CoinDesk Podcast Network

THE MINING POD: Bitcoin Mining Isn't Dead w/ Steve Barbour

Upstream Data CEO and Founder Steve Barbour joins the pod to talk about the state of bitcoin mining and why he’s not sold on the hybrid AI-bitcoin miner trade.

Nov 25, 2025
Listen or watch all the new CoinDesk podcast episodes wherever you want.
Cast BoxiHeartiTunesPocket CastsRSSRadio PublicSpotify

ABOUT

Subscribe to the Blockspace newsletter for market-making news as it hits the wire!

Welcome back to The Mining Pod! Today, Haley Thomson, the director of energy trading at Luxor Technology, joins us to talk about how AI demand is impacting the ERCOT power market. For news, we break down Nvidia's Q3 earnings and the market's Thursday morning reversal, dissect a load growth report that suggests there are currently 166GW of US load growth demand through 2030, and discuss Cipher's $830M extension with Fluidstack. And for this week’s cry corner, The Financial Times is doing its best to report on AI like it has with Bitcoin.

**Notes:**

• Mining difficulty at all-time highs

• Energy partnerships crucial for profitability

• Home mining still viable for enthusiasts

• Public miners face market pressure

• Equipment costs down significantly

• Operational efficiency key to survival

👉CleanSpark, America's Bitcoin Miner!

CleanSpark (Nasdaq: CLSK), America's Bitcoin Miner®, is a market-leading Bitcoin miner with a proven track record of success. They own a fully self-operated portfolio of mining facilities across the U.S. powered by globally competitive energy prices. CleanSpark sits at the intersection of Bitcoin, energy, operational excellence and capital stewardship. Optimally monetizing low-cost, high reliability electricity positions them to prosper in an ever-changing world.

👉 FBOX, Cooling for Bitcoin Mining and the AI Data Center Transformation

FBOX is the global leader in cooling system manufacturing, with the #1 shipment volume of bitcoin mining containers worldwide. Not only powering for the strongest hashrate, their technology also helps mining infrastructure transform into AI data centers. Backed by the largest production scale on earth, global deployment capability, and a full range of cooling solutions, they are shaping the future of compute.

👉 Luxor, Leaders In Bitcoin Mining and Compute Power!

Get game-changing mining results with Luxor Firmware. Boost hashrate, cut energy costs, protect your hardware, and maximize mining profits with LuxOS.

Published twice weekly, "The Mining Pod" interviews the best builders and operators in the Bitcoin and Bitcoin mining landscape. Subscribe to get notifications when we publish interviews on Tuesday and a news show on Friday!