Tech • IA • Crypto
DATUM: The Mining Upgrade that Pays for Itself | Bitcoin 2026
9/10TL;DR
A new open-source protocol called Datum aims to decentralize Bitcoin mining by moving critical functions on-site, potentially boosting miner revenue and reducing reliance on centralized pools.
KEY POINTS
Revenue losses in centralized mining
Centralized mining pools introduce inefficiencies that can significantly reduce miner earnings. Estimates suggest a 1 exahash operation may lose between 0.25 and 1.6 Bitcoin annually due to latency, stale shares, and bandwidth constraints. Even small inefficiencies, such as 0.1–0.5% stale shares, accumulate into meaningful financial losses over time.
Latency and stale share inefficiencies
A major issue in traditional mining setups is delay between miners and remote pools. When work arrives too late, submitted shares become invalid, known as stale shares. This latency can cost miners up to 0.83 Bitcoin per year per exahash, depending on network conditions and distance from the pool.
Bandwidth bottlenecks
Mining operations face periodic bandwidth spikes every 10 minutes when new blocks are issued. Sites with limited connectivity, such as 50 Mbps links, can lose up to 0.75 Bitcoin annually due to delays in receiving updated work. Even high-speed fiber connections are not immune, though losses are smaller.
Datum’s on-site work generation
Datum Gateway addresses these inefficiencies by generating mining work locally. Installed directly at mining sites, it connects ASICs to a local system rather than a remote pool, effectively eliminating internet latency. This setup reduces stale shares to near zero and removes bandwidth bottlenecks.
Integration with Bitcoin nodes
The system relies on miners running their own Bitcoin node, which supplies block templates via the peer-to-peer network. This shifts control away from centralized pools and allows miners to independently construct blocks, reinforcing decentralization principles within the network.
Non-custodial payouts and reduced intermediaries
Datum enables direct payouts from mined blocks to miners’ wallets, bypassing pool custody. This removes counterparty risk and ensures miners retain full control over their rewards, aligning with Bitcoin’s permissionless design.
Increased control over block creation
By managing their own block templates, miners can choose which transactions to include, prioritize fees, and even insert their own transactions at zero cost. They can also decide on signaling for protocol changes, restoring influence traditionally held by large pools.
Scalability and open-source design
The protocol is MIT-licensed and open source, compatible with standard ASIC hardware and common Bitcoin node implementations. A single gateway can support tens of thousands of miners, and tests have shown even low-power devices can handle substantial hash rates with minimal inefficiency.
CONCLUSION
Datum proposes a structural shift in Bitcoin mining by eliminating intermediaries and inefficiencies, offering miners greater profitability and control while advancing network decentralization.