Deutsche Telekom, the parent company of T-Mobile, has announced its intention to begin mining Bitcoin, expanding its involvement in the crypto space. This development was revealed at BTC Prague by Dirk Röder, head of Web3 infrastructure and solutions at Deutsche Telekom.

Röder highlighted the company's current activities in the Bitcoin ecosystem, noting that since 2023, Deutsche Telekom has been operating both a Bitcoin node and Bitcoin Lightning Network nodes. He added a cryptic teaser about future plans, stating, "I like to let you in on a little secret: we will engage in digital monetary photosynthesis soon." When pressed for more details by former Cointelegraph contributor Joseph Hall, Röder simply confirmed, "We will."

This move into Bitcoin mining marks a significant step for Deutsche Telekom, which has been gradually increasing its presence in the Web3 space. The company has been a Polygon validator since June 2023, leveraging its extensive infrastructure to provide staking and validation services. As one of 100 validators on Polygon, Deutsche Telekom has supported the platform's proof-of-stake consensus mechanism for over a year.

Additionally, Deutsche Telekom has partnered with Fetch.ai, a decentralized artificial intelligence platform, to establish enterprise AI solutions. As a validator on Fetch.ai’s blockchain, the company supports AI-driven autonomous agents that offer services in various sectors, including healthcare, automotive, supply chain management, and digital identities. These agents manage resources, conduct transactions, and analyze traffic flows, highlighting Deutsche Telekom’s commitment to integrating advanced technologies into its operations.

The announcement at BTC Prague underscores Deutsche Telekom's strategy to deepen its involvement in the blockchain and cryptocurrency sectors. By expanding into Bitcoin mining and continuing its work as a validator on decentralized platforms, the company aims to secure new revenue streams and leverage its infrastructure to support the growing Web3 ecosystem.