Cryptocurrency Graveyard Grows as Over 65% of Projects Deemed ‘Dead’ — AI Tokens Defy Trend with 6.6% Surge

The cryptocurrency market, known for its volatile nature, has witnessed a staggering failure rate, with over 65% of projects launched since 2014 being classified as ‘dead’ or failed, according to recent data. The period of 2020-2021, marked by a significant bull run, saw the most significant number of failures, with 7,530 cryptocurrencies launched during this time not surviving.

Research by AlphaQuest highlighted 2023 as the most challenging year in the 2020-2023 period, witnessing almost 60% of cryptocurrency failures. Terra and Cardano ecosystems were particularly affected, experiencing the highest rates of project failures. Criteria used to categorize projects as ‘deadcoins’ included low trading volume and liquidity, inactive or deleted social media accounts, and non-operational websites.

Despite this overarching trend, there is a silver lining for cryptocurrencies associated with the artificial intelligence (AI) sector. AI tokens, powering AI-related projects, have experienced a notable surge in the past 24 hours, outperforming the general crypto market. Coingecko data reveals the market capitalization for AI tokens now stands at $17.4 billion, indicating a 6.6% increase in the last 24 hours, compared to the general market’s 1.3% rise.

Tokens linked to AI projects, such as Fetch.ai, Singularity.net, and Render, recorded substantial gains during this period. Singularity.net’s AGIX token surged by over 38%, Fetch.ai’s FET token saw an increase of almost 14%, and Render’s RNDR token experienced a rise of over 20%. AI tokens are crucial for AI-powered endeavors, providing governance rights on specific platforms or facilitating transactions within these platforms.

This surge in the value of AI-related cryptocurrencies coincides with Nvidia’s robust Q4 earnings report, released on Wednesday. Nvidia surpassed analysts’ expectations, reporting adjusted earnings per share of $5.16 on revenue of $22.1 billion, compared to the anticipated $4.60 on revenue of $20.4 billion. While Nvidia’s shares initially rose by more than 5% following the report, they closed down 2.5% at $674.72.

The divergence in performance between the broader cryptocurrency market and the AI sector underscores the dynamic nature of the crypto landscape, with certain niches demonstrating resilience and potential despite the prevailing challenges faced by many projects in the industry.

James Cullen
Digital Assets Desk