Jupiter [JUP] attracted a wave of fresh trading activity after surging 14.03% in 24 hours at press time, while volume exploded 113.83% to nearly $496 million across major exchanges.
The sharp increase in turnover indicated that traders actively chased the move rather than reacting to a temporary price fluctuation. JUP climbed to $0.2203 during the session, marking one of its strongest daily performances in recent weeks.
Rising participation accompanied the rally throughout the day, suggesting that interest had expanded beyond a small group of market participants. However, maintaining elevated activity remained important because sustained buying interest would determine whether the latest rally could develop into a broader trend reversal.
Why did JUP’s OI surge so sharply? Derivatives traders increased their exposure aggressively as JUP advanced, reinforcing the bullish reaction seen across the market.
At press time, Open Interest (OI) rose 39.94% to $64.2 million, showing that new positions had entered the market instead of traders merely closing existing contracts. The expansion in leveraged exposure aligned closely with the rise in price and trading volume, creating a stronger confirmation signal than price appreciation alone.
In many cases, rising OI alongside a rally reflects growing conviction among participants. Still, leveraged positioning also increases volatility because rapid price swings can trigger liquidations in either direction.
For that reason, the growing futures activity suggested stronger trader engagement, yet it also raised the possibility of sharper moves should sentiment change during the coming sessions.
Source: CoinGlass JUP channel breakout shifts market structure Technical conditions improved significantly after JUP broke above a descending channel that had contained price action since May.
Buyers reclaimed the channel resistance and subsequently pushed the token above the key $0.2154 level, transforming a former resistance zone into an area of support. The breakout altered the short-term market structure and strengthened the recovery that began near the $0.1465 support region earlier this month.
At the time of writing, RSI reinforced the improvement in conditions, climbing to 63.43 from its signal line near 49.63. The indicator remained below overbought territory, suggesting the rally still had room to develop.
Meanwhile, the next major resistance sat near $0.2646. If buyers maintained control above $0.2154, price could challenge higher resistance levels. However, losing that reclaimed zone could encourage another period of consolidation.
Source: TradingView Liquidity map hints at unfinished business below Despite the bullish breakout, liquidation data continued to highlight a different risk.
The Binance JUP/USDT heatmap showed a larger concentration of liquidity below the current price than above it. The most notable clusters remained near $0.20 and across the broader $0.19 to $0.195 region. These zones contained significantly more leveraged positions than the overhead liquidity pockets between $0.22 and $0.23.
Markets often gravitate toward large liquidity pools because liquidations create opportunities for major participants. Therefore, the imbalance suggested that downside levels still attracted attention despite the recent rally.
Source: CoinGlass Although buyers had regained short-term control, the heavier concentration beneath price indicated that JUP could revisit lower levels before attempting another sustained advance toward higher resistance zones.
Final Summary JUP attracted fresh demand as price, volume, and Open Interest increased together. Larger liquidity clusters remained below price, keeping pullback risks in focus.
PANews reported on April 28th that, according to SlowMist's analysis, the root cause of the ZetaChain attack lies in the lack of access control and input validation in the GatewayZEVM contract's `call` function. This allows any user to initiate cross-chain calls through GatewayZEVM and execute arbitrary operations on external chains via relays. Attackers exploited this vulnerability to construct malicious cross-chain events on ZetaChain. After the relays captured these events, they executed malicious calls on the target chain via TSS, thereby stealing funds.
Previously, ZetaChain reported that its GatewayEVM contract had been attacked, but the attack route has been blocked and user funds are safe .
Author: PA一线
This content is for market information only and is not investment advice.
ZetaChain has paused cross-chain transactions on its mainnet after detecting an attack on its GatewayEVM contract.
Summary
ZetaChain paused cross-chain transactions after detecting an attack on its GatewayEVM smart contract. The team said only internal wallets were affected and no user funds were lost. DefiLlama reported $300,000 in losses as ZetaChain prepared a detailed post-mortem. The Layer 1 network said the move was a precaution while the team investigates the incident. GatewayEVM works as a key entry point for cross-chain activity between EVM-compatible networks and applications on ZetaChain. The contract helps route interactions across connected chains.
ZetaChain said the attack affected only internal team wallets. The team added that it had already closed the attack path to stop more funds from being compromised.
“As a precaution, cross-chain transactions are currently paused on ZetaChain,” the team said. “Investigation is still ongoing, and at this time no user funds were impacted by this attack.”
DefiLlama data shows the attack caused about $300,000 in losses. ZetaChain has not confirmed the exact amount and said it plans to publish a full post-mortem.
According to ZetaChain’s official status page, cross-chain transactions remained paused as of 9:00 p.m. ET on Monday. That was about nine hours after the team first identified the attack.
DeFi security concerns continue ZetaChain launched its mainnet in early 2024 and focuses on blockchain interoperability. The project describes itself as a universal blockchain that connects networks such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Polygon.
The attack comes after several recent DeFi security incidents. The LayerZero-powered Kelp DAO bridge exploit drained $292 million and created bad debt on Aave. Since that event, DefiLlama data shows at least 10 attacks on DeFi projects.
