Bitcoin's network is approaching record computing power, but daily mining revenue near $33 per PH/s is leaving older machines underwater at higher electricity rates.

Bitcoin's mining difficulty jumped 5.54% on Oct. 29 as recovering network computing power intensified competition among miners already facing shrinking revenues.

Data from Nodewitness shows the adjustment increased difficulty from 140.58 trillion to 148.36 trillion, following another 5.92% increase on Oct. 16.

The increase comes as Bitcoin miners rebuild the network's computing power despite an industrywide shift toward artificial intelligence infrastructure. However, the recovery is adding financial pressure, with mining revenue falling toward $33 per petahash per second daily, its lowest level since August.

According to Real Vision chief crypto analyst Jamie Coutts, Bitcoin's mining network has staged a substantial recovery following one of its steepest contractions in years.

Coutts noted that the network's 14-day average hashrate declined 23% between its October 2025 peak and February 2026, marking the steepest decline since China's mining ban in 2021.

The contraction reflected several factors, including severe winter weather that temporarily disrupted operations and growing concerns that mining companies were abandoning Bitcoin production for more lucrative AI infrastructure opportunities.

Although the network initially recovered, its computing power weakened again through July, reinforcing concerns about the industry's long-term commitment to Bitcoin mining.

According to his analysis, Bitcoin's hashrate has climbed 21% over the subsequent 102 days, adding approximately 185 exahashes per second (EH/s) and recovering to within 6% of its previous record.

He described the increase as the largest absolute amount of computing power added during a comparable hashrate recovery since 2018, although the percentage gain was less exceptional historically.

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