$PRL mining costs are approaching the point where even with cheap consumer GPU access (way lower than neocloud providers) you are close to break even.
Many have been asking me how this is feasible or if the team is running their own modified kernels and gaming the network.
Here is my take:
Currently there are three scenarios.
1) Miners are either speculating on higher prices, therefore mining at a loss, 2) already have useful work and are running Pearl as a byproduct, or 3) have access to amortized GPUs and subsidized electricity (shout out CCP).
Safe to say that currently most of the miners in the network fall into either category 3) or 1).
There is a flaw in the protocol and it has something to do with the high hash rates.
Currently the network is at around 30 EH/s, where an H100 SXM does a maximum of 700–800 TH/s and a 3090 around 110 TH/s on the most optimized kernels.
If the entire network were mining with H100s, that would equal ~43,000 cards or around $2.3 million in daily costs ($2.25 per hour at neocloud prices).
With a network issuance of $750k per day, and looking at sell pressure through SafeTrade or OTC, it's safe to say that this is not the case.
So where does the mining hashrate come from?
My guess is that large mining farms - likely ex-ETH mining era - are using their already amortized hardware (RTX 30/40 series) from 2020/2021.
If you calculate the hashrate in 3090 equivalents, you get ~285,000 cards.
This is a far more plausible figure which, combined with cheap electricity, would explain both the hashrate and the relatively low sell pressure.
Running consumer cards is far cheaper than ASICs for BTC mining and much cheaper than datacenter cards that are in high demand from AI operators.
With rising competition and hashrate,
$PRL will ultimately converge to a point where most miners have to shut down their operations.
The network is in a very early stage - around one month old - and has acquired a lot of capital for the team to build, not through dumping tokens but rather through the mining packages.
It is in a transition to a new phase of
$PRL that drives broader distribution.
Really interested in how this will play out, especially with the support of Blackwell kernels in the coming months, the upcoming partnerships and how the team reacts.
Tagging some chads:
@0xRugova @ZanaVentures @0xkioto @evan_van_ness