The interoperability-focused blockchain network ZetaChain has suffered a security exploit, resulting in the draining of funds directly from internal team wallets. Fortunately for the broader crypto community, developers were able to quickly patch the vulnerability before the attacker could compromise user assets.
The root cause According to the security experts at SlowMist, the core vulnerability was located within the call function of ZetaChain's GatewayZEVM contract. Crucially, this specific function lacked proper access control mechanisms and input validation parameters.
Because of these missing security checks, the system was left wide open for exploitation. The flaw allowed any arbitrary user to bypass normal restrictions, invoke cross-chain calls through the GatewayZEVM contract, and execute unauthorized operations on external blockchains.
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The modus operandi The attacker was able to craft a highly specific, malicious call directly on ZetaChain designed to emit a fraudulent cross-chain event.
ZetaChain's relayer, which is designed to listen for and facilitate these cross-chain communications, automatically picked up this event.
The relayer unknowingly executed the malicious call on the destination chain, allowing the attacker to effectively siphon the funds.
Damage contained ZetaChain has assured the community that the damage was strictly isolated to their own holdings.
"There was an attack against the ZetaChain GatewayEVM contract today that impacted the internal ZetaChain team wallets only," the protocol's developers stated. "We've already blocked the attack vector so no more funds can be compromised."
ZetaChain has temporarily paused cross-chain transactions after an attack targeted its GatewayEVM contract, marking the latest security incident involving blockchain interoperability infrastructure.
The layer-1 blockchain said the exploit affected internal team wallets only and that no user funds were compromised. Developers added that the attack vector had been contained, with no further losses expected, while a full post-mortem report will be released following the investigation.
As a precaution, cross-chain transfers across connected networks remain suspended while engineers complete remediation work and review system security.
Attack centered on GatewayEVM contract ZetaChain’s GatewayEVM contract serves as a core interface for cross-chain interactions between external EVM-compatible networks and applications deployed on ZetaChain. The contract enables token transfers and smart contract calls across multiple connected chains, making it a critical component of the protocol’s interoperability architecture.
Because gateway contracts coordinate assets and messaging between networks, they are often considered high-value targets for attackers. Security researchers have repeatedly identified bridges and interoperability layers as among the most vulnerable areas of decentralized finance.
Early third-party analysis suggested the exploit may have involved weaknesses in contract controls or input validation, though ZetaChain has not yet confirmed a formal technical cause.
The protocol has not publicly disclosed the exact financial impact. External estimates have circulated, but no verified figure has been released by the development team.
Cross-chain sector remains under scrutiny The incident adds to a growing list of exploits involving cross-chain systems, a category that has historically accounted for some of the largest losses in the crypto market. Previous attacks on bridge infrastructure have exposed structural vulnerabilities across the sector.
These systems often manage large pools of collateral or depend on complex validator and messaging frameworks, creating multiple attack surfaces. Security failures in such architecture can trigger not only direct losses but also broader confidence concerns across connected ecosystems.
ZetaChain launched its mainnet as a universal blockchain designed to connect networks such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other ecosystems through native interoperability. The project has attracted attention for seeking to simplify cross-chain application development and asset movement.
The temporary suspension of cross-chain functionality is likely to disrupt user activity, liquidity routing, and application flows built on the network until services are restored. Protocol teams often halt bridge functions during incidents to prevent secondary losses or exploitation of related components.
For users and investors, the immediate focus will be the forthcoming post-mortem report, which is expected to clarify how the exploit occurred, the scope of affected assets, and what security upgrades will be implemented before reopening transfers.
The event reinforces a broader trend in digital assets: as blockchain ecosystems compete on interoperability, security standards are becoming as important as transaction speed and cost.
While ZetaChain said user funds were unaffected, the incident underscores that even newer architectures remain exposed to smart contract risk. Confidence in cross-chain platforms increasingly depends not only on growth metrics, but also on their ability to respond quickly and transparently when vulnerabilities emerge.
PANews reported on April 29th that ZetaChain released an update on its X platform stating that on April 27th, ZetaChain suffered a premeditated targeted attack . The attackers used Tornado Cash to deposit funds and forged wallet addresses. Cross-chain ZETA transfers were unaffected, user funds were unaffected, and all affected wallets were under ZetaChain control. A mainnet patch has been deployed, and cross-chain transactions will be re-enabled after continuous monitoring. This attack impacted certain arbitrary call functions of GatewayEVM, resulting in a loss of approximately $334,000 across four connected chains.
Rubio: US and Iran to continue technical consultations at the end of this month
Multiple foreign media outlets reported on the 24th that US Secretary of State Rubio said technical teams from the United States and Iran will hold further talks in Switzerland by the end of June. (Xinhua News Agency)
5 hours ago
Over the past 24 hours, total crypto market liquidations hit $606 million, with more than 130,000 traders liquidated.
According to Coinglass data, the global cryptocurrency market recorded $606 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, including $542 million in long-position liquidations and $68.22 million in short-position liquidations. A total of 135,785 traders worldwide were liquidated in the same period, with the largest single liquidation order occurring on Binance’s BTCUSDT trading pair, valued at $12.0111 million.
5 hours ago
Bitcoin falls below $60,000
According to HTX market data, Bitcoin has fallen below $60,000, with a 4.3% drop in the past 24 hours.
