Whether measured in exahash per second or gigawatts, computing has become the essential commodity of the 21st century. Just as crude oil powered the industrial age, computing now powers the digital age. I think smart investors who recognize this will benefit the most.
Global capital has been flooding into artificial intelligence (AI) and data centers. In June, data center construction spending in the United States hit an all-time high of $40 billion, up 30% from the same month last year, according to Bank of America.
Governments are not standing idly by. Washington recently acquired an $8.9 billion equity stake in Intel, the United Kingdom has pledged billions for supercomputers, and defense budgets around the world are increasing with an emphasis on AI-enabled systems from drones to satellites.
Computing is now a strategic asset and nations are hoarding it just as they do barrels of oil and gold.
Sustainable bitcoin mining on a global scale
Nowhere is this more obvious, perhaps, than in Bitcoin. The world’s most secure decentralized network is based entirely on raw computing power. Bitcoin miners convert energy into digital scarcity, producing the blocks that underpin a $2 trillion asset class.
We’ve seen firsthand how computing drives growth. Last month, we surpassed 20 exahash per second of global mining capacity, making us responsible for approximately 2% of the Bitcoin network. That translates to approximately nine new bitcoins mined each day, with an efficiency of 18 joules per terahash.
I believe today’s investors want more than just profitability: they want sustainable come back. That’s why green energy, powered by low-cost, renewable hydropower on multiple continents, is critical to a successful bitcoin mining strategy. As Bitcoin continues to enjoy adoption, institutional investors should think of the asset as part of a broader allocation to digital infrastructure, along with semiconductors, data centers and artificial intelligence platforms.
Computing emerges as the defining asset of the century
It’s clear to me that computing is becoming its own asset class. In a recent survey, 95% of major investors told CBRE that they plan to increase their exposure to data center investments this year.
In the 20th century, investors who understood energy shaped industries and built enormous fortunes. In this century, the product that matters most is computing, whether mining bitcoins or training artificial intelligence models.
It is the foundation of the digital age and the resource that will define this century. When combined with sustainable energy, the potential long-term value for investors is limitless.
