With a new chip designed to mine cryptocurrencies, Intel is investing in blockchain technology (via Reuters). The company intends to “create the most energy-efficient computing systems at scale,” with a focus on sustainability.
Intel’s new crypto chip is designed to be energy efficient. Intel will release its first crypto-focused chip, dubbed a “blockchain accelerator,” later this year. GRIID Infrastructures, a Bitcoin mining startup, and Block, the Jack Dorsey-owned fintech company formerly known as Square, are two companies that have already preordered the technology.
“We expect our circuit advancements to produce a blockchain accelerator with over 1000x greater performance per watt than conventional GPUs for SHA-256 based mining,” Raja Koduri, Intel’s senior vice president, explains in the announcement.
The International Solid-State Circuits Conference, which begins on February 20th, will provide more information about the technology, according to Intel. According to PCMag, the business will give a presentation (PDF) on February 23rd at the ISCC titled “Bonanza Mine: An Ultra-Low-Voltage Energy-Efficient Bitcoin Mining ASIC.” Application-specific integrated circuits, or ASICs, are chips that are built to do a single activity, such as bitcoin mining.
The impact of cryptocurrency mining on the environment has become a major concern, and Intel’s new processor could be an attempt to remedy this. Mining rigs that require a lot of power are frequently powered by coal and natural gas facilities, which are bad for the environment and lead to high electricity rates and blackouts.
US senators have even raised the matter in Congress, arguing how to deal with the increased energy usage linked with cryptocurrency mining and even requesting that Bitcoin companies reveal how much energy they use.
As energy-intensive bitcoin mining expands in the United States, members of Congress debated how to make bitcoins greener. One of the most pressing problems was whether to employ renewables to power the energy-intensive mining at the heart of bitcoin’s blockchain or to switch to other blockchains that require less energy, to begin with.
The discussion took place during a House Energy & Commerce Committee oversight hearing on the “energy impacts of bitcoin.” Last year, the United States became the de facto epicenter for bitcoin mining after China banned it within its borders, owing to Bitcoin’s high energy consumption. That change might have significant repercussions for the US electricity infrastructure, as well as the Biden administration’s policies.
Cryptocurrency presence in everyday life will likely continue to expand,” Representative Diana Degette (D-CO) said in her opening comments at the hearing. “As the industry moves forward, it’s crucial for cryptocurrency networks to identify ways to reduce the need for constant high volume energy use and minimize effects on the environment.”
If you find this article informative then do not forget to share it with your friends and family!
Also read: Prime Minister says Bank of Jamaica will roll out the digital Jamaican dollar in 2022
