Another Dawn Surprise Attack... Musk: "Bitcoin's Energy Use Is Crazy"

Bitcoin Electricity Consumption Estimate Graph Uploaded
Following Tesla's Suspension of Payment Acceptance
Continuous Attacks via Twitter
'Dojipadeo' → Traitor

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Cha Min-young] Tesla CEO Elon Musk posted on his Twitter early on the 13th (local time) a graph showing that the recent months' energy consumption trend has been crazy, indicating a sharp increase in electricity consumption due to Bitcoin.

Elon Musk, who suddenly stopped allowing Tesla car purchases with Bitcoin payments citing "electricity waste," is interpreted as taking this step to justify his decision. At the time, Musk explained, "I am concerned about the surge in fossil fuel usage for Bitcoin mining and transactions. I believe cryptocurrencies are a good idea in many ways and have a promising future, but they cannot come at a huge environmental cost."

Source: Screenshot of Elon Musk's Twitter

The graph Musk posted that day shows the fluctuations in estimated Bitcoin network electricity consumption by the Alternative Finance Center at the University of Cambridge in the UK. The center estimates that about 149 TWh (terawatt-hours) of electricity is consumed annually to operate the Bitcoin network. Compared to January 1 of this year, estimated at about 106 TWh, it has increased by 40%, and compared to May 13 last year, a year ago (80 TWh), it has risen by 86%.

Musk, who referred to himself as the "Dogefather," leading Dogecoin, a type of Bitcoin, made a bombshell announcement the day before that Tesla would stop accepting Bitcoin as payment for Tesla cars. Cryptocurrency prices also plunged more than 10%. According to the cryptocurrency site Coindesk, the current price of one Bitcoin remains around $49,200.

Musk has drawn unfavorable attention from investors by manipulating Bitcoin prices and causing market turmoil. In particular, when it was revealed during the first-quarter earnings announcement that Tesla had sold $272 million worth of Bitcoin it held, he was even called a "traitor."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.