash flows compared with volatile cryptocurrency mining revenue.
Analysts at TheEnergyMag said the current downturn differs sharply from previous crypto mining cycles because miners are permanently repurposing facilities for AI workloads instead of waiting for bitcoin prices to recover.
Infrastructure Advantage
Industry analysts said mining companies possess several competitive advantages difficult for new AI entrants to replicate quickly.
Those include pre-approved industrial sites, long-term electricity agreements, existing cooling infrastructure and experience operating large-scale energy-intensive systems.
Texas remains a major focal point because of its abundant energy supply and relatively supportive regulatory environment.
Still, analysts warned the AI transition carries major operational risks.
Nic Puckrin of Coin Bureau said only miners with low-cost energy, flexible power agreements and sufficient capital are likely to succeed long term.
Others warned the shift toward enterprise-grade AI infrastructure is far more difficult than standard bitcoin mining operations.
Wolfie Zhao of TheEnergyMag said successful AI infrastructure companies must maintain high uptime reliability, complex networking systems, long-term customer contracts and sophisticated software orchestration.
He described the transition as more difficult than the crypto industry’s migration from China to the US after 2021 because miners are effectively becoming full-scale data center operators competing inside enterprise technology markets.
The report also warned mining firms remain dependent on long-term AI demand and the expansion plans of hyperscalers and cloud companies.
At the same time, public scrutiny surrounding energy use, environmental impact and data center expansion continues increasing globally.
Ethereum Pressure
The broader crypto industry meanwhile remains under pressure.
Ethereum Foundation experienced another wave of senior departures as researchers and developers exited the nonprofit overseeing the Ethereum ecosystem.
Meanwhile, institutional investors continued pulling funds from ethereum exchange-traded products.
Ethereum ETFs recorded six consecutive days of outflows totaling more than $86 million Monday alone, according to SoSoValue.
Goldman Sachs and Harvard University also reduced their ethereum ETF exposure according to recent regulatory filings.
Despite the selling pressure, companies including BitMine Immersion Technologies continued accumulating ethereum holdings during the recent market pullback.
Analysts said the growing divide between AI infrastructure growth and weakening cryptocurrency prices may increasingly reshape how investors value digital asset companies.
