Bitcoin Miner Riot Must Embrace $21 Billion AI Opportunity, Says Activist Investor

In brief

• Publicly traded Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms must move more quickly if it wants to take advantage of a major opportunity in AI, an activist investor wrote Wednesday.
• Starboard Value sees as much as a $21 billion valuation bump if Riot captures its potential in the sector.
• In that scenario, shares could jump as high as $53, more than 240% from its Wednesday closing price.

Publicly traded Bitcoin miner Riot Platforms “has a tremendous opportunity for value creation” via the empowerment of AI data centers to power the growing high-performance computing industry, activist investor Starboard Value wrote in a letter to Riot’s CEO and Executive Chairman.  But the clock is ticking, it claimed. “By removing distractions and streamlining expenses, Riot is now positioned to focus on executing its AI/HPC strategy,” Starboard Value Managing Member Peter Feld wrote. “But to get the full benefit of this strategic transformation, Riot must complete its governance and operational transformation.” 

The Bitcoin miner is one of a handful of publicly traded mining firms that have begun a transition into AI, banking on the energy capabilities of its mining sites. In January, Riot inked its first data center deal with Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), and it recently dumped around $200 million in Bitcoin that some analysts believe will help fund its continued expansion into the sector. But the firm, which said in its Q3 earnings presentation that its “approach to Bitcoin mining had evolved,” may be moving too slowly for Starboard’s taste. “Riot’s share price has materially underperformed peers who have signed sizable AI/HPC deals,” Feld wrote. “Although this underperformance is frustrating, we believe that Riot is better positioned to do higher-quality deals than its peers. Time is of the essence, and a renewed sense of urgency is required to get more material deals completed.” To date, AI deals signed by Riot’s competitors have stretched into the billions of dollars, some of which have been backstopped by leading firms like Google.

Starboard believes that the opportunity for Riot, because of the attractive nature of its sites, could amount to as much as a $21 billion valuation bump—about four times the size of the firm’s current market cap.  “We believe the equity value contribution from AI/HPC data centers at Corsicana and Rockdale could be $9 to $21 billion, dwarfing Riot’s current market cap,” Feld said, based on estimates from his firm. “Taking into account Riot’s net cash balance, this would imply that Riot is worth between $23 and $53 per share.”  Shares in the firm finished the day up nearly 6% on Wednesday, changing hands at $15.49. That represents a jump of more than 25% in the last six months, but a leap to $53 would see another 242% gain for shareholders. Decrypt reached out to Riot Platforms for comment on the Starboard letter, but did not immediately receive a response.