5 hours ago
US Treasury Secretary: AI boom may boost productivity and help curb inflation.
US Treasury Secretary Bessent told CNBC in an interview that he hopes the Federal Reserve will remain "open-minded" about the inflation pattern after the reversal of Iran-related energy price hikes. Bessent noted that the U.S. could enter an economic environment marked by high GDP growth without a corresponding rise in traditional inflation. He cited that in the 1990s, Alan Greenspan foresaw that office modernization and the internet could drive non-inflationary growth, and allowed the economy to keep expanding. Bessent believes the U.S. has a strong chance of seeing a similar scenario again. When asked whether the Fed still needs to worry about potential inflation and whether interest rate cuts are possible this year or next, Bessent declined to comment. However, he argued that it is necessary to stay open-minded about the price or inflation impacts from the Iran conflict, and monitor inflation performance after those effects subside. Bessent also said an open mind is needed, as the AI boom could boost productivity and deliver disinflationary effects, helping inflation return to the Fed’s target level. He added that he believes Kevin Warsh will choose the optimal path that meets both the Fed’s inflation and growth mandates. Bessent also noted that Warsh previously took a hawkish stance on inflation.
5 hours ago
US stocks' intraday storage sector sees broad declines, with Western Digital and Seagate Technology both falling over 4%.
According to Bitget data, during U.S. stock trading hours, the storage sector saw broad declines: Western Digital (WDC) fell 4.47%, Seagate Technology (STX) dropped 4.17%, SanDisk (SNDK) declined 2.31%, and Micron Technology (MU) edged down 0.96%. Most optical communication concept stocks rose, with Corning (GLW) leading the gains at 9.75%, followed by Ciena (CIEN) up 3.24%, Coherent (COHR) rising 2.93%, Lumentum (LITE) gaining 2.61%, and Nokia (NOK) advancing 1.82%. Additionally, Marvell Technology (MRVL) fell 2.59% and Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) declined 1.90%.
5 hours ago
During intraday trading in U.S. stocks, crypto-related concept stocks fell broadly, with MSTR dropping more than 7%.
According to Bitget market data, the three major U.S. stock indexes rose broadly: the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.94%, the S&P 500 increased 0.60%, and the Nasdaq rose 0.63%. Crypto-related stocks fell across the board, with declines as follows: Strategy (MSTR) down 7.33%; Circle (CRCL) down 4.35%; Bitmine (BMNR) down 3.97%; Coinbase (COIN) down 3.73%; Robinhood (HOOD) down 3.70%; Gemini (GEMI) down 3.27%; Bullish (BLSH) down 3.25%; Sharplink (SBET) down 3.19%.
Rubio: US and Iran to continue technical consultations at the end of this month
Multiple foreign media outlets reported on the 24th that US Secretary of State Rubio said technical teams from the United States and Iran will hold further talks in Switzerland by the end of June. (Xinhua News Agency)
5 hours ago
Over the past 24 hours, total crypto market liquidations hit $606 million, with more than 130,000 traders liquidated.
According to Coinglass data, the global cryptocurrency market recorded $606 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, including $542 million in long-position liquidations and $68.22 million in short-position liquidations. A total of 135,785 traders worldwide were liquidated in the same period, with the largest single liquidation order occurring on Binance’s BTCUSDT trading pair, valued at $12.0111 million.
5 hours ago
Bitcoin falls below $60,000
According to HTX market data, Bitcoin has fallen below $60,000, with a 4.3% drop in the past 24 hours.
5 hours ago
US Treasury Secretary: AI boom may boost productivity and help curb inflation.
US Treasury Secretary Bessent told CNBC in an interview that he hopes the Federal Reserve will remain "open-minded" about the inflation pattern after the reversal of Iran-related energy price hikes. Bessent noted that the U.S. could enter an economic environment marked by high GDP growth without a corresponding rise in traditional inflation. He cited that in the 1990s, Alan Greenspan foresaw that office modernization and the internet could drive non-inflationary growth, and allowed the economy to keep expanding. Bessent believes the U.S. has a strong chance of seeing a similar scenario again. When asked whether the Fed still needs to worry about potential inflation and whether interest rate cuts are possible this year or next, Bessent declined to comment. However, he argued that it is necessary to stay open-minded about the price or inflation impacts from the Iran conflict, and monitor inflation performance after those effects subside. Bessent also said an open mind is needed, as the AI boom could boost productivity and deliver disinflationary effects, helping inflation return to the Fed’s target level. He added that he believes Kevin Warsh will choose the optimal path that meets both the Fed’s inflation and growth mandates. Bessent also noted that Warsh previously took a hawkish stance on inflation.
5 hours ago
US stocks' intraday storage sector sees broad declines, with Western Digital and Seagate Technology both falling over 4%.
According to Bitget data, during U.S. stock trading hours, the storage sector saw broad declines: Western Digital (WDC) fell 4.47%, Seagate Technology (STX) dropped 4.17%, SanDisk (SNDK) declined 2.31%, and Micron Technology (MU) edged down 0.96%. Most optical communication concept stocks rose, with Corning (GLW) leading the gains at 9.75%, followed by Ciena (CIEN) up 3.24%, Coherent (COHR) rising 2.93%, Lumentum (LITE) gaining 2.61%, and Nokia (NOK) advancing 1.82%. Additionally, Marvell Technology (MRVL) fell 2.59% and Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) declined 1.90%.
