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这一“绿色”数字货币推动硬盘制造商股价飙升

这一“绿色”数字货币推动硬盘制造商股价飙升

Anne Sraders 2021-05-25
奇亚币面世之后,对硬盘的需求便不断增长。

留意这款新“生态友好型”加密货币奇亚币(Chia)的不光只有加密货币的拥趸。

奇亚币使用硬盘上额外的存储空间来验证区块链交易,而不是像比特币(Bitcoin)那样采用耗能的“工作量证明”模式,因此自奇亚币面世之后,像西部数据公司(Western Digital)这样的硬盘制造商便经历了硬盘和盘片需求的不断增长。自今年5月初开始交易的奇亚币由BitTorrent的创始人布拉姆•科恩于2017年在Chia Network上创建,并将成为比特币的“绿色”替代选项。

即便在奇亚币开始交易之前,有报道称,由于矿主为了迎接奇亚币的发布,东南亚出现了硬盘短缺现象。

美国银行(Bank of America)的分析师在5月20日的一篇报道中称:“在最近几周,高容量硬盘[硬盘又称机械硬盘]的需求和定价出现了激增……而且企业级硬盘[固态硬盘或SSD]价格也有所增长。”美国银行称,需求不断增长的“主要推手”就是奇亚币。

这些力量均提振了西部数据的股价,该公司是机械硬盘的主要生产商之一。在过去数周,其股价增幅超过了8%,而且上周初再次大涨。Wedbush的分析师马修•布莱森对《财富》杂志说:“我确实认为,奇亚币是西部数据近期良好发展态势的主要功臣,尤其是眼下,硬盘需求的增长导致高容量硬盘出现了短缺现象。”

确实,Chia Network在最近几周使用的存储量越来越多,当前已经超过了8艾字节,较4月增长了2000%(详见下图美国银行表格)。像布莱森这样的分析师将关注“艾字节的增速动向,以及多快的增速能够带来什么样的需求。如今,其需求一直在不断增长”,他说。美国银行称,与此同时,某些西部数据产品的价格在过去一个月中一直在快速增长。

 

公司的分析师表示,“奇亚币的走红将推高机械硬盘和固态硬盘的价格,因为机械硬盘主要被用于储存数据填充文件,而固态硬盘被用于数据填充,因为后者拥有更高的容量和性能,可以处理大量的数据”,他们写道。数据填充文件和数据填充指的是奇亚币的“空间和时间证明”模式,后者涉及“农民”(而不是“挖矿者”)播种和划分硬盘,是奇亚币解锁流程的一部分。

当然,一个重要问题在于,这股奇亚币热潮能够持续多久。美国银行的分析师指出,“从长期来看,奇亚币热潮轨迹的可持续性依然不是很明确,”但同时也认为“我们看到[西部数据]受益于需求的增长。”这也是为什么银行将其股票的目标价从80美元调高至90美元的原因(较5月19日的收盘价增长了约26%)。

其他人,像Wedbush的布莱森,则将西部数据的NAND业务(类似于闪存)看作“真正推动其模式发展”的动力;布莱森认为奇亚币在长期内并不会成为该领域里的“颠覆者”,但他认为“从短期来看,由于存在上述产量方面的限制,因此奇亚币,外加其他领域的强劲需求……足以让其供应链在未来几个季度中保持趋紧态势。”

然而,一些评论家已经在担心,奇亚币耕种的增加会导致硬件需求的不断增长,这一现象最终可能会侵蚀它应有的“绿色”属性,因为更多的设备意味着更多的能耗。Ava Labs的总裁约翰•吴(音译)最近向《财富》杂志透露:“我确实担心,当硬件需求增长时,这种空间和时间证明方法基本上等同于比特币这样的工作量证明,而且其模式就是:人们最终必须购买更多的设备才可以赚取奇亚币。”Ava Labs经营着自己的区块链平台。

然而目前,此类设备不断增长的需求和价格对西部数据这样的公司来说应该是一个好消息。(财富中文网)

译者:冯丰

审校:夏林

留意这款新“生态友好型”加密货币奇亚币(Chia)的不光只有加密货币的拥趸。

奇亚币使用硬盘上额外的存储空间来验证区块链交易,而不是像比特币(Bitcoin)那样采用耗能的“工作量证明”模式,因此自奇亚币面世之后,像西部数据公司(Western Digital)这样的硬盘制造商便经历了硬盘和盘片需求的不断增长。自今年5月初开始交易的奇亚币由BitTorrent的创始人布拉姆•科恩于2017年在Chia Network上创建,并将成为比特币的“绿色”替代选项。

即便在奇亚币开始交易之前,有报道称,由于矿主为了迎接奇亚币的发布,东南亚出现了硬盘短缺现象。

美国银行(Bank of America)的分析师在5月20日的一篇报道中称:“在最近几周,高容量硬盘[硬盘又称机械硬盘]的需求和定价出现了激增……而且企业级硬盘[固态硬盘或SSD]价格也有所增长。”美国银行称,需求不断增长的“主要推手”就是奇亚币。

这些力量均提振了西部数据的股价,该公司是机械硬盘的主要生产商之一。在过去数周,其股价增幅超过了8%,而且上周初再次大涨。Wedbush的分析师马修•布莱森对《财富》杂志说:“我确实认为,奇亚币是西部数据近期良好发展态势的主要功臣,尤其是眼下,硬盘需求的增长导致高容量硬盘出现了短缺现象。”

