Bitcoin mining companies have secured contracts worth $100 billion in artificial intelligence and high-performance computing, but the volume translating into actual revenue so far appears limited.

As of Oct. 13, blockchain outlet Cryptopolitan reported that the power capacity tied to AI and HPC contracts secured by mining companies exceeds 4 gigawatts. Of that, the capacity that is actually providing services and billing is limited to 550 megawatts.

CoinShares estimates related annual revenue at about $1.1 billion. There is a sizable gap between the total value of contracts carried out over multiple years and revenue currently being generated. Converting orders into revenue requires building facilities and beginning operations, so it takes time for contract wins to be reflected in results.

IREN is also drawing attention with news of a major contract. Blockspace, citing The Information, reported that IREN signed a multiyear cloud contract with Anthropic. The companies did not confirm it, and details of the contract were not disclosed.

IREN's revenue indicators also need to be distinguished from actual results. The company put its annualised recurring revenue based on 2026 facilities at $4.0 billion, but as of Aug. 26 ARR from operating facilities was about $1.0 billion. IREN warned in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing that recognised revenue could be lower than ARR. It said annualised figures calculated from contracts do not mean confirmed revenue.

Results show that mining still accounts for a larger share. IREN's AI cloud service revenue for fiscal 2026 rose sharply to $128.8 million from $16.4 million a year earlier, but mining revenue for the same period reached $578.2 million. Net loss was $702.6 million, of which $638.8 million was largely non-cash impairment losses from disposing of mining equipment.

The shift by miners to AI businesses reflects weakening profitability in Bitcoin mining. At the end of the second quarter of 2026, Bitcoin's closing price was $58,400, below the miners' stated cash mining cost per coin of $75,500. Core Scientific spent more than $41.9 million to cancel equipment orders, and KUL ended its mining business on June 29. With IREN and Cipher also expected to exit mining, there was a projection that more than 35 EH/s of computing power could leave the market among listed miners.

But an AI pivot does not end with signing contracts. IREN delivered a 50-MW immersion-cooling facility called Horizon 1 to Microsoft, and Horizon 2 is undergoing commissioning. Horizon 3 and Horizon 4 are targeting completion in the fourth quarter of 2026, but that is conditional on securing the required resources on time.

Fundraising and facility construction costs are also a burden. IREN raised $3.6 billion at a 6 percent interest rate for Microsoft-related graphics processing unit projects, and $2.4 billion at a 9 percent interest rate for expansion of its Mackenzie business. It covers about 45 to 55 percent of GPU costs needed for new contracts with customer prepayments, but converting existing mining facilities for AI also costs significantly. CoinShares said building AI facilities costs $8 million to $15 million per 1 MW. That is far higher than Bitcoin mining facilities, which cost less than $1 million.

When comparing AI contracts, it is necessary to look at the nature of services being provided as well as whether the contract has been officially confirmed. Akamai announced on Sept. 24 that it had signed a seven-year contract worth $11.6 billion with Anthropic. Under the contract, Anthropic was also granted warrants to acquire up to a 5 percent stake in Akamai. But the deal focuses on central processing unit-based workloads, which differs from supplying GPU computing capacity that miners focus on.

Another key to expansion is securing sites that can be supplied with power. CoinShares said there are 225 restrictive measures related to data centres in the United States, and pending requests waiting to connect to the power grid amount to 2,600 gigawatts. AI facilities with secured lease contracts were valued at about $27 million per MW, while some unleased mining sites were valued at less than $3 million per MW.

The International Energy Agency forecast global data centre power consumption would reach 950 terawatt-hours in 2030. But rising power demand and supply shortages do not guarantee profits for individual companies. The success of miners' AI shift hinges on linking large orders to actual facility operations and revenue, and securing cash flow to bear financing costs.