AI giant rents capacity from miner: Riot and Anthropic's $9.1 billion deal changes the game
American Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms has signed a historic agreement that marks the industry's definitive shift from cryptocurrency mining to high-performance computing. A 20-year data center capacity lease contract has been signed with Anthropic, one of the leading laboratories in the field of artificial intelligence.
Details of the unprecedented deal
Under the agreement, effective until June 2048, Anthropic will lease 191 MW of capacity at Riot's Texas campus in Rockdale. Expected revenue from the agreement will amount to approximately $9.1 billion, but taking into account two five-year extension options, the potential value of the deal could reach $16.1 billion. The first 96 MW will be commissioned by December 2027, with the full capacity volume by June 2028. Initial construction investments of $573 million will be partially financed by Morgan Stanley.
Financial results amid transformation
Alongside the deal announcement, Riot reported its financial results for the second quarter. The company's revenue grew by 14% to $174.2 million, distributed across three segments: data centers brought in $23.2 million, Bitcoin mining — $113.7 million, and engineering — $37.3 million. At the same time, the net loss amounted to $237.2 million compared to a profit of $219.5 million a year earlier.
During the quarter, the company mined 1,587 BTC and ended the period with more than $1.2 billion in liquid assets, including 11,380 BTC and $548.9 million in cash. Riot CEO Jason Les noted that in less than seven months, the company signed lease agreements for 241 MW, equivalent to approximately $9.8 billion in long-term contract revenue with two major players in the AI sector.
Market reaction
The market responded positively to the news: on August 10, Riot shares on Nasdaq closed down 5.4%, but the very next day they soared more than 23%, approaching the $24 mark. The new deal continues the January agreement with AMD and confirms the company's strategic pivot from mining to AI infrastructure, initiated in 2025. Core Scientific, IREN, Applied Digital, TeraWulf, and Hut 8 are making similar bets. Recall that in August, Anthropic also signed a $10 billion deal with Volta Infra Holdings.
My view: this deal is not just diversification, but an actual recognition that miners' energy assets have become a critically important resource for the AI industry. $9.1 billion in guaranteed revenue for 20 years ahead is a financial cushion that will allow Riot to survive any Bitcoin volatility cycles. The only question is how many more miners will manage to repurpose themselves before competition for these contracts becomes even more intense.