Bitcoin Miners Surge on Speculation of OpenAI-Driven Energy Demand

The price of bitcoin (BTC) remains stuck in the mud and corporate bitcoin treasury firms have gone through a full boom-and-bust cycle in a matter of weeks, but the BTC miners have been in major bull mode thanks to artificial intelligence and high-performance computing as a new growth driver. The action continued on Wednesday, with the sector posting big gains, led by Riot Platforms (RIOT) and IREN (IREN), each ahead about 13%. Hut 8 (HUT), CleanSpark (CLSK) and Bit Digital (BTBT) were up closer to 6%. From the April lows, IREN has been the standout performer, gaining nearly 500%. Fueling the momentum today is news that OpenAI , Oracle (ORCL), and SoftBank are accelerating their Stargate AI infrastructure program, with five new U.S. data center sites. The expansion will bring nearly 7 gigawatts of planned capacity and over $400 billion in investment, with a goal of reaching 10 gigawatts by the end of 2025, according to Open AI. The sheer scale of speculation for AI demand could be entering "bubble territory" but AI miners are one of the main beneficiaries of the capital and infrastructure needed to meet those massive energy requirements. Even traditional pure-play BTC miners like Riot Platforms (RIOT) and CleanSpark (CLSK) are now moving into AI and high-performance computing and their stocks have both benefitted, with RIOT up 85% year-to-date and CLSK ahead 55%. Interestingly, MARA Holdings (MARA) in recent months pivoted to more of a bitcoin treasury play and it's underperforming most of the sector, gaining just 10% in 2025.