5 hours ago
During intraday trading in U.S. stocks, crypto-related concept stocks fell broadly, with MSTR dropping more than 7%.
According to Bitget market data, the three major U.S. stock indexes rose broadly: the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.94%, the S&P 500 increased 0.60%, and the Nasdaq rose 0.63%. Crypto-related stocks fell across the board, with declines as follows: Strategy (MSTR) down 7.33%; Circle (CRCL) down 4.35%; Bitmine (BMNR) down 3.97%; Coinbase (COIN) down 3.73%; Robinhood (HOOD) down 3.70%; Gemini (GEMI) down 3.27%; Bullish (BLSH) down 3.25%; Sharplink (SBET) down 3.19%.
TLDR: ZetaChain’s GatewayEVM arbitrary call flaw allowed attackers to drain $333,868 across four blockchains. All three wallets drained were ZetaChain-controlled; no external user funds were lost in the exploit. The attacker brute-forced a vanity address with 13 matching characters to execute an address poisoning attack. A bug bounty report flagging this vulnerability was previously dismissed as intended protocol behavior by ZetaChain. ZetaChain confirmed a targeted exploit on April 26, 2026, resulting in losses of approximately $333,868. The attack targeted the protocol’s GatewayEVM contract through a deliberate chain of design weaknesses.
No external user funds were lost in the incident. All three affected wallets were under ZetaChain’s control. A patch has since been deployed, and cross-chain transactions remain paused pending full operator upgrades.
How the Attacker Exploited the Gateway Contract The exploit centered on the arbitrary call functionality within ZetaChain’s GatewayEVM contract. An attacker used the isArbitraryCall flag to bypass normal sender verification in cross-chain messages.
This caused ZetaClient software to zero out the sender address, routing calls through _executeArbitraryCall(). That function performed raw external calls with minimal restrictions.
The function’s only protection was a deny-list blocking onCall and onRevert selectors. Critical ERC-20 functions like transferFrom and approve were left unblocked.
The attacker set the destination as an ERC-20 token contract and passed transferFrom as the calldata. Since the gateway held pre-existing allowances from victim wallets, it executed the transfer successfully.
Nine drain transactions occurred across four chains — Ethereum, Base, Arbitrum, and BSC. The largest single drain was $110,291 in USDC on Base.
A comprehensive Dune Analytics scan confirmed no additional victims existed across all five connected EVM chains.
ZetaChain addressed the incident directly on X, stating that “cross-chain ZETA transfers were not affected” and that “no user funds were affected — all impacted wallets were ZetaChain-controlled.”
On Apr 27, ZetaChain experienced a targeted exploit involving deliberate preparation, including Tornado Cash funding and wallet address spoofing.
Cross-chain ZETA transfers were not affected.
No user funds were affected — all impacted wallets were ZetaChain-controlled.
A…
— ZetaChain 🟩 (@ZetaChain) April 29, 2026
The Attacker’s Preparation Was Methodical and Deliberate This was not an opportunistic attack. The hacker funded the primary wallet through Tornado Cash approximately three days before executing the exploit. That deliberate step obscured the origin of funds ahead of the operation.
The attacker also brute-forced a vanity wallet address that closely resembled a victim’s real address. The fake address shared 13 matching hexadecimal characters with the real one — four at the prefix and nine at the suffix.
Generating this required an estimated 4.5 quadrillion trial keys, costing between $300 and $2,500 in GPU compute.
That fake address was used to send dust transactions to the victim, planting a lookalike in their transaction history.
This technique exploits how wallet interfaces truncate addresses for display. A purpose-built drainer contract was also deployed on ZetaChain to orchestrate the cross-chain calls.
Every single drain succeeded with zero destination failures. The post-mortem noted this pattern, suggesting “the hacker had carefully pre-validated each target’s allowance state and token balances before executing.”
ZetaChain’s Response and User Recommendations ZetaChain paused all cross-chain transactions within eight minutes of detecting the attack. The team removed infinite allowance approvals from the ZetaHub deposit flow the same day. New deposits now approve only exact amounts required per transaction.
A zetaclient patch was developed, tested on Testnet, and is now rolling out to mainnet operator nodes. The patch permanently disables the arbitrary call code path that made this exploit possible. Validator node operators do not need to take action — only observer nodes require the upgrade.
All identified exploiter addresses were flagged through the SEAL 911 emergency response network. A report was also filed with law enforcement through IC3.gov. Stolen funds on Ethereum were swapped to approximately 139 ETH and moved to a consolidation wallet.
ZetaChain is also reviewing its bug bounty triage process. The post-mortem acknowledged that the vulnerability had been flagged earlier, noting that “initial reports were dismissed as the arbitrary call behavior was considered by-design.”
The protocol added that the incident has since prompted a review of triage procedures for chained attack vectors. Users with prior gateway interactions are advised to revoke ERC-20 allowances using tools like Revoke.cash.
The vulnerability that led to ZetaChain’s recent exploit had been flagged through its bug bounty program before the attack, but was dismissed as intended behavior.
