According to data from CoinWarz, Bitcoin’s mining difficulty dropped by about 7.7% during the last correction on March 20 to 133.79 trillion at block 941,472, the sharpest drop since February.
Latest move reduces the difficulty from about 145 trillion in mid-March and about 148 trillion at the beginning of the year. The lower difficulty level means that less computational work is required to earn the same block reward, which slightly improves revenue per unit of hashrate for companies that remain online.
The correction came after slower-than-target block production compared to the previous 2016 blocks. CloverPool data showed an average block time of around 12 minutes and 36 seconds, well above Bitcoin’s 10-minute target, forcing the network to recalibrate at lower levels.
Difficulties in February dropped sharply after the weather disruptions in the United States temporarily shut down immense U.S. mining facilities and later rebounded by about 15% as hashrate came back online after power conditions normalized.
Bitcoin (BTC) difficulty measures how challenging it is for miners to find the correct hash for the next block and is automatically adjusted to keep one block issued every 10 minutes.
As more processing power, or hashrate, joins the network, the difficulty level increases to prevent blocks from being mined too quickly, while a decrease in hashrate lowers the difficulty level, making it easier for other miners to earn rewards.
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The next difficulty adjustment is currently estimated to be April 3, although this forecast changes with each novel block.
Miners are switching to artificial intelligence in the face of rising energy costs
The difficulty reset also comes as several publicly traded miners delve into artificial intelligence and high-performance computing infrastructure in search of more stable returns on data center power and efficiency.
Last week, cryptocurrency trader Ran Neuner argued that AI has become Bitcoin mining’s biggest competitor as both industries compete for electricity, even going as far as to say that “AI has killed Bitcoin forever.”
Bitcoin miners such as Core Scientific, MARA Holdings, Hut 8 and Cipher Mining have begun reallocating capacity or switching to AI workloads, while some operators have reduced hashrate or shut down less productive rigs as profitability declines.
On February 21, Bitdeer liquidated 943 BTC from its reserves and sold the newly mined coins, reducing the company’s stake to zero. In the latest weekly update On March 21, he confirmed that his BTC holdings remained at zero.
Big questions: Will Bitcoin Survive a 10-Year Power Outage?
