Jack Dorsey’s Block to improve Bitcoin mining hardware

What

Jack Dorsey’s Block (formally Square) has announced it’s working on new open source systems for Bitcoin mining to solve current problems faced by miners, as outlined by Thomas Templeton, Block’s General Manager for hardware.

Why

Bitcoin mining hardware is often hard to find and inefficient, Templeton said. By creating a lower barrier to entry with a new system, Block hopes to make mining more accessible and resolve common issues for mining operations, such as unreliability, noisy machines and high rates of power consumption.

What next

In a Twitter thread, Templeton said he wants the project to be developed “alongside the community” and aims to “make mining more distributed and efficient in every way, from buying, to setting up, to maintenance, to mining”.

The story

Block has announced it is planning to improve Bitcoin mining capabilities by creating a new product that makes Bitcoin mining “fully decentralised and permissionless.”

Currently Bitcoin requires expensive hardware that prices out many people from participating in Bitcoin mining. Block proposes creating new ASIC’s — Bitcoin mining machines — that are more efficient. 

The project will be open source, with Templeton saying that better machines are not just about Bitcoin, but are a crucial component to a more decentralised and permissionless future.

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