Marathon Digital is venturing into the realm of artificial intelligence (AI) as its Bitcoin production faced a slowdown in August.
Recently, on Sept. 5, the BTC miner made an announcement regarding the appointment of AI experts Janet George and Barbara Humpton to its board. This decision came as Kevin DeNuccio and Said Ouissal stepped down from their positions on Sept. 1 as part of a planned transition.
AI Experts at the Helm
Marathon highlighted the extensive experience and expertise of the new appointees in the areas of AI, data centers, and energy. Their proven track record of driving innovation in complex industries played a pivotal role in their selection.
According to the official statement, Humpton currently serves as the President and CEO of Siemens USA, where she has been instrumental in integrating AI and industrial data to optimize the company’s operations.
On the other hand, George previously held the position of Corporate Vice President and General Manager of Data Center & Artificial Intelligence at Intel Corporation. She has also worked with industry giants such as Oracle, Western Digital, Accenture, Yahoo, eBay, and Apple.
Fred Thiel, Marathon’s chairman and CEO, underscored the significance of having AI expertise on the board to support the company’s AI-centric infrastructure expansion. He emphasized the critical role of AI data center strategies in driving future growth.
These strategic appointments coincide with industry projections that highlight the immense revenue potential for Bitcoin miners through an AI pivot. VanEck estimates that Bitcoin miners could potentially generate an average yearly profit of approximately $14 billion by allocating 20% of their energy capacity to AI computation by 2027.
Bitcoin Production Metrics
In August, Marathon’s Bitcoin production witnessed a marginal decline of 3% to 673 BTC on a monthly basis, with block wins decreasing by 2% compared to July. Despite these figures, the company achieved a significant milestone by mining its 4,000th block during the month and boosting its hash rate by 11% to 35.2 EH/s.
Thiel expressed optimism regarding the company’s operational enhancements and reaffirmed its commitment to achieving a hash rate of 50 EH/s by the end of 2024. He stated:
“During the month, we energized almost 18 immersion containers in Granbury, Texas. We are converting a large portion of our Granbury data center from air cooled to MARA’s immersion containers, with plans to transition at least another 30 in September.”