AI cryptocurrency Learning

 Imagine a world where artificial intelligence (AI) and cryptocurrency, two of the most significant technologies of our time, converge. This isn’t just a hypothetical; it’s actually a reality in the form of AI cryptocurrencies.

We’ve looked at some of the biggest AI cryptocurrencies by market capitalisation, according to CoinMarketCap (as of April 20, 2024). But first, here’s a primer on what they are.

The cryptocurrency market is still largely unregulated in Australia, so you will have no protection if something goes wrong. Buying cryptocurrency is speculative and your capital is at risk, meaning you may lose some or all of your money.

what Are Cryptocurrencies?

Cryptocurrencies are a form of digital currency. They can be spent or traded, but they’re not issued by central banks or stored in traditional financial institutions.

Instead, they’re decentralised. This means banks or payment providers don’t control records of balances and transactions. Instead, they’re held by people who volunteer to keep track of everything using specialist software.

This process is commonly known as ‘mining’, and miners are incentivised by the prospect of earning cryptocurrency rewards.

Huge speculation on the value of cryptocurrencies has led to a boom in both the number and value of assets in the space over the last few years, peaking in November 2021 before crashing in the spring 

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Top 10 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Cryptocurrencies

Mark Hooson

Forbes Staff

Published: Apr 23, 2024, 9:00am

Patrick McGimpsey

Contributor

Reviewed By

Editorial note: Forbes Advisor Australia may earn revenue from this story in the manner disclosed here. Read our advice disclaimer here.

Top 10 Artificial Intelligence (AI) Cryptocurrencies

Table of Contents

Imagine a world where artificial intelligence (AI) and cryptocurrency, two of the most significant technologies of our time, converge. This isn’t just a hypothetical; it’s actually a reality in the form of AI cryptocurrencies.

We’ve looked at some of the biggest AI cryptocurrencies by market capitalisation, according to CoinMarketCap (as of April 20, 2024). But first, here’s a primer on what they are.

The cryptocurrency market is still largely unregulated in Australia, so you will have no protection if something goes wrong. Buying cryptocurrency is speculative and your capital is at risk, meaning you may lose some or all of your money.

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What is AI? 

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a field of computer science enabling machines to make decisions based on data, increasingly mimicking human intelligence. AI can be categorised into different types, such as machine learning, neural networks, and more, each with unique applications.

Recent popular examples include AI-generated artwork—where a program interprets user prompts, written in natural language, to create pieces of digital art, and ChatGPT, an application that can ‘write’ according to a brief submitted by the user.

In both cases, the outputs are close enough to what a real person might create that they could be mistaken for human creation, and these applications are getting increasingly sophisticated, with AI’s potential applications effectively being limitless, extending far beyond creative tasks—even into the cryptocurrency space.

What is an AI crrptocurrnceis’?

AI cryptocurrencies are tokens that power AI blockchain platforms such as The Graph and SingularityNET. Users spend tokens in order to use the platforms and the benefits of their integrated artificial intelligence.

We’ve looked at the top 10 AI crypto projects according to their market caps, exploring how AI is implemented and the unique value it brings to each platform.

1. Render (RNDR) 

Market cap: $US3 billion

Render Network is a decentralised platform that connects artists and creators with powerful computer resources to help them create high-quality 3D graphics and animations. The platform allows people to pool unused computing power, which can then be used by creators for a fee. The platform uses its own cryptocurrency, RNDR, to reward users who contribute their computing power and to facilitate transactions within the network. With applications in fields like gaming, virtual reality, and the metaverse, Render Network is making it easier for artists to create visual content without the need for expensive hardware.

RNDR was trading at $US7.92 as of April 20, 2024, down from its recent peak of $US13.60 in March

2. Bittensor (TAO) 

Market cap: $US2.9 billion

Bittensor aims to create a neural internet by revolutionising the development of machine learning platforms. The project is establishing a peer-to-peer marketplace for machine intelligence where AI models can combine their intelligence, essentially creating a “digital hive mind.” This innovative, decentralised method is designed to enable swift expansion and sharing of knowledge among AI systems.

As of April 2024, TAO was trading at $US442, down from its recent peak of $US676 at the

3. The Graph(GRT) 

Market cap: $US2.46 billion

The Graph is a protocol for indexing and querying data from blockchains in a similar way that Google indexes and queries data from websites. Indexing blockchain data can be challenging, but The Graph aims to change that by organising data into smaller ‘subgraphs’.

Its native, Ethereum-based cryptocurrency, GRT, was trading at US$0.26 as of April 20, 2024, down from its February 2021 peak of US$2.34.

4. Theta Network(THETA) 

Market cap: $US2 billion

Theta Network is a decentralised blockchain platform that combines the Theta Blockchain and the Theta Edge Network to provide infrastructure for AI, media, and entertainment applications. The Theta Blockchain supports smart contracts and is compatible with the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM), while the Theta Edge Network offers distributed GPU computing power for various tasks. Theta utilises a dual token system, with THETA as the governance token and TFUEL as the operational token. The platform is supported by a network of enterprise validators and partners from the technology and entertainment industries.

As of April 20, 2024, one THETA token was trading at $US2.08 and the project’s operational token TFUEL was at $US0.087.

5. Fetch.AI (FET) 

Market cap: $US1.8 billion

Fetch.ai is an AI and machine learning platform based on the blockchain. Fetch.ai is all about automating business tasks such as data processing and trading. Its native cryptocurrency, FET, is used to pay for transactions on the network. Fetch.ai recently proposed a merger with SingularityNET and Ocean Protocol, which is currently going through the process of approval. The three-way merger has been dubbed the “Artificial Superintelligence Alliance” and if it goes ahead, the tokens of all three projects will become amalgamated under the one token “ASI”.

