All of this comes as a number of big players seek to democratize the world of Bitcoin mining, which has come under criticism for being dominated by a small number of operators.
Intel is set to release an "ultra-low voltage, energy-efficient Bitcoin mining ASIC," according to a report.
Tom's Hardware says the "Bonanza Mine" processor could see the chipmaker go toe to toe with the likes of Bitmain for market share.
Details about the new mining ASIC are set to be unveiled at the snappily named International Solid-State Circuits Conference, which is being held virtually from Feb. 20-28 because of the pandemic.
Those who have been trying to buy ASICs through Bitmain have been left exasperated by high prices and long waiting times — and according to Tom's Hardware, Intel could end up having an all-important advantage because it boasts "incredible production capacity."
All of this comes as a number of big players seek to democratize the world of Bitcoin mining, which has come under criticism for being dominated by a small number of operators.
Block, whose CEO is Jack Dorsey, is building an "open Bitcoin mining system" that aims to make the process "more distributed and efficient in every way." One of the company's executives, Thomas Templeton, explained:
"For most people, mining rigs are hard to find. Once you’ve managed to track them down, they’re expensive and delivery can be unpredictable."
He added that Block wants to make it so that "anyone, anywhere, can easily purchase a mining rig" — all while ensuring equipment is reliable and eliminates common issues such as heat dissipation and dust that means "they also become non-functional almost every day, which requires a time-consuming reboot."
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Miners v Gamers
It comes as a number of manufacturers, Intel and Nvidia among them, grapple with high demand for powerful graphics cards from miners and gamers alike.
Gamers have been exasperated by shortages of high-end GPUs in recent months as crypto enthusiasts snap them up in order to mine coins such as Ether.
Specialized equipment is required to mine BTC, meaning that this new product will do little to alleviate the supply squeeze.
Separately, some chip companies have sought to limit mining performance of their GPUs to ensure they are unattractive for crypto purposes — but in a December interview, executives said they didn't want to go down this path when its Arc Alchemist range launches later in the year.
