Bitcoin Miner Riot Bets 20 Years on AI With $9.1 Billion Anthropic Lease
Riot Platforms signed a 20-year lease to supply 191 megawatts of computing capacity from its Rockdale, Texas campus, a deal expected to generate about $9.1 billion. Bloomberg reported the tenant is Anthropic, though neither company confirmed the identity.
Riot signs 20-year lease for 191 megawatts of AI capacity
Riot Platforms (NASDAQ: RIOT) disclosed a 20-year data center lease for 191 megawatts of critical information technology (IT) capacity at its Rockdale, Texas campus on 10 August 2026. The company expects the agreement to generate about $9.1 billion over the initial term. Two five-year extension options, exercisable by the tenant, could raise the total potential value to about $16.1 billion. Riot estimates cumulative net operating income of $7.3 billion to $8.2 billion during the base term.
Bloomberg identified Anthropic as the unnamed AI tenant
Riot described the counterparty only as a leading frontier artificial intelligence (AI) lab. Bloomberg reported the tenant is Anthropic, the developer of the Claude AI models, citing people familiar with the matter. Neither Riot nor Anthropic confirmed the identity when contacted. The customer's name therefore rests on Bloomberg's reporting rather than an official statement from either company.
Riot shares jumped after the deal was disclosed
Riot stock rose more than 20% in pre-market trading on Tuesday, 11 August 2026, after the disclosure. The gain narrowed to about 9% in early regular-session trading the same day. Riot shares are up roughly 37% so far this year, according to Yahoo Finance data.
Second-quarter revenue rose 14% to $174 million
Riot reported total revenue of $174.2 million for the second quarter, a 14% increase year over year. Data center revenue reached $23.2 million in the period. Bitcoin-mining revenue fell to $113.7 million from $140.9 million a year earlier, which Riot linked to lower average bitcoin prices and a higher network hash rate. The company produced 1,587 bitcoin during the quarter and ended it holding 11,380 bitcoin, while engineering revenue rose to $37.3 million from $10.6 million a year earlier.
Lower bitcoin prices pressured Riot's mining segment
Bitcoin traded at about $63,718 on 12 August 2026, down roughly 0.4% over the prior 24 hours and about 49.5% below its record high of $126,173 set on 6 October 2025 (CoinPaprika, 12 August 2026). Weaker prices have squeezed mining margins across the sector. Several operators have shifted energized power capacity toward steadier data center income as demand for computing power has climbed.
Two AI leases lift Riot's contracted capacity to 241 MW
The lease is Riot's second AI tenant at Rockdale, following an agreement with Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) signed in January 2026. Together the two deals total 241 megawatts of capacity and about $9.8 billion in contracted revenue, all signed within six months. Morgan Stanley provided a $573 million interim financing facility to fund early construction. Riot plans to bring 96 megawatts online by December 2027, with full deployment expected by June 2028, and the initial term runs through June 2048.
"Today's announcement of a landmark 20-year, 191-megawatt data center lease with a leading frontier AI lab marks a defining moment in our evolution into a leading developer of large-scale data centers", 10 August 2026. — Jason Les, CEO, Riot Platforms
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