Tech Giant GMO to Roll Out World's First 7nm Bitcoin Miner

Japanese IT giant GMO Internet is set to roll out the world's first bitcoin mining device based on 7nm chips within the year.

According to an announcement on Wednesday, the firm said it is launching the new B2 miner on June 6 with mass production to follow and shipment starting by the end of October.

The launch comes following a months-long testing period since the firm initially revealed it was researching and developing the new ASIC processor in September 2017. While the device should provide high-levels of hashing power with lower electricity demands, the firm said it will provide details of the B2's price and performance at the June launch.

According to the announcement, in addition to selling the B2 to other miners, GMO also plans to utilize the new product at its existing mining facilities.

As previously reported by CoinDesk, the publicly listed Japanese firm made a notable leap into bitcoin mining business last year with a $90-million budget to back explorations in the space, including chip making and its own mining farms.

GMO's mining facilities have been up running since the end of 2017 and, as per a report released earlier this month, the firm has already mined 906 bitcoin and 537 bitcoin cash as of last month.

While the cost of production remains unknown, the total value of those mining rewards amounts to nearly $8 million based on the latest CoinDesk prices.

Meanwhile, GMO isn't the only one major tech firm planning to carve out a slice of the bitcoin mining industry by introducing more advanced mining chips. Notably, Samsung is also starting a "risk production" of 7nm chips in 2018, according to a report by CoinDesk in February.

In addition, GMO announced in October of last year that it would sell its bitcoin mining equipment in 2018 via an initial coin offering. A representative told CoinDesk today that the firm is still considering the idea, but could not disclose more information due to the early stage of the plan.

Bitcoin miner image via Shutterstock