In a post-mortem published Wednesday, the team said the incident has prompted a review of how it handles bug bounty submissions, particularly reports involving chained attack vectors that may appear harmless in isolation but are dangerous in combination.
“This bug was reported and they simply ignored it,” one user wrote on X. “That's how bug bounty programs work with these protocols currently; they incentivize losses for the protocol, the TVL, and the user's balance instead of paying the researcher for discovering and fixing the bug,” they added.
ZetaChain lost approximately $334,000 to a premeditated exploit on Sunday that targeted its cross-chain gateway contract. The exploit drained funds across nine transactions on four chains, including Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base and BSC, all from ZetaChain-controlled wallets. No user funds were affected.
Attacker exploits small design flawsZetaChain said in its post-mortem that the attacker exploited three design flaws that, individually, might have seemed minor, but together opened the door to a full drain. First, the gateway allowed anyone to send arbitrary cross-chain instructions with no restrictions. Second, on the receiving end, it would execute almost any command on any contract, with a blocklist so narrow it missed basic token transfer functions.
Third, wallets that had previously used the gateway had left unlimited spending permissions in place that were never cleaned up. By combining all three, the attacker simply told the gateway to transfer tokens from victim wallets to their own, and the gateway complied.
Source: ZetaChain
“This was not an opportunistic attack,” ZetaChain said in its post-mortem. The attacker funded their wallet through Tornado Cash three days before the exploit, deployed a purpose-built drainer contract on ZetaChain and ran an address poisoning campaign before seeding it into their transaction history via dust transfers.
ZetaChain added that a patch permanently disabling the arbitrary call functionality is being rolled out to mainnet nodes. The platform also removed unlimited token approvals from its deposit flow, replacing them with exact-amount approvals going forward.
AI DeFi exploit success rate increasesA new study by a16z tested whether an off-the-shelf AI agent could go beyond identifying DeFi vulnerabilities and actually produce working exploits. Using OpenAI's Codex against a dataset of 20 real Ethereum price manipulation incidents, researchers ran the agent in a sandboxed environment with no access to future transaction data and no guidance on how the attacks worked. The agent succeeded in just 10% of cases.
However, when researchers fed the agent structured knowledge about common attack patterns and exploit workflows, the success rate jumped to 70%.
Magazine: How to fix suspected insider trading on Polymarket and Kalshi
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
Rubio: US and Iran to continue technical consultations at the end of this month
Multiple foreign media outlets reported on the 24th that US Secretary of State Rubio said technical teams from the United States and Iran will hold further talks in Switzerland by the end of June. (Xinhua News Agency)
5 hours ago
Over the past 24 hours, total crypto market liquidations hit $606 million, with more than 130,000 traders liquidated.
According to Coinglass data, the global cryptocurrency market recorded $606 million in liquidations over the past 24 hours, including $542 million in long-position liquidations and $68.22 million in short-position liquidations. A total of 135,785 traders worldwide were liquidated in the same period, with the largest single liquidation order occurring on Binance’s BTCUSDT trading pair, valued at $12.0111 million.
5 hours ago
Bitcoin falls below $60,000
According to HTX market data, Bitcoin has fallen below $60,000, with a 4.3% drop in the past 24 hours.
5 hours ago
US Treasury Secretary: AI boom may boost productivity and help curb inflation.
US Treasury Secretary Bessent told CNBC in an interview that he hopes the Federal Reserve will remain "open-minded" about the inflation pattern after the reversal of Iran-related energy price hikes. Bessent noted that the U.S. could enter an economic environment marked by high GDP growth without a corresponding rise in traditional inflation. He cited that in the 1990s, Alan Greenspan foresaw that office modernization and the internet could drive non-inflationary growth, and allowed the economy to keep expanding. Bessent believes the U.S. has a strong chance of seeing a similar scenario again. When asked whether the Fed still needs to worry about potential inflation and whether interest rate cuts are possible this year or next, Bessent declined to comment. However, he argued that it is necessary to stay open-minded about the price or inflation impacts from the Iran conflict, and monitor inflation performance after those effects subside. Bessent also said an open mind is needed, as the AI boom could boost productivity and deliver disinflationary effects, helping inflation return to the Fed’s target level. He added that he believes Kevin Warsh will choose the optimal path that meets both the Fed’s inflation and growth mandates. Bessent also noted that Warsh previously took a hawkish stance on inflation.
5 hours ago
US stocks' intraday storage sector sees broad declines, with Western Digital and Seagate Technology both falling over 4%.
According to Bitget data, during U.S. stock trading hours, the storage sector saw broad declines: Western Digital (WDC) fell 4.47%, Seagate Technology (STX) dropped 4.17%, SanDisk (SNDK) declined 2.31%, and Micron Technology (MU) edged down 0.96%. Most optical communication concept stocks rose, with Corning (GLW) leading the gains at 9.75%, followed by Ciena (CIEN) up 3.24%, Coherent (COHR) rising 2.93%, Lumentum (LITE) gaining 2.61%, and Nokia (NOK) advancing 1.82%. Additionally, Marvell Technology (MRVL) fell 2.59% and Applied Optoelectronics (AAOI) declined 1.90%.
