TLDR
- CleanSpark appointed Jeffrey Thomas as senior vice president of AI data centers to lead its expansion into AI infrastructure
- The company identified Georgia as a strategic region for AI development and secured additional power contracts in College Park near Atlanta
- CleanSpark stock rose over 13% on Monday and has gained 140% year-to-date in 2025
- Core Scientific previously signed a $3.5 billion deal with CoreWeave to provide 200 megawatts of AI infrastructure
- Bitdeer is developing a 570-megawatt AI campus in Ohio with utility power expected by late 2026
CleanSpark announced plans to expand into artificial intelligence data center infrastructure on Monday. The Nasdaq-listed Bitcoin mining company appointed Jeffrey Thomas as senior vice president of AI data centers to oversee the initiative.
CleanSpark $CLSK Targets Gigawatts for AI Data Centers
CEO Matt Schultz's strategy: secure gigawatts under contract first. "Priority one is power and land because that is as scarce as it comes." Meta and peers seek 500-1,000 megawatt sites—full gigawatt deployments.
CleanSpark… pic.twitter.com/SExyriRRP7
— Treasury Edge (@TreasuryEdge) October 17, 2025
Thomas previously served as president of AI Data Centers at Saudi AI company Humain. In that role, he led Saudi Arabia’s multi-billion dollar AI data center program. According to CleanSpark, Thomas created over $12 billion in shareholder value across 19 ventures during his career.
The company identified Georgia as a key location for its AI expansion. CleanSpark recently signed contracts for additional power and real estate in College Park to serve the Atlanta metro area. The company is also evaluating larger campus opportunities across its existing portfolio.
Scott Garrison, chief development officer at CleanSpark, stated the company reviewed its entire portfolio to assess AI suitability. The evaluation process considered both conversion of existing facilities and new expansion opportunities.
Investors responded positively to the announcement. CleanSpark shares rose more than 13% on Monday. The stock has climbed 140% year-to-date in 2025.
Bitcoin Miners Turn to AI Services
Other major Bitcoin mining companies have made similar moves since 2024. Core Scientific announced a $3.5 billion deal with AI cloud provider CoreWeave in June 2024. The agreement provides 200 megawatts of infrastructure to support high-performance computing operations over 12 years.
Core Scientific had filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in 2022. The company returned to Nasdaq before launching its AI services. Core Scientific currently ranks as the world’s largest Bitcoin mining firm by market capitalization.
Hut 8 launched GPU-as-a-Service through a new subsidiary called Highrise AI in September 2024. The company received $150 million from Coatue Management in June to support AI computing expansion.
AI Data Center Valuations Rise
Recent market activity has increased valuations for data center infrastructure. BlackRock and Nvidia acquired Aligned Data Centers for $40 billion. The deal valued data center capacity at approximately $8 million per megawatt, about 160% higher than current valuations for listed Bitcoin miners.
Bitdeer Technologies is building a 570-megawatt campus in Clarington, Ohio. The company expects utility power to arrive by late 2026, nearly one year ahead of the original schedule. Bitdeer is also reviewing its 175-megawatt Norway site for potential AI conversion.
Benchmark analysts noted Bitdeer’s decision to handle AI data center development in-house could improve profit margins. The firm valued Bitdeer at six times projected 2026 revenue. Bitdeer shares rose more than 9% on Monday to $26.20.
Iris Energy and Bitfarms have also added AI and data center services to their business models. CleanSpark plans to deliver high-value compute services to the Atlanta metro area through its College Park facilities.
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