Bernstein on Friday put out a note about the competitive advantages bitcoin miners have for artificial intelligence infrastructure. Iren, Bitfarms, CleanSpark and TeraWulf all charged higher early Friday, but reversed as the stock market fell on President Donald Trump threatened "massive" tariffs against China. Coinbase also reached a custodial agreement with Solana Company.
Bernstein in a Friday report said that bitcoin miners are surprise winners in the AI infrastructure boom, The Block reported, due to access to pre-secured, high-density power capacity. The need for such access makes bitcoin miners critical partners for AI cloud providers who face interconnection delays and rising grid connection.
The report noted that bitcoin miners have collectively locked up access to more than 14 gigawatts of grid-connected power, with much of it in regions with surplus renewable energy. The ready infrastructure could cut AI data center deployment timelines by as much as 75%. That gives miners a head start over other greenfield developers, who have multiyear interconnection timelines, according to the firm.
Bernstein noted that bitcoin miners began securing power infrastructure in early 2019 to 2021. They are now able to offer scalable power capacity and infrastructure specifically designed for compute-intensive operations. "Access to the grid has become a very scarce resource in the U.S.," the analysts wrote.
Bernstein named Iren as its top pick. The firm maintained its outperform rating on the shares and kept its 75 price target on IREN stock.
Bitcoin Miners Advance
Iren fell 6.4% Friday after popping 7% in early trade. IREN stock has rallied more than 508% so far this year.
Bitfarms pared its gain to less than 1%, but is still trading at March 2022 highs. BITF stock is up about 182% in 2025.
CleanSpark reversed for a 4% decline Friday. CLSK stock has trended higher from a cup breakout on Sept. 19, with a 109% advance this year.
TeraWulf ticked down following a 12% gain early Friday. WULF stock has rallied 139% in 2025.
Bitcoin on Friday afternoon fell near $116,700 $121,500, retreating from its Monday record near $126,200. Bitcoin is up 25% so far this year.
Coinbase and Solana Company on Friday entered an agreement with the crypto exchange to serve as one of its custodians. Solana Company also tapped BitGo and Anchorage Digital as custodians as it continues to amass the SOL token.
Coinbase shares fell 7.8% Friday, with a 44% advance in 2025.
COIN stock is trading in a cup base toward a 444.64 buy point.
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