So, Jack Dorsey's company Block just dropped their first prototype of the 'hashboard' for the Mining Development Kit (MDK) and it's out there for everyone to see.
This kit is all about helping devs whip up cool stuff for Bitcoin mining hardware. The hashboard's design is all about being open source and paving the way for future upgrades. It's got 100 Intel Blockscale 1000 series ASIC chips lined up in a grid, fitting perfectly with standard miner setups (like three-board packs) and popular power supplies (like the apw12). Plus, to keep it running efficiently, the ASICs are cooled using aluminum heat sinks.
Block's really hoping that when the MDK hashboard hits the market next year, it will not only boost industrial mining but also spark a bunch of fresh mining applications.
If you're curious and want to dig deeper into the hashboard, check out the article linked below:
I've been waiting for information on Intel chips for a long time. Intel sold this business at a loss.
We have seen new ASICs of Bitmain and competitors, and these not new chips from Intel will find it difficult to compete with new ASICs with energy efficiency below 20 J/TH.
Intel cancelled *their* production but sold all the IP and production rights to Block.
With all the design work done and a proven chip making process already established, Block just has to schedule a slot in Foundry production. Considering that a few years ago Intel reopened their Foundry services to outside companies, making more of the chips should not be a problem.
Only problem I see with the chips is that they a less efficient than current bleeding-edge ones from BM, microBt or even Canaan.
Yeah, I mentioned that in another discussion someplace. They made the announcement that they were buying the IP - production - whatever and then went silent until this announcement.
So unless there has been a lot of silent work, they are a year behind with R&D on chips & tech that were not as efficient as others to begin with.
NOW, they could have been doing a ton of things and not discussion them. But, seems doubtful.
-Dave
From their blog posts, doesn't seem like they plan to improve the efficiency or for their next chips at all. At least that doesn't seem to be the case for their next-generation board. Their target seems to be related to heat reuse, and while traditional mining is mentioned, I doubt that is their main goal. I'm pretty sure they know their chips are behind in performance. CMIIW.
IF and that is a big IF they are working on the next - next gen and plan to make it pin and board compatible with these chips I could see it.
Buy this, and build and test. When the newer & faster chips are available then it's simple to produce.
But, beyond that, it's better to use the faster and more efficient chips that are out there for heat reuse or anything else.
-Dave
I guess that's true. This makes me wonder why they think launching this product is a good idea, pretty sure they realized that customers would prefer an efficient machine. Is there any market that will buy this, or do they really consider this as a research project and have a bigger margin for loss? However, they can probably avoid that if the customer needs to pre-order before they start making the rig.
I'm also waiting for the characteristics of the new chips. If these chips are at the level of S19 series chips, then this product will not be competitive in the market. It takes a lot of money to develop something new.
If you need to heat water, you can buy ASIC S19 series cheaply, which after halving will not be very profitable.