MARA and Starwood to Convert U.S. Bitcoin Mines into 1GW+ AI Data Centers; Shares Jump ~17%

MARA Holdings has entered a joint venture with Starwood Property Trust / Starwood Digital Ventures to convert select U.S. Bitcoin-mining sites into hyperscale, AI-ready data center campuses. The plan targets roughly 1 GW of near-term IT capacity with ambitions to scale beyond 2.5 GW, focusing on sites with low-cost power and strong grid interconnections that can support both Bitcoin mining and high-performance AI compute. MARA may hold 10%–50% equity in each site JV, while Starwood will lead development, tenant sourcing and financing. Management framed the move as a strategic shift from pure hashrate/Bitcoin exposure toward “power-to-compute” monetization, enabling dynamic allocation of capacity between Bitcoin mining and AI/enterprise workloads depending on pricing and demand. The announcement followed MARA’s weak quarterly results (a $1.7bn net loss) and recent operational pressures on miners; shares rose about 15–17% in after-hours trading. Analysts warn the strategic upside depends on signing hyperscale or enterprise leases, securing GPU procurement, and clarifying power-allocation economics; absent binding leases and disclosed deal terms, MARA may continue trading largely as a Bitcoin-price proxy. If AI/data-center revenues materialize, MARA’s long-term earnings profile could shift meaningfully, but near-term revenue impact is limited until execution milestones and tenant commitments are confirmed.