ETH and chips Crypto-miners are probably to blame for the graphics-chip shortage
T HE PAST year has been rough for gamers. Just as covid-19 brought in-person entertainment to a halt, the cost of graphics processing units (GPUs) needed to run computer games soared. Graphics cards like Nvidia’s RTX 3080, with a suggested price of $699, have fetched up to $2,400. When bricks-and-mortar stores get a few in stock, buyers queue up overnight.
Prices for all types of chips have risen of late, for myriad reasons. Silicon wafers are scarce. Manufacturers have suffered disruptions. Scalpers use bots to buy up inventory. Chinese-made chips face American tariffs. And demand for personal computers is the highest since 2010.
Nonetheless, data from Keepa, a website that tracks Amazon listings, show that asking prices for GPUs have risen faster than have those for central processing units (CPUs). The data also suggest that miners of Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, are to blame for gamers’ woes.
GPUs and CPUs both perform calculations, but they are used for different purposes. GPUs are specialised chips that excel at matrix algebra, which is required for 3D graphics and machine-learning tasks like translating languages. They are also the best tool for mining Ethereum (though not bitcoin). In contrast, CPUs are more versatile, and handle most everyday operations.