5 hours ago
During intraday trading in U.S. stocks, crypto-related concept stocks fell broadly, with MSTR dropping more than 7%.
According to Bitget market data, the three major U.S. stock indexes rose broadly: the Dow Jones Industrial Average gained 0.94%, the S&P 500 increased 0.60%, and the Nasdaq rose 0.63%. Crypto-related stocks fell across the board, with declines as follows: Strategy (MSTR) down 7.33%; Circle (CRCL) down 4.35%; Bitmine (BMNR) down 3.97%; Coinbase (COIN) down 3.73%; Robinhood (HOOD) down 3.70%; Gemini (GEMI) down 3.27%; Bullish (BLSH) down 3.25%; Sharplink (SBET) down 3.19%.
ZetaChain has acknowledged that a vulnerability behind its recent exploit had already been reported through its bug bounty program, but was treated as expected behavior.
According to ZetaChain’s post-mortem published Wednesday, the incident has triggered an internal review of how the protocol evaluates bug bounty submissions, especially those involving multi-step attack paths that may appear harmless when viewed separately.
The disclosure follows an attack on Sunday that targeted the project’s cross-chain gateway contract, draining about $334,000 across nine transactions on Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, and BSC, all from wallets controlled by the team.
ZetaChain stated that no user funds were impacted, a point it had also emphasized a day earlier when it paused cross-chain transactions on its mainnet to contain the breach.
DefiLlama data had earlier estimated the losses at roughly $300,000, while ZetaChain said at the time that it would release a full breakdown after completing its investigation.
Flaws combined to enable full drain ZetaChain said the attacker chained together three separate design weaknesses that, on their own, did not appear critical but together enabled the exploit. The gateway contract allowed unrestricted cross-chain instructions to be sent, while the receiving side executed nearly any command on any contract, with a limited blocklist that failed to cover basic token transfer functions.
Existing wallets that had interacted with the gateway retained unlimited token approvals, which were not revoked. By combining these conditions, the attacker instructed the gateway to move tokens from those wallets, and the system executed the transfers without resistance.
“This was not an opportunistic attack,” ZetaChain said, outlining how the attacker prepared in advance by funding a wallet through Tornado Cash three days before the exploit, deploying a custom drainer contract on ZetaChain, and running an address poisoning campaign before initiating the transactions.
Bug report dismissed before exploit In its post-mortem, ZetaChain confirmed that the core issue had been raised earlier through its bug bounty program but was not treated as a threat at the time. The team said this has prompted a reassessment of how it handles reports that describe complex attack combinations rather than isolated bugs.
“This bug was reported and they simply ignored it,” one user wrote on X, adding that current bug bounty structures often fail to reward researchers for identifying vulnerabilities before they are exploited.
Following the incident, ZetaChain said it has disabled the gateway’s arbitrary call functionality through a patch being rolled out to mainnet nodes. The platform has also removed unlimited token approvals from its deposit process, replacing them with exact-amount approvals to reduce risk from similar attack patterns.
The vulnerability that led to ZetaChain’s recent exploit had been flagged through its bug bounty program before the attack, but was dismissed as intended behavior.
In a post-mortem published Wednesday, the team said the incident has prompted a review of how it handles bug bounty submissions, particularly reports involving chained attack vectors that may appear harmless in isolation but are dangerous in combination.
“This bug was reported and they simply ignored it,” one user wrote on X. “That's how bug bounty programs work with these protocols currently; they incentivize losses for the protocol, the TVL, and the user's balance instead of paying the researcher for discovering and fixing the bug,” they added.
ZetaChain lost approximately $334,000 to a premeditated exploit on Sunday that targeted its cross-chain gateway contract. The exploit drained funds across nine transactions on four chains, including Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base and BSC, all from ZetaChain-controlled wallets. No user funds were affected.
Attacker exploits small design flawsZetaChain said in its post-mortem that the attacker exploited three design flaws that, individually, might have seemed minor, but together opened the door to a full drain. First, the gateway allowed anyone to send arbitrary cross-chain instructions with no restrictions. Second, on the receiving end, it would execute almost any command on any contract, with a blocklist so narrow it missed basic token transfer functions.
Third, wallets that had previously used the gateway had left unlimited spending permissions in place that were never cleaned up. By combining all three, the attacker simply told the gateway to transfer tokens from victim wallets to their own, and the gateway complied.
Source: ZetaChain
“This was not an opportunistic attack,” ZetaChain said in its post-mortem. The attacker funded their wallet through Tornado Cash three days before the exploit, deployed a purpose-built drainer contract on ZetaChain and ran an address poisoning campaign before seeding it into their transaction history via dust transfers.
ZetaChain added that a patch permanently disabling the arbitrary call functionality is being rolled out to mainnet nodes. The platform also removed unlimited token approvals from its deposit flow, replacing them with exact-amount approvals going forward.
AI DeFi exploit success rate increasesA new study by a16z tested whether an off-the-shelf AI agent could go beyond identifying DeFi vulnerabilities and actually produce working exploits. Using OpenAI's Codex against a dataset of 20 real Ethereum price manipulation incidents, researchers ran the agent in a sandboxed environment with no access to future transaction data and no guidance on how the attacks worked. The agent succeeded in just 10% of cases.
