Crucible founder Meltem Demirors says Bitcoin paved the way for today’s AI infrastructure boom, but “intelligence,” not crypto, is the new killer app for compute. According to Demirors, trillions of dollars in capital are now flowing into AI. As a result, a chunk of the infrastructure that grew out of crypto is shifting gears to serve AI and high-performance computing (HPC) needs.

Why AI Is Siphoning Off Mining Power

Demirors argues that the returns from AI have outpaced those from traditional crypto mining. The real action is now in meeting the surging demand for compute to power AI models and services. That’s where the big money is heading, she says.

Who's Already Pivoting to AI? Company Examples

To illustrate, Demirors points to CoreWeave, which started out mining Ethereum, and Crusoe, known for mining Bitcoin using flare gas. Both companies, in her view, highlight the trend of crypto-born infrastructure moving toward AI and HPC workloads.

Bitcoin Security Risks and the Role of Network Difficulty

She calls the shift of miners to AI and HPC a real risk for Bitcoin’s security. Still, Demirors notes that Bitcoin’s difficulty adjustment mechanism helps the network adapt if hashpower flows elsewhere.