Activist investor Starboard is urging Riot to accelerate its $21 billion AI transition
Activist investor Starboard Value, which owns between 2.4% and 3.4% of Riot Platforms according to various estimates, has urged the crypto miner to accelerate its transformation toward high-performance computing (HPC) and AI infrastructure, valuing the potential transition at up to $21 billion.
In a letter sent Wednesday to Riot CEO Jason Les, Executive Chairman Benjamin Yi and the company’s board of directors, Starboard said Riot had begun a “significant transformation” over the past year but warned that execution must speed up to unlock the full potential of its large-scale data centers.
“We believe Riot has a tremendous opportunity to create value,” Starboard wrote, adding that the company’s Texas campuses could generate billions of dollars in profits if fully monetized for AI and high-performance computing workloads.
According to The Block, the investment firm estimates that Riot’s AI/HPC business alone could ultimately generate between $9 billion and $21 billion in market capitalization, which it said would “dwarf” the company’s current market value.
Delays could prove costly
Starboard highlighted Riot’s launch of its AI data center strategy last year and pointed to its agreement with Advanced Micro Devices as proof of concept, but described the deal as only a starting point.
Under the agreement with AMD, announced in January, the chipmaker will initially lease 25 megawatts of critical IT load at Riot’s Rockdale facility, with the option to expand to 200 MW. Starboard noted that Riot still has approximately 1.4 gigawatts of additional capacity available for monetization.
Starboard Value also said Riot’s push into AI and high-performance computing infrastructure could be worth up to $21 billion, urging the bitcoin miner to accelerate dealmaking as competitors move more quickly to reposition themselves as AI-focused data center operators.
Bitfarms recently completed its transition away from bitcoin mining, rebranding as infrastructure company Keel Infrastructure and relocating its corporate base to the United States. Hive Digital has expanded its AI cloud operations, while CleanSpark and Cipher Mining are planning large-scale U.S. data center expansions driven by AI demand.
Meanwhile, Riot continues to operate large bitcoin mining facilities while gradually redirecting part of its energy capacity toward AI clients. Starboard has previously argued that Riot’s sites in Corsicana and Rockdale are among the most attractive in the U.S., given their existing access to large-scale power resources, which are becoming increasingly scarce for new data center projects.
As we wrote, What is behind Riot Platforms recent gain in value today
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