Digital Power Network Calls on Congress to Recognize Bitcoin Miners as Critical to U.S. AI Infrastructure
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Washington, D.C. — The Digital Power Network (DPN), the nation’s leading coalition of Bitcoin miners and digital infrastructure developers, today submitted a letter for the record to the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, Subcommittee on Research & Technology, ahead of its hearing on “Advancing America’s AI Action Plan.”
In its letter, DPN applauds the Subcommittee’s focus on accelerating U.S. leadership in artificial intelligence and urges Congress to formally recognize the essential role that Bitcoin miners and flexible computing infrastructure play in supporting the nation’s AI ecosystem.
The White House’s Winning the Race: America’s AI Action Plan identifies domestic data center development as a cornerstone of national competitiveness, economic security, and technological leadership. DPN emphasized that many Bitcoin miners are already modifying and leasing their facilities to support AI workloads, making them an indispensable part of America’s computing backbone.
“America cannot lead the world in AI without building the digital and energy infrastructure to support it,” said the Digital Power Network. “Bitcoin miners are not just computing operators, they are grid-integrated, flexible, and increasingly dual-use facilities that can support both AI growth and grid reliability. Federal policy must catch up to this reality.”
Grid-Integrated Infrastructure That Enables Growth
DPN’s submission highlights that data centers, particularly those operated by or in partnership with Bitcoin miners, are deeply integrated with the electric grid. These facilities often fund major grid upgrades, sign long-term power contracts, and create new capacity for additional load to interconnect.
A February 2025 Duke University study found that flexible data centers can create substantial “headroom” for the grid, allowing up to 126 GW of new load to connect with minimal curtailment. Similarly, Goldman Sachs has identified demand-side flexibility as a key solution to preventing an AI-driven energy crunch.
Bitcoin miners, in particular, offer unmatched flexibility. In 2023 alone, miners curtailed nearly 888 GWh of electricity through demand-response participation, according to the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance.
Policy Recommendations
DPN urged Congress and the Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) to align AI and infrastructure policy with real-world deployment needs by:
Designating Bitcoin mining as critical infrastructure
Supporting domestic semiconductor manufacturing, including ASICs
Driving energy and grid technology innovation
Recognizing Mining as Critical Infrastructure
While AI data centers are increasingly recognized as critical infrastructure by federal agencies, Bitcoin mining has largely been excluded, despite its growing role in AI deployment and grid stabilization. DPN argues that formal recognition by the Department of Homeland Security is a national security imperative.
Securing the Semiconductor Supply Chain
DPN also called on Congress to expand CHIPS Act eligibility to include application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), which power much of the digital infrastructure supporting both mining and AI. Onshoring this supply chain would improve efficiency, resilience, and U.S. competitiveness.
Modernizing the Grid Through Innovation
Finally, DPN emphasized the need for federal investment in grid modernization tools, including advanced metering, real-time data integration, and distributed energy technologies that allow large flexible loads to function as virtual power plants.
“America’s AI leadership depends on more than algorithms, it depends on power, compute, and resilience,” DPN concluded. “Bitcoin miners are already delivering all three.”
Read DPN’s full submission to the House Science, Space, and Technology Subcommittee here.
About the Digital Power Network (DPN):
The Digital Power Network (DPN) is the largest coalition of Bitcoin miners and digital infrastructure leaders in the United States, representing over 85% of the Bitcoin hash rate among publicly traded U.S. mining companies. DPN advocates for policies that promote energy innovation, grid resilience, economic development, and the strategic role of digital assets in the 21st-century economy.