People all around the world are learning about cryptocurrencies. If they are not looking to buy, they may be looking to mine them. The problem, however, is the high price of electricity in most Western states. In the East and in places commonly associated with the “Global South,” where governments are subsidizing the price of electricity, the situation is different.
Related to that, we have already talked about the growing crypto mining activity in Venezuela, and we’re hearing something similar is happening in Russia and Ukraine, among other places.
In addition, some people (and companies) have turned to so called hydro mining, using renewable energy generated by hydroelectric power plants to get a more green footprint and potentially even save some money along the way.
But the craze doesn’t stop there…
Using Tesla S to mine for cryptocurrency
As you probably already know, there is a lot of computing hardware under the hood of every Tesla vehicle. In addition to autopilot — and with some knowledge — this hardware can be used for other purposes, like crypto mining. Add free electricity provided by the Supercharger network to the mix — available for Tesla S and Tesla X models — and you get a crypto mining rig on wheels.
The story started at the Tesla Owner Worldwide group on Facebook, where one member jokingly suggested using the electricity aspect of Tesla’s vehicles instead of the computing power.
The idea wasn’t taken lightly by everyone, with one guy deciding to build a mining rig to fit the back of his Model S. The setup made room for graphic cards (GPUs), meaning that the solution couldn’t be used for Bitcoin, but could easily work with many other cryptocurrencies.
And voila, the on-the-wheels mining rig was born.
But…
Not the best way to use your Tesla
Needless to say, we don’t suggest this to anyone. For one thing, this could kill your warranty, and for other — it could mess some of the safety features found in Tesla vehicles. Also, in order to benefit from free electricity, you would have to use Superchargers more frequently than other users. And we’re not sure this is something Tesla will let you do; the company’s terms of service probably includes some limitations, as the Supercharger network was not meant to be used for mining.
Nonetheless, we like how people are thinking out of box. For some folks, wherever they see some spare computing power – they make sure to put it to good use. And by good, these guys mean mining. Cool or what? You be the judge.
[Via: electrek]