However, when researchers fed the agent structured knowledge about common attack patterns and exploit workflows, the success rate jumped to 70%.
Magazine: How to fix suspected insider trading on Polymarket and Kalshi
Cointelegraph is committed to independent, transparent journalism. This news article is produced in accordance with Cointelegraph’s Editorial Policy and aims to provide accurate and timely information. Readers are encouraged to verify information independently.
Key TakeawaysCross-Chain Gateway Weakness Exploited Across Multiple NetworksPersistent Token Allowances Facilitated Fund DrainageEmergency Response and Industry-Wide Security Concerns Cross-chain protocol loses $334K through gateway contract vulnerability
Attack exploited unlimited token approvals and arbitrary function calls
Security breach affected internal team wallets across four blockchain networks
Platform implements emergency patch and pauses cross-chain operations
No user funds compromised during the security incident
A security breach on ZetaChain resulted in the theft of approximately $334,000 through vulnerabilities in its cross-chain gateway infrastructure. The attack specifically targeted internal team wallets using a sophisticated multi-chain approach. Platform operators responded by immediately suspending services and implementing security patches.
Cross-Chain Gateway Weakness Exploited Across Multiple Networks According to ZetaChain’s official statement, the security breach centered on the GatewayEVM contract, which manages cross-chain message passing and token transfers. Malicious actors exploited design flaws to execute unauthorized withdrawals. The theft spanned four blockchain networks: Ethereum, Arbitrum, Base, and BSC.
The platform disclosed that attackers leveraged multiple security gaps within the messaging infrastructure. The gateway system permitted unrestricted function calls between connected blockchains. This architectural weakness allowed remote activation of critical contract functions without proper safeguards.
Technical analysis revealed that the recipient contract processed diverse command types, including direct token movement operations. Insufficient validation mechanisms failed to prevent malicious instructions. Attackers capitalized on these loose restrictions to siphon funds from compromised addresses.
Persistent Token Allowances Facilitated Fund Drainage The exploit mechanism relied heavily on pre-existing unlimited token approvals granted to the gateway smart contract. These permissions had been established during earlier deposit transactions and never revoked. Attackers utilized transferFrom functions to extract ERC-20 tokens from wallets with active allowances.
Platform representatives emphasized that the security incident exclusively affected three wallets under team control. End-user deposits and holdings remained completely secure throughout the attack. The breach highlighted significant risks associated with permanent token permission grants.
Interestingly, security researchers had previously flagged this vulnerability through the platform’s bug bounty initiative. However, the submission was dismissed as intended functionality rather than a critical flaw. This classification error became a contributing factor when combined with other system weaknesses during the actual exploit.
Emergency Response and Industry-Wide Security Concerns Upon detecting the unauthorized transactions, ZetaChain immediately halted all cross-chain functionality. Engineers rapidly developed and deployed remediation code eliminating the arbitrary call feature. Services remain suspended pending comprehensive security audits and system enhancements.
The updated architecture replaces blanket token approvals with transaction-specific permission models. This modification significantly limits potential attack vectors in future operations. Platform administrators urged all users to revoke outstanding allowances associated with gateway infrastructure.
Investigation revealed sophisticated attack preparation by the perpetrators. Initial funding came through Tornado Cash privacy protocol, while address poisoning tactics created confusion. Stolen assets were immediately converted to ETH, complicating tracking efforts.
This incident adds to growing concerns about smart contract security across decentralized finance ecosystems. Industry data indicates increasing frequency of exploits targeting architectural vulnerabilities in recent months. ZetaChain announced comprehensive reviews of both bug bounty procedures and overall security protocols.
Oliver Dale
Editor-in-Chief of Blockonomi and founder of Kooc Media, A UK-Based Online Media Company. Believer in Open-Source Software, Blockchain Technology & a Free and Fair Internet for all. His writing has been quoted by Nasdaq, Dow Jones, Investopedia, The New Yorker, Forbes, Techcrunch & More. Contact [email protected]
The ZetaChain’s $334K exploit was preventable if the team had taken earlier bug reports seriously.
In the post-mortem report, the team admitted that the gateway vulnerability leveraged by the attacker had been disclosed in a bug bounty program, but they dismissed it.
Prior to the exploit, the vulnerability class had been reported through our bug bounty program. Initial reports were dismissed as the arbitrary call behavior was considered by design.
Going forward, the project added, it will review all bug bounty submissions to ensure “reports involving chained attack vectors receive appropriate severity assessment.”
That said, the project clarified that protocol-controlled wallets were the ones drained of $334K, adding that no user funds were lost.
April crypto hack losses top $600M In April, the losses from the rising crypto hacks hit $629 million, according to data tracked by DeFiLlama. This was the highest level of monthly losses so far in 2026.
In fact, even when zoomed out on a year-on-year (YoY) basis, it was still the largest loss.
Source: DeFiLlama This week alone, Aftermath Perps lost $1.14 million while Sweat Foundation suffered a $3.5M breach. ZetaChain, Judao, Scallop Lend, Syndicate, and Quant also suffered exploits ranging between $150K to $413K each.
