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Block is officially building an 'open Bitcoin mining system,' says founder Jack Dorsey

It's hoping to make mining more distributed and efficient.

Mariella Moon
·Contributing Reporter
·2-min read
Westend61 via Getty Images

Block founder Jack Dorsey has announced on Twitter that the company is officially building an open bitcoin mining system. Dorsey first announced in October last year that the digital payments provider, then known as Square, was considering working on the project even before it rebranded itself. If you'll recall, Square changed its name to Block to tie its services together and to better represent the future of its business in cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies.

Now, Block's general manager for hardware, Templeton Thomas, has revealed more details on the company's initial discussions regarding the project. On Twitter, Thomas said that Block aims to "make mining more distributed and efficient in every way, from buying, to set up, to maintenance, to mining." As such, Block has identified the pain points and the technical challenges of the process, starting with availability, since rigs are hard to find and and are expensive. Block has to find a way to make them more accessible to be able to meet its objective.

The company also wants to build a reliable system that addresses current rigs' usual issues with heat dissipation and dust. Plus, Block is looking into striking the right balance between performance and other factors, such as making sure the rig is efficient while having low power consumption. Thomas said Block is also thinking of which partners to consider for the project and has already started building out a core engineering team to working on solutions and answer for all its questions.

Dorsey is a big believer in cryptocurrency and even once said that he believes bitcoin will replace the dollar one day. Block had invested heavily in cryptocurrency and reportedly holds 8,027 bitcoins or around US$338 million, based on current value.