Intel Launches Cryptocurrency Mining Initiative
Intel will release its first crypto-focused chip, dubbed "blockchain accelerator", later this year
Intel is investing in blockchain technology with a new chip designed to mine cryptocurrencies. The chipmaker said on Friday that it will begin selling the chip customised to mine Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies later this year. Block (previously Square) and two mining businesses, Argo Blockchain and Griid Infrastructure, are among its first customers. Mining is a computationally-intensive process for cryptocurrencies that records transactions on a globally shared database known as the blockchain. A new coin is awarded to the first miner who solves a difficult computing task.
In a blog post, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Intel's Accelerated Computing Systems and Graphics Group Raja M Koduri said the company declares its “intent to contribute to the development of blockchain technologies, with a roadmap of energy-efficient accelerators”.
In the blog post, Koduri further stated that the company will “engage and promote an open and secure blockchain ecosystem and will help advance this technology in a responsible and sustainable way”.
He added that they were aware that some blockchains necessitated a significant amount of computer power, which, unfortunately, equated to a significant quantity of energy.
“Our customers are asking for scalable and sustainable solutions, which is why we are focusing our efforts on realising the full potential of blockchain by developing the most energy-efficient computing technologies at scale,” stated the blog post.
Intel will release its first crypto-focused chip, dubbed “blockchain accelerator”, later this year.
According to Koduri, the mining ASICs will provide “1000x better
Read more on ndtv.com
