Nick Rose Expands Into Large-Scale Bitcoin Mining and AI; Projects Developing World Win in Data Center Race

As artificial intelligence investment surpasses half a trillion dollars, crypto miners are increasingly repurposing their infrastructure to operate AI data centers, especially in North America and Western Europe. Web3 veteran and investor Rick Rose argues that developing markets—often overlooked due to perceived regulatory risk—offer a major advantage.

The Western Focus: Capital, Stability, and Power Constraints

With over half a trillion dollars now being poured into the artificial intelligence (AI) industry—a figure that is rapidly accelerating the race for computational supremacy—a highly strategic shift is underway: some cryptocurrency miners are aggressively pivoting to become AI data center operators. This transition is less about opportunism and more about a calculated strategy to leverage their existing assets to capitalize on the AI boom.

Most of this expansion is currently concentrated in established, energy-stressed regions like North America and select Western European countries. These markets are favored due to their perceived political stability, mature capital markets, and existing network infrastructure, creating an initially conducive operating environment for immediate deployment, despite the rising costs and complex power constraints that are beginning to emerge.

These established regions are the primary draw because they not only offer unparalleled access to capital markets but are also aggressively pursuing the construction of massive new power generation infrastructure. This new power requirement is critical because AI workloads, particularly for large language model (LLM) training, are orders of magnitude more demanding than cryptocurrency mining.

Unlike bitcoin mining, which may operate at around 8-10 kW per rack, modern AI data centers utilizing state-of-the-art GPUs (like Nvidia’s H100s) push power density to 50 kW/rack and often exceed 100 kW/rack, generating immense heat. This has placed significant, widely-reported strain on existing local grids across major hubs like Northern Virginia and the FLAPD regions of Europe, compelling utilities to fast-track generation projects just to keep pace.

The Developing-World Advantage

Consequently, only a few companies have ventured into developing-world markets, which are broadly perceived as less friendly to investment.Web3 veteran and investor Rick Rose, whose latest venture is Orion Compute, is seeking to challenge this notion. Rose believes these markets offer a critical advantage over the U.S. and Canada, the primary beneficiaries of the current data center investment wave.

“One major advantage of the developing world when it comes to datacenters is that they’re marginalized and untapped across these markets,” said Rose, whose new venture has reportedly raised hundreds of millions.

Rose, an early bitcoin ( BTC) investor, argues that the usual justification for favoring the West—the high internet speed narrative—is no longer valid. He points instead to the significant mismatch between energy demand and supply, and the ever-rising energy costs in Western markets. Some big tech executives have already cautioned that the U.S. may not win the AI race without massive investment to bolster its energy infrastructure.

Read more: Microsoft Details AI’s Next Barrier: Data-Center Power Availability

In sharp contrast, developing-world markets are producing “tons and tons of power” that is “extremely cheap” and currently underutilized. Rose notes that this results in “zero curtailment on the grid due to the lack of demand.” This continuity and lack of restrictions provide AI or mining companies with a near-guarantee of continuous power, making these developing markets ideal operational bases.

“Developing data centers across established economies does look good on paper, but it is far less rewarding when it comes to sustainably maximizing shareholder value,” Rose contends.

Mitigating Risk With Phased Investment

However, critics argue that the advantages of developing countries are often offset by a lack of robust regulatory frameworks, significantly increasing their risk profile. They suggest that these uncertainties make deploying high-value AI compute assets, such as Nvidia H100s, unwise.

To mitigate this risk, Rose states that Orion Compute is avoiding an “all-in” approach. Instead, the firm will grow its regional business in tandem with the evolution of local economies and policies. Initially, they will deploy lower-cost AI compute hardware, like the A100s, instead of the higher-end H100s.

“This allows you to develop your energy infrastructure and presence in the region, all the while minimizing your CAPEX exposure,” Rose explained. As circumstances improve, Orion Compute will transition to more cutting-edge technology, a strategy Rose believes ensures both risk aversion and efficient returns for investors.

Rose also revealed that Orion is adopting a dual-purpose infrastructure with a core strategy focused on ultra-low-cost energy deployment. The firm intends to develop infrastructure both on-grid and off-grid.

Finally, while other industry players focus on capitalizing on the AI hype, Orion Computing prioritizes the cost base, ensuring ultra-low variable costs for its deployments. “This is achieved with our interiors of expanding into much lower cost developing markets as well as the collaboration with Terra Solis and their ultra-low cost energy technologies that are location agnostic,” Rose concluded. This approach, he suggests, puts Orion on a much safer footing against inevitable market uncertainties than its competitors.

FAQ 💡

• Why are crypto miners shifting into AI data centers? They’re repurposing existing infrastructure to tap into soaring global demand for high‑power AI compute.
• Why is most AI data‑center growth happening in North America and Western Europe? These regions offer stable regulations, strong capital markets, and mature network infrastructure despite rising energy constraints.
• Why are developing markets becoming attractive for AI compute? They provide abundant, ultra‑cheap, underutilized power with minimal curtailment, offering more reliable energy than many Western hubs.
• How is Orion Compute reducing risk when entering developing regions? The company deploys lower‑cost GPUs first and scales to advanced hardware as local policies and infrastructure mature.