Bitcoin’s mining difficulty fell sharply by approximately 7.7% on March 20, marking the most significant drop since February. According to data, the difficulty lowered to 133.79 trillion from around 145 trillion earlier in March. This adjustment, which makes mining somewhat easier for active operations, followed a period of slower-than-target block production.
Bitcoin’s mining difficulty decreased by approximately 7.7% at the latest adjustment on March 20. Data shows this brought the difficulty to 133.79 trillion at block 941,472.
This move lowers difficulty from around 145 trillion in mid-March and roughly 148 trillion at the start of the year. A lower difficulty means it takes less computational work for miners to earn the same block reward.
The adjustment followed slower-than-target block production over the prior 2,016 blocks. CloverPool data showed average block times at about 12 minutes 36 seconds, well above Bitcoin’s 10-minute target.
In February, difficulty dropped sharply after weather-related disruptions in the United States temporarily knocked large American mining facilities offline. It later rebounded by about 15% as hashrate returned once power conditions normalized.
The next difficulty adjustment is currently estimated for April 3. That projection changes with each new block mined on the network.
The difficulty reset also comes as several listed miners push further into AI and high-performance computing infrastructure. Crypto trader Ran Neuner argued AI has become Bitcoin mining’s biggest competitor as both industries compete for electricity.
Neuner stated that “AI has killed Bitcoin forever.”
Bitcoin miners such as Core Scientific, MARA Holdings, Hut 8 and Cipher Mining have begun reallocating capacity or pivoting toward AI workloads. Some operators have reduced hashrate or shut down less efficient rigs as profitability tightens.
On February 21, Bitdeer liquidated 943 BTC from reserves and sold newly mined coins, cutting corporate holdings to zero. In its latest weekly update on March 21, the company confirmed its BTC holdings remained at zero.
