Specs for Intel’s Second Generation ‘Bonanza Mine’ Revealed

Information included in a recent SEC filing from Bitcoin mining company GRIID revealed details about Intel’s second generation “Bonanza Mine” Bitcoin miner. The mining system, referred to as BMZ2, apparently provides 135 TH/s at 3510W, with an efficiency of 26 J/THs. The miner is priced at nearly half the cost of a Bitmain S19 Pro and is 15% more efficient. The filing did not specifically name Intel as the provider, however key details like pricing and production capacity align with GRIID’s supply agreement disclosures with the US-based semiconductor giant.

News of Intel’s entrance into Bitcoin mining first came to light when they listed a presentation called “Bonanza Mine: An Ultra-Low-Voltage Energy-Efficient Bitcoin Mining ASIC” in the program for the 2022 International Solid State Circuit Conference. Prior to the conference, Senior VP at Intel, Raja Koduri, wrote in a company blog post and emphasized their heavy focus on energy efficiency while designing their new mining system.

At the conference, they revealed details about the first generation of “Bonanza Mine” (BMZ1), which included 300 chips and delivered up to 40TH/s at 3600-Watts of power. These details were underwhelming for many in the Bitcoin community and placed Intel’s mining system far behind their competition. For comparison, Bitmain's Antminer S19j Pro 104T delivers 104 TH/s at 3068-Watts and their S19j XP delivers 140 TH/s at 3010-Watts.

The technical specs for BMZ2 are much more promising. Compared to BMZ1, the second generation system provides approximately 3.4-times the hashrate and is nearly twice as efficient (26 J/TH for BMZ2 versus 54-60 J/TH for BMZ1). While Bitmain’s S19j XP still delivers higher hashrate and better efficiency, the BMZ2 beats the Bitmain S19j Pro, the MicroBT Whatsminer M30S++, and the Bitfury Clarke. 

GRIID’s filing claims that the BMZ2 costs $5,625 per miner, roughly half that of Bitmain S19j Pros, which are typically priced at $10,500. However, pricing for the S19j Pro can fluctuate, as Bitmain, and other Bitcoin hardware providers, adjust prices regularly based on Bitcoin's spot valuation and the projected payoff time. Additionally, Intel is based in the U.S., which reduces delivery time and eliminates tariffs placed on imports, at least for their American customers. In addition to GRIID, Intel has publicly announced agreements with BLOCK (formerly known as Square) and Argo Blockchain.