Intel set to manufacture ‘energy-saving’ BTC mining chips, strikes first deal with GRIID

The world’s largest semiconductor chip maker Intel is set to enter the Bitcoin mining market with the launch of a specialized crypto-mining chip. Called “Bonanza Mine”, the new chips will be an “ultra-low-voltage energy-efficient bitcoin mining ASIC”.

Per the reports, Intel will unveil the new chips at the International Solid-State Circuits Conference (ISSCC) in February. ISSCC is a global forum for the presentation of advances in solid-state circuits and Systems-on-a-Chip. Scheduled to be held between February 19 and 26, Intel will likely reveal the new product on February 23.

While there is hardly any information available on the new ASIC, the semiconductor giant has already found its first recipient after striking a deal with GRIID, an Ohio-based Bitcoin mining company, Fox Business was the first to report Wednesday.

Set to go public via a SPAC merger on the New York Stock Exchange, the crypto-mining company GRIID focuses on energy-efficient Bitcoin mining. The supply agreement between Intel and GRIID was revealed in the miner’s S-4 filing.

Intel previously applied for a similar patent for a system-on-a-chip (SOC) in November 2018, where it defined a product that would accelerate bitcoin mining as well as reduce its power consumption. The company won the patent later in 2018.