Core Scientific to exit Bitcoin mining by year-end as AI colocation hits $215M
Author: Crypffalo Research · 07:53 06/11/2026
Core Scientific expects to wind down all Bitcoin mining in Q4 2026 as AI colocation brought in $215.4 million, roughly 92% of its third-quarter revenue.
Core Scientific (Nasdaq: CORZ), once one of the largest publicly traded Bitcoin miners in the U.S., plans to shut down its Bitcoin mining business entirely by Dec 31, 2026. CFO Jim Nygaard confirmed the timeline on the company's third-quarter earnings call on Thursday, Nov 5.
The numbers explain the move. AI-focused colocation brought in $215.4 million in the quarter, while all Bitcoin mining activity generated just $17.5 million, or 7.5% of total revenue of $232.9 million.
Key takeaways
- Decision: Core Scientific expects to finish winding down mining in Q4 2026 and enter 2027 as a pure-play colocation provider.
- Q3 revenue: $232.9 million, including $215.4 million from colocation, $12.3 million from self-mining and $5.2 million from hosting.
- Shrinking fleet: Miners online at the end of September were down nearly 50% from the end of 2025.
- Industry backdrop: More miners are pivoting to AI as weak Bitcoin prices and low hashprice squeeze margins.
- BTC price: Bitcoin traded near $76,200, down about 5.5% over 24 hours, per Cointelegraph data.
From mining heavyweight to AI landlord
Core Scientific began hosting AI workloads in 2024 through deals with CoreWeave. At the time, the company stressed that it would keep its Bitcoin mining capacity alongside the new business.
That stance shifted quickly in 2026. In July, the company disclosed that hosted mining would end by Dec 31. Management has now confirmed that self-mining will wind down on the same timeline.
Mining revenue has fallen sharply from a year earlier:
- Self-mining: down to $12.3 million from $57.4 million.
- Hosted mining: down to $5.2 million from $8.7 million.
- Colocation: $215.4 million, roughly 92% of quarterly revenue.
Mining economics kept getting worse
In Q1 2026, Core Scientific booked $266.5 million in mining-related impairments. It cited weaker Bitcoin prices, low hashprice and falling secondary-market prices for mining rigs.
In Q2, it terminated a mining equipment agreement with Block and Proto, taking a $41.9 million loss. Q3 GAAP net income came in around $1.2 billion, but that was driven mainly by a non-cash warrant fair-value gain. Adjusted EBITDA was $133.6 million.
On the same day, Trump-linked American Bitcoin reported a $126 million Q3 profit. Most of that came from marking up its bitcoin holdings, and revenue still missed estimates.
What it means for crypto markets
The news is unlikely to create meaningful direct selling pressure on Bitcoin, since Core Scientific's mining operation had already shrunk. BTC is currently being driven mainly by the tech-stock selloff and more than $1 billion in crypto liquidations on Nov 5.
- Bull case: When a large miner switches off, network difficulty adjusts lower at the next epoch, improving margins for remaining miners and reducing their need to sell coins to cover costs.
- Risk case: If the exodus spreads to mid-sized miners, hashrate could concentrate among fewer operators with cheap power. Weaker miners may also be forced to sell bitcoin reserves at depressed prices.
Longer term, the story shows AI repricing the power and data center infrastructure that once served Bitcoin. Miner stocks are increasingly trading as an AI infrastructure play rather than a pure BTC proxy.
What to watch next
- The next Bitcoin difficulty adjustment and network hashrate trends.
- Q3 results from other listed miners and their AI pivot plans.
- How tech stocks trade after the sharp Nov 5 selloff.
- Check our economic calendar and real-time liquidations for updates.
Frequently Asked Questions
Will Core Scientific sell bitcoin into the market?
The company did not announce any specific bitcoin sale plan in this update. Its mining output had already dropped sharply, so the direct supply impact is seen as limited.
Does Core Scientific's exit make Bitcoin less secure?
Not directly. Other miners gradually absorb the departing hashrate, and difficulty resets every 2,016 blocks.
Why are miners pivoting to AI?
Using the same power infrastructure, AI data center leasing currently delivers steadier and much higher revenue than Bitcoin mining at low hashprice.
*This content is for information only and is not financial advice.*
Tags: Bitcoin, Mining, Core Scientific, AI
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