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Dorsey and Musk's collaboration on a long-term solution could be a game-changer for global cryptocurrency adoption. (Image source: Reuters)
Blockstream CEO Adam Back said at the Bitcoin 2022 conference that Jack Dorsey and Tesla CEO Elon Musk have formed a new partnership to build a Bitcoin mine in Texas.
Former Twitter CEO and current Block Jack Dorsey and Tesla CEO Elon Musk have formed a new partnership to build a Bitcoin mine in Texas powered entirely by renewable energy. This fact was revealed by Adam Back, co-founder and CEO of Blockstream, another partner in the mine, at the Bitcoin 2022 conference in Miami on April 6.
The news comes just days after Musk bought 9% of Twitter shares to join its board. Now, Dorsey, Musk, and Back have successfully broken ground on a Bitcoin mine using Tesla's 3.8-megawatt solar PV array and 12-megawatt-hour megapack.
Blockstream CEO Adam Back told CNBC: “People like to discuss different things. [environmental] Factors related to Bitcoin mining. We thought, let's prove it. “We can have a public dashboard so people can play together and let other players know they’re joining.”
The dashboard is open to the public and displays real-time project information, including power generation and total Bitcoin mining volume. According to the company, solar and storage performance data points will be included in the latest version of the dashboard.
He also said, “This is a step towards proving our thesis that Bitcoin mining can fund emission-free power infrastructure and build economic growth for the future.”
Experts say the massive amount of energy required to mine Bitcoin is one of the most pressing issues.
According to the Cambridge Center for Alternative Finance (CCAF), Bitcoin currently consumes approximately 110 terawatt hours per year. This is equivalent to 0.55% of global electricity production and is roughly equivalent to the annual energy consumption of countries such as Malaysia or Sweden.
Bitcoin’s massive carbon footprint is due to its decentralized structure. This is because Bitcoin requires computers to solve increasingly complex mathematical problems to verify transactions. This proof-of-work consensus approach consumes significantly more energy than centralized network transaction verification.
But experts have long argued that scaling Bitcoin with current power sources is unrealistic. Dorsey and Musk's collaboration on a long-term solution could be a game-changer for global cryptocurrency adoption.
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