Core Scientific pays $41.9 million to terminate Block Bitcoin mining contract, pivoting to AI infrastructure

Odaily News: Data center operator Core Scientific disclosed in its second-quarter regulatory filing that it paid $41.9 million to terminate its Bitcoin mining contract with Block and its Proto division, recording a corresponding loss of $41.9 million. The agreement and future equipment deliveries have been canceled.



Announced in July 2024, the agreement originally called for Proto to supply 3nm mining chips, corresponding to approximately 15 EH/s of hashrate, and included options for additional purchases. Core Scientific stated that it will no longer invest in new mining machines to maintain or expand hashrate, will generate cash flow from remaining mining equipment, and will sell or retire miners when appropriate.



Core Scientific's second-quarter hosting revenue increased from $10.6 million in the same period last year to $137 million, accounting for 83% of total revenue; self-mining revenue fell 66% year-over-year to $21.5 million, representing 13% of total revenue. The company said quarterly Bitcoin production fell 53% year-over-year and continues to redirect power from mining equipment to high-density computing systems such as GPUs.