Bitcoin Miners Flee to AI as Network Hashrate Drops 23% from Peak

Executive Briefing

• Bitcoin network hashrate fell from 1.151 to 0.888 zetahashes per second since October's all-time high price peak
• Recorded a -10.09% difficulty adjustment Saturday, the 11th largest downward adjustment in Bitcoin network history
• CoinShares projects listed miners could derive up to 70% of revenues from AI by year-end, up from 30% today
• Companies like Cango and Bitdeer sold bitcoin holdings entirely to fund AI infrastructure pivots
• Analysts warn exiting miners may inadvertently tighten future mining economics if Bitcoin prices recover
• Bitcoin's correlation with risk-on assets undermines its 'digital gold' narrative, prompting sell-offs from investors like Mark Cuban