Using your own electric car to mine cryptocurrencies? It’s not such a far-fetched idea, especially if the car in question is a Tesla and was still bought in the good years, those in which free refills were guaranteed for the life of the vehicle. An experienced American geek and YouTuber, Siraj Raval, went to work and created a mini rig that fits comfortably in the frunk of his Model 3 and is powered by the car’s own battery. In the period of the maximum value of Ether and Bitcoin, it has come to extract up to 800 dollars per month.
Pure profit, given that, in fact, charging the car does not cost him even a cent. The project started about a year ago, and in the meantime, Raval has experimented with the use of different techniques and solutions. Speaking to CNBC, the YouTuber said the higher-paying solution involves hacking the car’s internal computer in conjunction with the small cluster of five GPUs (model not specified) located in the front trunk.
Essentially the computer runs the extraction software, which in turn delegates all the calculations to the GPUs. A previous iteration of the system involved a Mac Mini with Apple Silicon M1 SoC, plugged into the power outlet found in the car’s console. The most delicate step is the connection of the GPU to the battery, which could invalidate the warranty; but according to Raval, the game is worth the candle, at least under the current conditions of the crypto market.
He is not the only one who has thought about it: CNBC contacted another enterprising enthusiast who had already made a similar setup a few years ago – the key elements of the whole process is of course the availability of almost unlimited free electricity. But ultimately, Chris Allessi had decided it wasn’t worth it: sure, $ 800 a month is a lot, but it’s not guaranteed forever – first, because the value of bitcoin and company still fluctuates a lot, second, because the more you go further on, the more complicated the calculations to be performed to extract new tokens.
Then there is the impact that the continuous use of current will have on the longevity of the car batteries – and given the … explosive costs of their replacement, well, let’s say it’s worth thinking about it a bit. before trying your hand.