Big miners are moving into AI. Bitcoin’s hashrate just climbed back above 1 ZH/s anyway, its highest since March. Three weeks ago, we noted hashrate averaging around 984 EH/s and competition rebuilding. It has kept going. 🟢 Competition is back near its peak On a 14-day average, hashrate is now about 6.5% below its all-time high, set in late 2025. The capacity some public miners pulled out earlier this year has largely been replaced. 🟡 The new hashrate is coming from different hands Smaller operators are buying rigs that some public miners retired, and some of the largest miners are still expanding. @Bitdeer grew its self-mining hashrate to 82.3 EH/s in September, up from 35 EH/s a year earlier. It mined 1,355 BTC that month, yet ended it holding just 47 BTC, down from 2,029 a year earlier. As @Smidnico put it, “the narrative that Bitcoin miners are abandoning mining in favour of AI is too simplistic.” 🔴 More hashrate means thinner margins With more machines competing for the same block rewards, difficulty rose 5.92% to 140.58T on 16 October, and another increase of around 5–6% is expected at this week’s adjustment. Hashprice has slipped to around $36 per PH/s per day, down about 11% in a month. The Signal: Hashrate is back, but revenue per machine is falling, with the next halving 18 months out. How miners fund growth, and what more they can earn from the same machines, now matters as much as how fast they expand.

In roughly 18 months, Bitcoin's block reward will drop to 1.5625 BTC. That makes every other source of mining revenue twice as important, relative to the block reward. Tony Dicarlo explains why merged mining with Rootstock is becoming part of the conversation. No extra hardware, no additional energy, and no impact on BTC rewards 👇

In 1640, the safest place in London to keep your gold was the Tower. Then Charles I seized it. So merchants moved their gold to the goldsmiths, who handed out receipts and quietly lent some of the gold out. The merchants had no idea. Today that’s called rehypothecation. Bitcoin can be put to work, and it should be. But for any institution doing it, the questions come first. Is custody segregated and insured? Is it being lent on? And do you know exactly how the product is built?

Next week, we'll be at @bitcoinconfams 🇳🇱 📅 Nov 5–6 | 📍 SugarFactory Richard, Tony and @GoldenGatsby will be on ground. Catch Tony on the Orange Stage as he joins @TychoOnnasch and @tierotiero to debate how far Bitcoin can go into traditional finance before it stops being Bitcoin. See you there 👋

Always check how the rest of the horse was drawn.

Next week we’re at @labitconf, the longest-running Bitcoin conference in the world. Day two also happens to be the day the Bitcoin whitepaper turns 18. Find the RootstockLabs booth. We’ve got something planned.

Can blockchain help fight financial crime? RootstockLabs Intelligence Manager Gabriela spent the day recently at @LSEGplc Risk Revealed, talking AI, compliance and financial crime with people from @bancosantander, @ProsegurGlobal and others. What stuck with her: AI is only as good as the data you feed it. That’s where blockchain gets interesting. Every transaction is traceable, so it’s easier to follow the money and spot risk early. But tech doesn’t take the blame when things go wrong. As one speaker put it: “AI is not responsible. Humans are.” lnkd.in/p/d8sGxPYR

43% of gold’s yearly demand has nothing to do with money. It comes from jewellery, electronics and industry. Bitcoin has proven it’s money. It hasn’t found its second job yet. More in the thread 👇🧵

We are at @LuganoPlanB today.