确实,Chia Network在最近几周使用的存储量越来越多,当前已经超过了8艾字节,较4月增长了2000%(详见下图美国银行表格)。像布莱森这样的分析师将关注“艾字节的增速动向,以及多快的增速能够带来什么样的需求。如今,其需求一直在不断增长”,他说。美国银行称,与此同时,某些西部数据产品的价格在过去一个月中一直在快速增长。

公司的分析师表示,“奇亚币的走红将推高机械硬盘和固态硬盘的价格,因为机械硬盘主要被用于储存数据填充文件,而固态硬盘被用于数据填充,因为后者拥有更高的容量和性能,可以处理大量的数据”,他们写道。数据填充文件和数据填充指的是奇亚币的“空间和时间证明”模式,后者涉及“农民”(而不是“挖矿者”)播种和划分硬盘,是奇亚币解锁流程的一部分。

当然,一个重要问题在于,这股奇亚币热潮能够持续多久。美国银行的分析师指出,“从长期来看,奇亚币热潮轨迹的可持续性依然不是很明确,”但同时也认为“我们看到[西部数据]受益于需求的增长。”这也是为什么银行将其股票的目标价从80美元调高至90美元的原因(较5月19日的收盘价增长了约26%)。

其他人,像Wedbush的布莱森,则将西部数据的NAND业务(类似于闪存)看作“真正推动其模式发展”的动力;布莱森认为奇亚币在长期内并不会成为该领域里的“颠覆者”,但他认为“从短期来看,由于存在上述产量方面的限制,因此奇亚币,外加其他领域的强劲需求……足以让其供应链在未来几个季度中保持趋紧态势。”

然而,一些评论家已经在担心,奇亚币耕种的增加会导致硬件需求的不断增长,这一现象最终可能会侵蚀它应有的“绿色”属性,因为更多的设备意味着更多的能耗。Ava Labs的总裁约翰•吴(音译)最近向《财富》杂志透露:“我确实担心,当硬件需求增长时,这种空间和时间证明方法基本上等同于比特币这样的工作量证明,而且其模式就是:人们最终必须购买更多的设备才可以赚取奇亚币。”Ava Labs经营着自己的区块链平台。

然而目前,此类设备不断增长的需求和价格对西部数据这样的公司来说应该是一个好消息。(财富中文网)

译者:冯丰

审校:夏林

It's not only crypto enthusiasts that are taking note of the new "eco-friendly" cryptocurrency chia.

Hard-disk drive makers like Western Digital have seen growing demand for their hard drives and disks ever since chia—which uses spare storage space on hard drives to verify blockchain transactions instead of using the energy-intensive "proof of work" model employed by the likes of Bitcoin—launched in the crypto world. The coin, which started trading in early May, was created in 2017 by BitTorrent founder Bram Cohen on the Chia Network, and claims to be a 'green' alternative to Bitcoin.

Even before the coin began trading, there were reports of hard drive shortages in areas like Southeast Asia as miners prepared for chia's launch.

"In recent weeks the demand and pricing for high capacity [hard disk drives, or HDDs] has seen a material step higher ... and enterprise [solid state drive, or SSD] prices have also moved higher," analysts at Bank of America wrote in a May 20 report. The "primary upside driver" for that rising demand, according to BofA: chia.

These forces have all boosted the stock of Western Digital, a dominant seller of HDDs, as shares are up over 8% over the past couple weeks after seeing a big rally earlier last week. Wedbush analyst Matthew Bryson tells Fortune, "I certainly think that chia is a primary contributor to what's going on with ...Western Digital, particularly in the sense that the incremental demand on the hard drive side has created a shortfall in availability of high capacity drives."

Indeed, the Chia Network is using up more and more storage in recent weeks—presently, over 8 exabytes, an over 2,000% increase from April (see BofA's chart below). Analysts like Bryson are going to be watching "what happens with exabyte growth, which kind of tells you what demand has looked like. Right now it's been constantly increasing," he notes. Prices for some of Western Digital's products, meanwhile, have also been rising at a rapid clip within the past month, per BofA.

The firm's analysts note that "the rise in popularity of Chia would increase the price of both HDD and SSD, since HDD is primarily used to store the plots, while SSD is used for plotting due to higher capacity and performance to handle large amount of data," they wrote. The plots and plotting refer to chia's "proof of space and time" model, which involves "farmers" (instead of "miners") seeding and plotting hard drives as part of its process of unlocking coins.

The big question, of course, is how long the chia tailwind might last. The BofA analysts note that the "sustainability of this trajectory of Chia's popularity remains unclear" for the long term, but argue "we see [Western Digital] benefiting from the increased demand." That's why the bank is upping its price target for the stock from $80 per share to $90 per share (some 26% upside from its May 19 close price).

Others like Wedbush's Bryson view the company's NAND business (think flash memory) as what "really drives their model"; Bryson doesn't think that chia will be "transformational" for the space long term. But he believes "from a near term perspective, because you have these constraints around production, that chia, plus strong demand in other areas, … [is] enough to keep a tight supply chain over the next couple quarters," he says.

Still, some critics are already fretting that the growing amount of hardware used to farm more chia could eventually erode how "green" it actually is, as more equipment would mean more energy consumption. "I do worry that when they do grow, this proof of space and time has kind of the same methodology [as] proof of work, like Bitcoin, and their model is: you ultimately have to buy more equipment to get paid," John Wu, president of Ava Labs, which has its own blockchain platform, recently told Fortune.

But for now, the rising demand and prices for such equipment should likely be a boon for the likes of Western Digital.

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