The Bitcoin network hash rate has declined to its lowest level in four months, falling below the 1 zetahash threshold despite recent improvements in mining economics.
Network computing power sits at 993 exahashes per second on a seven-day moving average as of Jan. 19, according to Hashrate Index data. The metric dropped below 1,000 EH/s on Jan. 18 for the first time since mid-September, representing a 14.2% decline from its Oct. 19 peak of 1,157 EH/s.
Miners Pivot to Artificial Intelligence Computing
StandardHash CEO Leon Lyu attributed the drop to miners redirecting electricity toward artificial intelligence computing services. Last year, TheMinerMag characterized 2025 as the harshest margin environment in Bitcoin mining history due to collapsing revenue and mounting debt obligations.
Mining facilities feature large-scale power infrastructure and cooling systems originally built for SHA-256 hashing but easily repurposed for AI workloads. Many operators have pivoted toward high-performance computing as Bitcoin mining profitability remains under pressure.
Opaque Market Dynamics and Declining Hash Rate
Lyu suggested some manufacturers, including Bitmain, may be deploying surplus machines through indirect arrangements not captured in public reporting. He said this opacity could mean reported hash rate figures underestimate actual network capacity.
The decline comes despite four consecutive downward difficulty adjustments since Nov. 12, dropping from 156 trillion to 146.5 trillion. Lower difficulty reduces the computational work required to find blocks, theoretically improving miner economics.
Hashprice has also improved, rising from $37.15 to $40 per petahash per day over the past month. The metric indicates how much revenue miners generate per unit of computing power, with higher figures signaling better profitability conditions.
Lyu said the data confirms intense pressure on mining operations as AI directly competes for grid capacity. While manufacturers add their own surplus hardware to networks, the net outflow of hash rate demonstrates continued economic stress across the sector.