Investors appeared to shrug off Hut 8’s reported first-quarter 2026 net loss of more than $253 million on Wednesday, pushing shares of the bitcoin mining company up more than 33%.
Cottage 8 assigned a loss resulting from the decline in the market value of her Bitcoin (BTC) holdings, which fell from a high of over $126,000 apiece in October to a low of $60,000 in February.
Revenues for the quarter were over $71 million, down approximately 22% from previous According to Hut 8’s profit statement, this period amounted to USD 88.4 million. Analysts had forecast $78.5 million, according to FactSet.
The company too announced a $9.8 billion deal under which Hut 8 will lease 352 megawatts to a third-party artificial intelligence company for 15 years. Wednesday’s results showed the company generated $66.0 million in first-quarter revenue from ASIC computing, cloud AI and classic cloud solutions.
Hut 8 shares rose on news of the $9.8 billion deal. Source: Yahoo Finance
The company’s diversification into artificial intelligence and energy infrastructure comes amid an industry-wide shift away from cryptocurrency mining as public cryptocurrency mining companies grapple with high costs and falling revenues.
Related: Bitcoin miner Core Scientific is moving to artificial intelligence with the support of a 1.5 GW data center
Artificial intelligence and bitcoin mining are increasingly competing for power
According to cryptocurrency trader and market analyst Ran Neuner, the transition to artificial intelligence threatens the Bitcoin mining industry.
“Both industries compete for the same thing: electricity” – Neuner he saidadding: “Right now, AI is willing to pay a lot more for it.”
Mining companies can earn $57 to $129 per MW securing blockchain, compared to $200 to $500 per MW for AI infrastructure, he said.
Bitcoin mining and AI hosting revenue comparison. Source: Neuner’s wounds
As miners focus on more profitable artificial intelligence ventures, the total amount of computing power devoted to securing the Bitcoin blockchain decreases, making it easier to attack the network, Neuner he said.
The need for massive amounts of energy to power high-performance computing applications, including bitcoin mining and AI workloads, has driven demand for nuclear power generation.
As of 2024, several AI hyperscaling companies such as Google, Microsoft, Amazon, and Meta have announced nuclear power deals to power their AI infrastructure.
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