Several Bitcoin mining stocks rallied Tuesday, reflecting a broader equity surge driven by optimism around artificial intelligence productivity gains as more miners pivot toward AI and high-performance computing workloads.
In addition to TeraWulf (WULF), which rallied by as much as 17% on news of a Kentucky data center acquisition site, Hut 8 (HUT), IREN (IREN) and Riot Platforms (RIOT) closed more than 5% higher on the day.
The rally underscores growing investor enthusiasm for Bitcoin miners that are repurposing parts of their energy infrastructure and data center capacity to support AI and high-performance computing applications — businesses viewed as potentially more stable and lucrative than crypto mining alone.
The gains came as the S&P 500 index hit fresh record highs above 7,500, led by a sharp rally in information technology and semiconductor stocks.
The Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, which tracks the performance of major US chipmakers and semiconductor companies, surged 5.6% on Tuesday and is now up nearly 77% this year.
Year-to-date returns for the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index (SOX).
Source: Yahoo Finance
The semiconductor boom has also boosted sentiment around Bitcoin miners expanding into AI infrastructure, given their access to large-scale power capacity and data center operations needed to support high-performance computing.
Related: The real ‘supercycle’ isn’t crypto, it’s AI infrastructure: Analyst
Bitcoin miners emerge as AI infrastructure players
The link between Bitcoin miners and the AI infrastructure buildout is becoming increasingly pronounced as miners leverage their large-scale power access and data center expertise to support high-performance computing workloads.
Recent research from Bernstein found that 11 publicly traded Bitcoin miners control a current and projected power portfolio of roughly 27 gigawatts — a resource analysts believe could become critical as demand for AI data centers accelerates.
11 public Bitcoin miners have a planned power portfolio of roughly 27 gigawatts. Source: Bernstein
The report posited that access to reliable electricity, rather than semiconductors alone, is emerging as the primary bottleneck for scaling AI infrastructure. That dynamic positions Bitcoin miners as strategic partners for hyperscalers and AI companies seeking ready-made power capacity and operational infrastructure.
In a separate note, Bernstein analysts said the shift is already evident among large-scale miners, citing IREN as an example of a company increasingly pivoting away from Bitcoin mining toward AI infrastructure. The firm pointed to IREN’s recent agreement with Microsoft, which Bernstein estimates could support an annualized revenue run rate of roughly $3.7 billion for the company’s AI cloud infrastructure business.
Related: CoreWeave’s $8.5B loan shows how AI is replacing crypto mining finance
