Ask HN: Will efforts toward efficient Bitcoin mining advance computing?

[anauleau]

My friend asked this question on Quora but has yet receive any responses, thought I would try this forum. "How will efforts toward making Bitcoin mining more efficient have an impact on technological development? There is a clear profit incentive that is motivating a lot of people to spend a lot of time and money on Bitcoin-mining research & development. Is this helping to accelerate specific fields of technological development? If so, which?"

[asperous]

Well it's only speculation, but Bitcoin mining is a specific activity. It's true there's probably plenty of money going into making the fastest double-sha1 + nonance chip; that activity alone isn't likely to advance computing.

There's some money going into making better Litecoin/Scrypt miners, which is currently only gpus so that's positive.

The question you should be asking is how will Bitcoin advance computing. That question I think will get you a lot more answers:

- Security is essential. People require secure computing to safely operating in Bitcoin.

- etc.

[maxerickson]

At the moment it is doubtful that they are spending anywhere near what intel and their suppliers are on process development (intel spends billions of dollars on R&D every year; they probably spent more last year than dollars have ever touched bitcoin).