As of April 20, 2024, FET was valued at $US2.16, down from its peak of $US3.47 from last month.

6. SingularityNET (AGIX) 

Market cap: $US1.13 billion

SingularityNET is a blockchain platform that allows anyone to build, share and monetise AI services. It has an internal marketplace where users can browse and pay for AI services in the platform’s native cryptocurrency—AGIX.

Developers can make money from AI solutions and models without having to fully build out and develop apps for end users. Similarly, developers can buy AI solutions and models to use in their applications. 

SingularityNET is part of the proposed three-way “Artificial Superintelligence Merger” merger with Fetch.ai and Ocean Protocol. 

AGIX was worth $US0.88 as of April 20, 2024. Back in January 2018, AGIX peaked at $US1.85.

7. Akash Network (AKT) 

Market cap: $US902 million

Akash Network is a decentralized cloud computing platform that utilizes blockchain technology to create a marketplace for buying and selling unused computing resources. The platform aims to provide a more cost-effective and flexible alternative to traditional centralized cloud service providers. Users can deploy and manage applications on the decentralized network, with transactions facilitated by the native token, AKT. The token also serves to reward network participants and govern the platform.

AKT was worth $US3.86 as of April 20, 2024, down from its peak of $US8.08 in 2021.

8. Echelon Prime (PRIME) 

Market cap: $US699 million

Echelon Prime is a gaming ecosystem that integrates blockchain technology and AI to enhance the gaming experience. The platform supports game development studios and projects by providing the necessary tools and infrastructure to incorporate AI-powered features and blockchain-based token incentives into their games. One of the key games within the Echelon Prime ecosystem is “Colony,” which heavily utilises AI agents in various aspects of gameplay, creating a unique and dynamic gaming environment. 

Echelon Prime’s native token, PRIME, is used for token incentives and governance voting within the ecosystem, allowing players to have a say in the development and direction of AI-powered games like “Colony.” PRIME was worth $US19.54 as of April 20, 2024, down from its peak of $US28.08 last month.

9. AIOZ Network (AIOZ) 

Market cap: $US189 million

AIOZ Network is a blockchain that is built to be a comprehensive infrastructure solution for Web3 storage, decentralised AI and content distribution. The blockchain is interoperable with both Ethereum and Cosmos-based blockchains. The goal for the project is to create a content delivery network, which is a set of geographically dispersed servers that work together to provide Internet users a seamless experience when accessing digital content.

AIOZ was priced at $US0.17 as of January 3, 2024, down from its April 2021 all-time high of $US2.17.

10. Ocean Protocol (Ocean)

Market cap: $US300 million

Ocean Protocol is an Ethereum-based platform that allows businesses and individuals to exchange and monetise data and data-based services. This might involve making data available to researchers and startups without the data being relinquished by the data holders.

Ocean is trading at US$0.52 as of January 3, 2024, down from its April 2021 peak of US$1.94.

How Do I Buy AI Cryptocurrencies?

Many AI cryptocurrencies can be bought using crypto exchanges such as Binance and Kraken, just like traditional cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum.

To trade, you’ll need to open an account—which often involves some identity verification steps, and deposit some fiat currency. You’ll then be able to navigate to the page of the AI cryptocurrency you want to buy within the exchange, enter the amount you’d like to buy and execute the trade.

For smaller projects, you may need to use a web3 wallet, such as Metamask, to connect to a decentralised exchange, such as Uniswap, in order to buy them.

How Do I Store AI Cryptocurrencies?

Most exchanges offer a free crypto wallet facility in which to store your private and public keys—the credentials necessary to spend or trade your crypto assets. If you prefer, you can store your keys in an offline cold wallet.

Cold wallets are arguably more secure than hot wallets, since hackers can’t target them as easily. However, if you lose your login details for your cold wallet, you won’t get the support regaining access to your keys that you’d get with a hot wallet.

Are AI Cryptocurrencies Safe?

Whether AI cryptocurrencies are safe—either from hackers or from the volatility of the crypto market—depends on how you store them and your attitude to risk.

On the latter, no cryptocurrency is safe from market instability, and 2022 was the year in which crypto’s volatility was laid bare.

Bitcoin, for example, started the year at around $US47,000 and ended it at around $US16,000 (-65%). Ethereum had a similar fate, starting 2022 in the region of $US3,700 and ending the year at just under $US1,200.

AI cryptocurrencies were hit even harder. GRT fell from $US0.64 in January 2022 to $0.05 (-92%) in December, while AGIX fell from $US0.20 to $US0.04 (-80%).

The digital asset world comes with inherent risks, and besides the crazy volatility that crypto investors must handle, there is also the risk of scams or theft. Crypto wallets and exchanges are likely to remain a target for criminals—leaving people’s assets at the mercy of the security that they and their exchanges implement.

Cold wallets, also called Hardware Wallets, are a hedge against hacks, but they become vulnerable once connected to a web-connected computer.

Meanwhile, exchanges continue to be attacked: a total of 483 Crypto.com users were hacked last year and lost assets worth up to US$35m. Exchanges after bolstering their security measures as hackers expose weaknesses, but it’s a cat-and-mouse game that looks certain to continue.

This article is not an endorsement of any particular cryptocurrency, broker or exchange nor does it constitute a recommendation of cryptocurrency or CFDs as an investment class. Cryptocurrency is unregulated in Australia and your capital is at risk. Trading in contracts for difference (CFDs) is riskier than conventional share trading, not suitable for the majority of investors, and includes the potential for partial or total loss of capital. You should always consider whether you can afford to lose your money before deciding to trade in CFDs or cryptocurrency, and seek advice from an authorised financial advisor.