Justin Ballard (@JLB_Oso) and Jake Corley (@jacobcorley) regroup to riff on miner-to-AI megadeals, gas-to-power plays, and a modular ASIC that could reset fleet economics.
AI x Power x Bitcoin
This week we break down:
TeraWulf × Google – a 10-year, 200 MW hosting deal (headline $3.7B; options could push multiyear value far higher) and why clean, reliable electrons (nuke/hydro) earn a premium—and might end in outright M&A.
Who’s Next? – the consolidation map: why Bitfarms (and possibly IREN/Iris) look “target-ready,” what MARA/RIOT are more likely to do, and how miner stock spikes telegraph hyperscaler interest.
CoreWeave–Core Scientific Playbook – how long-dated revenue agreements morph into acquisitions when the real prize is energized, rack-ready capacity.
Coterra’s Power Option – a 7-year gas sale to CPV’s 1.3 GW CCGT in Ward County with the right to buy ~250 MW/day indexed to ERCOT West—the first true Permian netback template and what it signals for E&Ps.
Turbines, Permits & Sudoku – deposits and long lead times, GPA/air permits (NOx/CO₂), and the catch-22 between offtakes and hardware—why scale + compliance + capital win.
Block’s Proto Miner – Apple-clean design, rack-side sub-90-second repairs (as pitched), modular hashboards, open-source fleet software, and a 10-year design life—what that does to uptime and capex cycles.
The AI Arms Race – trillion-dollar capex, billion-dollar talent bids, China’s generation build-out, and why power-secure brownfield beats greenfield timelines.
Where to Find Us IRL – Permian Power Conference (Midland, Sep 29–30) + Texas Capitol investor day/North American Blockchain Summit (Dallas, October).