Core Scientific pays $41.9 million to terminate Block bitcoin mining machine contract and shifts focus to AI infrastructure

According to Odaily, data center operator Core Scientific disclosed in its second-quarter regulatory filing that it had paid $41.9 million to terminate its Bitcoin mining machine contract with Block and its Proto division, resulting in a related loss of $41.9 million. The agreement and all future equipment deliveries have been canceled.

This agreement was announced in July 2024 and originally planned for Proto to supply 3-nanometer mining machine chips, corresponding to about 15 EH/s of hash rate, and included options for additional purchases. Core Scientific stated it will no longer invest in new mining machines to maintain or increase hash rate, and will instead generate cash flow from the remaining miners, selling or retiring them when appropriate.

Core Scientific's second-quarter hosting revenue rose 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-on-year to $21.5 million, accounting for 13% of total revenue. The company stated that its quarterly Bitcoin production decreased by 53% year-on-year, and it continues to shift electricity use from mining equipment to high-density computing systems such as GPUs.