Aave

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<p>Bitcoin and artificial intelligence appear to be moving in opposite directions regarding how their power is distributed.</p>
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 <div class="cn-block-summary__nav tabs"><span>Summary</span>
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   <li>Bitcoin mining is increasingly shifting toward industrial-scale operations while AI development begins to move toward smaller and more personal device applications.</li>
   <li>The edge AI market is projected to reach 119 billion dollars by 2033 as localized data processing and privacy needs drive a 300 percent growth rate.</li>
   <li>High energy costs in the United States are pushing Bitcoin hash rates toward the Global South, with Ethiopia and Paraguay emerging as major hubs for hydroelectric mining.</li>
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<p>Galaxy Research head Alex Thorn <a href="https://x.com/intangiblecoins/status/2043331397260095617" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">pointed</a> out on Sunday that Bitcoin mining, which started on simple home computers, now mostly happens in massive industrial warehouses using specialized gear. AI, however, may take the reverse route.&nbsp;</p>
<p>While AI currently lives in giant, restricted data centers, Thorn believes open-source progress is closing the gap as major models hit limits in memory and data.&nbsp;</p>
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<p>“If local models keep getting smaller, cheaper, and more efficient, AI may become increasingly personal and on-device,” he noted.</p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="localized-computing-on-the-rise">Localized computing on the rise</h2>
<p>Grand View Research <a href="https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/edge-ai-market-report" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">estimates</a> the global market for “Edge AI”—technology that runs locally on gadgets rather than through a central cloud—will reach $119 billion by 2033.&nbsp;</p>
<p>This represents a jump from roughly $25 billion expected in 2025. The growth stems from the explosion of connected devices and a need for instant data processing that does not rely on a distant server.</p>
<p>Market analysts at GVR attributed this momentum to the expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT). Industry trends show a “rising focus on data privacy and localized intelligence at the network edge,” which allows companies to automate tasks without sending sensitive information to a central hub.</p>
<h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="mining-moves-to-the-global-south">Mining moves to the Global South</h2>
<p>A separate <a href="https://www.kucoin.com/blog/bitcoin-2026-revealed" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">report</a> from the crypto exchange KuCoin on Friday showed that while Bitcoin hardware is harder for individuals to own, the locations of these machines are spreading out globally.&nbsp;</p>
<p>High electricity prices in the United States have made <a href="https://crypto.news/bitcoin-mining-difficulty-set-for-7-5-drop-as-hash-rate-retreats/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">mining unprofitable</a> in certain regions, with costs to produce a single coin sometimes exceeding $100,000.</p>
<p>Operators are now seeking cheaper energy in places like Ethiopia and Paraguay, where hydroelectric power is plentiful. Such a move helps protect the network by ensuring it isn’t tied to the politics or power grids of just one or two nations.&nbsp;</p>
<p>According to KuCoin, “this decentralization of mining power across different continents enhances the security of the network by making it less vulnerable to any single country’s political or environmental shocks.”</p>
<p>Read more: <a href="https://crypto.news/ecb-backs-plan-to-move-oversight-of-major-crypto-firms-to-eu-markets-regulator/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow"> ECB backs plan to move oversight of major crypto firms to EU markets regulator </a></p>

Researcher suggests AI may decentralize just as Bitcoin mining turns industrial

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