In a perfect world where mining difficulty was lower, bitcoin prices were higher and a warehouse full of mining rigs could be run by one man, Dave Carlson, the owner of North America's largest bitcoin mining operation, could be earning $8m a month.
To be fair, though, estimates of his potential earnings don't seem unlikely when you consider he went from driving a $300 Honda to presiding over a million-dollar company in just under a year, and that bitcoin mining is still widely misunderstood.
Still, when the facts are examined, Carlson's business is no less impressive.
To get to the truth of his story, CoinDesk spoke to Carlson about the increased attention his Washington-based warehouse operation (he won't reveal the exact location) is receiving, how he built the company and how it earned $8m a month when bitcoin prices were
Of course, that explanation doesn't tell the whole story.
Humble origins
Carlson said he first got involved with bitcoin mining when he started an online mining supply company MegaBigPower "like most bitcoin miners", from his basement. From there, he said his ambitions evolved with his interest.
Carlson credited his current operation's success to the bitcoin mining community, who tipped him off that he lived near some of the cheapest power in the country and helped guide him toward large-scale industrial mining.
BusinessWeek indicates that his warehouse is now powered by an array of Bitfury-designed rigs. Bitfury, an influential and still largely anonymous chip designer, was a key early supporter of Carlson as well.
However, while technology played a role, Carlson also needed capital, which he would receive in part from Leszek Rychlewski, of Poland-based scientific research center BioInfoBank, who he credits as integral to his success.
