Bitcoin declines to $74,000, staying cautious as concerns over AI impact the technology industry.

AI infrastructure stocks such as HUT 8, IREN, and Cipher Mining are experiencing significant declines as AMD drops 14% following its fourth-quarter results.

Bitcoin price on Feb. 4 (CoinDesk)

What to know:

• Bitcoin dropped back below $74,000 as a renewed sell-off in technology stocks, especially software firms, impacted the crypto market.
• Crypto miners associated with AI infrastructure, such as Cipher Mining, IREN, and Hut 8, experienced declines exceeding 10% after AMD fell 14% on an unsatisfactory forecast.
• U.S. data presented a mixed economic outlook, but one analyst indicated that markets may be underestimating the volume of Fed stimulus expected in 2026.

In this article

BTCBTC$76,073.52◢3.35%

Bitcoin BTC$76,073.52 fell back beneath $74,000 in the early part of the U.S. trading session, as a rebound from Tuesday’s lows quickly diminished amid pressure from tech stock weaknesses on the cryptocurrency sector.

The Nasdaq 100 was down 1%, following the previous day’s 1.5% drop. The software sector continued its decline, with the thematic iShares Expanded Tech-Software ETF (IGV) falling another 4%, now down 17% over just more than a week, amid concerns that AI may be highly disruptive.

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Crypto miners, increasingly linked to the development of AI infrastructure, reflected the downturn, with Cipher Mining (CIFR), IREN, and Hut 8 (HUT) plummeting by over 10%. These declines were triggered by chipmaker AMD, which fell 14% after its 2026 outlook fell short of analysts’ expectations.

Gold also faced selling pressure, quickly reversing from an overnight rise to $5,113 per ounce and retreating back below $5,000.

U.S. economic data is mixed

The ISM Services PMI for January remained unchanged at 53.8, matching December’s revised figure and slightly exceeding expectations, indicating ongoing growth in the services sector.

However, private job growth decelerated sharply, with only 22,000 jobs added according to an ADP report, significantly lower than forecasts of 48,000 and December’s already weak 37,000. The government’s January job report, which would typically have been released this Friday, has been postponed until next week due to the short government shutdown.

"Manufacturing has seen job losses every month since March 2024 (Main Street recession), but this month professional and business services, as well as large employers, joined in the downturn," stated Lekker Capital CIO Quinn Thompson, who believes markets are underestimating the potential amount of Fed stimulus that may be forthcoming in 2026.