Shares of Riot Platforms jumped nearly 9% Wednesday after activist investor Starboard Value published a blunt letter pushing the bitcoin miner to accelerate a strategic pivot: turn more of its power-heavy mining sites into high-margin AI and high-performance computing (AI/HPC) hosting centers. Why Starboard thinks Riot can move fast - Riot controls about 1.7 gigawatts of fully available power — a scarce asset in today’s energy-constrained data-center market — and Starboard says that capacity makes Riot “well positioned to execute high-quality AI/HPC deals.” - The letter singles out Riot’s Texas sites in Corsicana and Rockdale as “premier” locations for data-center conversion and hosting major AI workloads. The financial upside Starboard lays out - If Riot monetizes its power in line with recent transactions in the AI hosting space, Starboard estimates the company “could generate more than $1.6 billion” in annual EBITDA. - The activist praised Riot’s existing AMD deal, forecast to bring in roughly $311 million over 10 years, as a constructive step toward that strategy. Context and shareholder pressure - Starboard was Riot’s fourth-largest shareholder at the end of last year and this is not new pressure: in December 2024 the firm asked Riot to convert some bitcoin-mining sites into HPC-capable data centers. - The group urged CEO Jason Les and Executive Chairman Benjamin Yi to act “with urgency” to position Riot as a long-term infrastructure provider for AI workloads. Where Riot stands today - With a market cap near $4.25 billion, Riot is the fifth-largest U.S. bitcoin miner. Its stock is up about 19% over the past year, but still roughly 80% below its 2021 bitcoin-era highs. - Starboard also noted that Riot has lagged peers such as IREN, Cipher Mining and Hut 8, which moved faster to embrace AI strategies. Why this matters for crypto and AI - Riot’s core business remains bitcoin mining, but leasing power and space to AI customers could diversify revenue as large, power-hungry models (like OpenAI’s GPT-4o and others) increase demand for specialized data-center capacity. - Access to large blocks of power is a competitive advantage in an environment where many operators are constrained by energy availability. What to watch next - Investors will be watching for any formal response from Riot’s management, new AI/HPC deals, or moves to reconfigure facilities at Corsicana and Rockdale that would signal a faster pivot into AI hosting. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news

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