Riot Platforms, a Bitcoin miner, has appointed three new directors to its board as it seeks to expand its operations into artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC). The new board members include Michael Turner, former president of Oxford Properties; Jaime Leverton, ex-CEO of Hut 8 Mining; and Doug Mouton, a veteran in data center development from Microsoft and Meta. This strategic move comes as BTC miners, facing decreased mining profitability, are exploring alternative revenue streams like hosting AI servers. Riot is particularly considering repurposing its Corsicana Facility in Texas for AI workloads and has enlisted the help of investment banks Evercore and Northland Capital Markets for this transition. The trend of miners diversifying their operations follows the broader industry challenges of rising energy costs and reduced mining rewards after the recent Bitcoin halving. Competitors, like Core Scientific, have been building AI-focused infrastructure since 2019, indicating a growing recognition of AI's potential within the crypto mining sector.

Source 🔗