Core Scientific Eyes Full Exit from Bitcoin Mining by 2027
Core Scientific, once a dominant force in Bitcoin mining, is charting a course to become a dedicated data center provider by 2027, with cryptocurrency mining now representing a mere 7.5% of its quarterly revenue. The company anticipates completing its withdrawal from Bitcoin mining by the close of 2026, redirecting its business focus towards infrastructure for artificial intelligence and high-performance computing.
“We expect to complete the wind-down during the fourth quarter and enter 2027 as a pure-play, high-density colocation provider,” stated Core Scientific Chief Financial Officer Jim Nygaard during a third-quarter earnings call on Thursday.
This timeline aligns with previous disclosures made in a July quarterly filing, which indicated that hosted mining operations would cease by December 31, as the company continued to phase out its self-mining activities. The latest comments solidify a target completion date for its complete departure from Bitcoin mining.
The company’s most recent quarterly results underscore the significant business transformation underway. In the third quarter, self-mining revenue plummeted to $12.3 million, a sharp decline from $57.4 million a year prior. Revenue from hosting other miners also decreased, falling to $5.2 million from $8.7 million.
Overall, Bitcoin mining contributed just $17.5 million, or 7.5%, to Core Scientific’s $232.9 million in third-quarter revenue. In contrast, colocation services generated $215.4 million. Nygaard noted that by the end of September, the company had nearly 50% fewer miners online compared to the close of 2025.
Core Scientific’s strategic pivot to AI hosting gained momentum in 2024, marked by an initial hosting agreement with CoreWeave in March, followed by a substantially larger deal announced in June. At the time of the June announcement, Core Scientific presented AI hosting as an expansion alongside its existing mining operations, with an emphasis on preserving Bitcoin mining capacity. However, by December 2025, The Wall Street Journal reported that the company was already targeting a 2028 exit from Bitcoin mining.
Economic pressures within the mining sector intensified in the months that followed. Core Scientific recorded $266.5 million in mining-related asset impairments in the first quarter of 2026, citing a combination of weaker Bitcoin prices, historically low hashprice, and declining values for digital asset mining equipment on the secondary market. Further illustrating the transition, the company terminated its mining equipment agreement with Block and Proto in the second quarter, incurring a $41.9 million loss as part of the operational shift.
This planned exit from mining occurs amidst a backdrop of evolving political landscapes, as U.S. election results introduce new uncertainties for companies investing heavily in AI infrastructure. Reuters reported on Wednesday that opponents of data center development were among the beneficiaries of significant Democratic gains in the midterm elections. Concerns surrounding electricity consumption and the strain large facilities place on local resources are central to the growing backlash against data center expansion.
Cointelegraph reached out to Core Scientific for comment.
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