Known worldwide for his repute as a crypto miner, Dave Carlson garnered attention in 2014 as the owner of a highly profitable mining operation, one of the largest at the time in North America.
A software engineer and startup entrepreneur by trade, Carlson crossed paths with Bitcoin during its 2010 genesis and began pursuing creative projects in the space. In 2012, his business MegaBigPower launched with the objective of creating the first megawatt-scale Bitcoin mining center in the world. With this new venture, he sought to foster a new norm for the future of blockchain transaction processing. Over time, it became one of the biggest solo operated mines anywhere in the world.
Today, MegaBigPower, through Carlson’s tutelage, has been re-branded as Giga Watt, Inc. The Giga Watt Project is a product of collaboration between Giga Watt, Inc. and its partner GigaWatt Pte. ltd. Through its cutting edge blueprint and model, this initiative has set course on an ambitious mission that could have profound implications for the global Bitcoin ecosystem.
So what is Giga Watt? In essence, it’s a crypto mining facility running on five megawatts of available power mining hardware with an additional 50 megawatts of power in development. The facility is situated in Washington state northeast of the Grand Coulee Dam, the largest hydroelectric power producer in the United States, with a total generating capacity of 6,809 megawatts.
As a result of its proximity, GigaWatt has access to cheap, clean hydroelectric power at 2.8 cents per kilowatt hour. This rate is significantly lower than the United States national average of 18 cents per kilowatt hour and below China’s national average of 11 cents per kilowatt hour. According to CEO David Carlson, these low power costs mean that Giga Watt’s expenses average significantly lower than the market price. A live update of the market price of 1 BTC versus the cost of 1 BTC for Giga Watt token holders can be viewed here.
Carlson’s original team constructed five mining facilities strategically positioned to catalyze Giga Watt’s ongoing expansion activities, three of which are part of the tokenization. The project’s development serves as a springboard for Carlson's long-standing vision around the democratization of bitcoin mining. It will be supported by investors purchasing a stake in the company's services.
It will also be supported by the WTT token purchasers who will hold the tokens like a membership that grants them access to the facility. At present, retail customers of Giga Watt can only mine bitcoin, Ether and Litecoin with their choice of equipment determining which mining pool they can use. The three pools that are currently available are Slush Pool for mining bitcoins, NanoPool for Ethereum and Litecoin Pool for Litecoin.
The goal is to capitalize on Giga Watt’s mining system which supports the infrastructure that runs and operates the equipment. This model creates optimal and available mining space where a person can buy in to gain membership.
Giga Watt’s role as a managed service provider is to offer membership in exchange for advantages such as cheap power, a uniquely designed facility and maintenance by its professional team.
This bold endeavor seeks to solve the problems facing the current mining cryptocurrency space. The greatest of which appears to be a lack of mining hosting service providers to fit demand. Carlson is betting that Giga Watt can broaden the public’s access to cryptocurrency mining, “This is a move to decentralize the global balance of mining power and put it back in the hands of the little guy.”
Giga Watt also delivers mining services at wholesale for businesses, as well as customizable packages for clients. Another perceived strength of the Giga Watt token comes from its holistic approach to mining services. “The intent is to cover the full spectrum of mining services from equipment sales, maintenance and repair to private blockchain servicing,” said Carlson.
The token’s low electricity and maintenance costs are also tethered to a 50-year life cycle. A signature feature of this project are 'Giga Pod' units or mining warehouses that have been developed for mining efficiency for several years during Carlson’s former mining operation, MegaBigPower. This groundbreaking solution capitalizes on the mining hardware's extraordinarily high power density which minimizes consumption loads to save power.
Fueled Through Tokenization
Cryptonomos is the project which will spearhead the Giga Watt Ethereum Token (WTT); think of it as the actual crypto behind the project. Since Launching June 2, 2017, 11 million Giga Watt tokens have sold and as of the time of writing the 60-day sale has reached its fourth batch of tokens. Updated statistics are listed here.
Token acquirers are afforded the right to use the Giga Watt processing center's capacity, rent free for 50 years, accommodating 1 Watt's worth of mining equipment power consumption.
Additionally, for every 100 tokens sold, 115 Watts of capacity is put into circulation and 15 additional tokens will be issued. Token owners can then choose to utilize this capacity either for their own miners or to rent to other users through one of the rental fee packages set by Giga Watt. Typically, Giga Watt charges hosting fees to cover rent of the facility’s capacity, electricity and maintenance.
Carlson has said that those who participate in the sale will have their funds placed in escrow until Giga Watt delivers on supplying the mining infrastructure. The Giga Watt Project will, in turn, invest the funds it makes into its own mining capabilities. Carlson expects this framework to spark a new norm for cost efficient mining for the global digital currency ecosystem.