How this man mines up to $800 a month in crypto using his Tesla

Using a 2018 Tesla Model 3, an Apple Mac Mini M1, and interconnected graphics processing units (GPUs), Siraj Raval, who lives in the United States, claims to mine cryptocurrency -- primarily Bitcoin and Ether -- worth up to $800 every month.

Raval claims to mine crypto coins for roughly 20 hours a day off his Tesla battery. He says that he was able to make $400 to $800 a month over the course of 2021 through the process.

However, crypto-mining is an energy-intensive process and energy bills can diminish any profit generated from mining crypto coins. Not to forget, tinkering with Tesla makes you lose the car warranty.

In view of all this, Raval has taken several steps to make this process profitable. He buys second-hand GPUs from eBay to save money. He also stakes his Ether on “Midas.Investments,” a crypto investment platform that offers him an annual percentage yield of 23 percent on his investment. Lastly, he is holding (not selling) his coins to ensure a good return.

Talking about his future strategy, Raval says he plans to make his Tesla a fully autonomous robotaxi that earns crypto anytime it’s not driving. “It will use its earnings, from both transportation services and cryptocurrency mining services, to pay for its own expenses, like repairs, electricity costs, and upgrades, as well as invest them into a diversified portfolio of emerging crypto-community networks,” Raval told CNBC.

When asked about the feasibility of the project, Bitcoin miner Alejandro de la Torre said, "Mining from a Tesla is just like connecting to any other power source... The main component is the price of electricity."

Meanwhile, other miners, who have tried such techniques before, say the process is "just not worth it". Tesla hacker and crypto-miner Thomas Sohmers argues that Raval's method of mining cryptocurrency doesn't make technical sense. He told CNBC, "The car is already built to deliver over 100 kilowatts, and anything connecting to the car is going to be a fraction of that. There’s no need to do what Raval says he’s doing."

Echoing Sohmers' views, Chris Allessi, who builds custom electric cars in his free time and is also a miner, told CNBC, "Why would you want to put that kind of wear and tear on a $40,000 to $100,000 car?... The difficulty is so high...I could make more money working at McDonald’s."