Last week, Volo Vault, Purrlend, and Giddy also added to the growing list of victims. Perhaps the most notable victim in April is the Kelp DAO’s $293 million exploit, which triggered massive outflows across the DeFi ecosystem.
Yet, some of these exploits are preventable, especially with strong bug bounty programs. In the ZetaChain case, for example, there was a prior bug submission, which was ignored.
At the same time, the attacker did some tests before the exploit, which could be flagged by strong threat monitoring.
Now the industry will contend with another powerful threat actor: AI-powered models. Cybersecurity models with offensive capabilities like Anthropic’s Claude-powered Mythos and recently announced OpenAI’s GPT-5.5-Cyber are yet to be made public.
The reported offensive capability of these models should be a warning sign for the entire industry to take security measures more seriously or forget about mass adoption.
Final Summary ZetaChain admitted its $334K exploit was from a bug that was previously reported but wasn’t acted on. Losses linked to DeFi hacks in April have now crossed $600M, underscoring the need for proactive threat detection.
PANews reported on June 2nd that ZetaChain has fully transitioned from cross-chain infrastructure to AI, positioning itself as a "Private Memory Layer" for AI. The official statement indicated that after four years of building cross-chain infrastructure, the team's exploration of whether interoperability can extend from chains and assets to AI intelligence itself has been validated.
ZetaChain's AI product, Anuma, surpassed 60,000 users in its first month. It allows users to share the same set of context, preferences, and memories across multiple mainstream models, including ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, DeepSeek, and Kimi, eliminating the need to repeatedly build background information when switching models. ZetaChain states that Anuma's core is "user-owned privacy AI." Users can log in directly through their wallets without needing personal information such as email or name; all memory content is encrypted on the user's device, rather than stored on the platform's servers.
In addition, ZetaChain announced a new incentive mechanism around ZETA. Users who lock ZETA can earn Anuma Tokens daily and redeem AI credits to use various AI models; users who lock 80,000 ZETA will automatically unlock Anuma Pro, which includes higher amounts of AI credits, all models, and full privacy features.
ZetaChain has previously focused on cross-chain interoperability infrastructure, and this time it has further proposed the concept of "AI Consumer Layer", which will attempt to build a new AI user layer around memory, identity, permissions, payment and agent collaboration.
Here’s a problem most people don’t think about until it’s annoying: every time you switch between AI tools, you start from scratch. Your ChatGPT conversation history means nothing to Claude. Your Gemini preferences don’t carry over anywhere.
ZetaChain thinks it has a fix. The blockchain network has launched Anuma, which it calls a “private memory layer for AI,” designed to let users store encrypted, portable context that works across multiple AI platforms. The product hit 100,000 users within 38 days of going public.
What Anuma actually does Think of Anuma as a personal vault for your AI interactions. Instead of each AI model maintaining its own siloed understanding of who you are and what you need, Anuma creates a unified memory layer that travels with you. Your preferences, conversation history, and contextual data get encrypted on your device and stored in a way that any compatible AI application can access, but only with your permission.
The encryption runs on AES-GCM. Your data gets scrambled before it ever leaves your device, and only you hold the keys to unscramble it. No centralized server, no AI company, and no blockchain validator can read your memory vault without your explicit consent.
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The platform also includes a feature called Memory Import, which lets users bring existing context from other AI tools into the Anuma ecosystem. Programmable permissions give users granular control over which applications can access which parts of their stored memory.
ZetaChain’s ZETA token handles access fees, usage settlements, and creator rewards within the ecosystem.
From cross-chain bridges to AI infrastructure The network originally built its reputation on cross-chain interoperability, connecting different blockchains so assets and data could move between them. That infrastructure attracted a historical user base of 12 million with over 240 million transactions processed.
ZetaChain 2.0 and the Anuma beta launched on January 27, 2026. By June 1, 2026, ZetaChain made the transition official, announcing it would focus exclusively on AI memory infrastructure.
Anuma reached 60,000 users in its first month after launch, then crossed the 100,000 threshold just 38 days after going public.
Why this matters for the AI subscription economy Only about 9% of users currently pay for multiple AI subscriptions. Each subscription exists in isolation, which means users are essentially paying multiple times to teach multiple AIs the same things about themselves.
Right now, when you use ChatGPT, OpenAI stores your conversations. When you use Claude, Anthropic does the same. Your AI interactions are scattered across multiple corporate servers, each governed by different privacy policies. Anuma’s client-side encryption model keeps the user in control of the data layer.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
MINNEAPOLIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--U.S. Bancorp (NYSE: USB) commented on the results of the Federal Reserve’s Dodd-Frank Act Stress Test (DFAST) conducted in accordance with the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act.
If the results of the current exercise were used to calculate a stress capital buffer (SCB) under the Federal Reserve's rules, U.S. Bancorp would be bound by the 2.5% floor under those rules; however, as announced in a press release on February 4, 2026, the Federal Reserve Board voted to maintain its current stress test-related capital buffer requirements until 2027 so that public feedback can be considered for the supervisory models. As such, the SCB for U.S. Bancorp will remain unchanged at 2.6 percent until October 1, 2027. The SCB, when added to the Basel III Common Equity Tier 1 (CET1) capital to risk-weighted assets ratio minimum of 4.5 percent, requires the company to maintain a CET1 ratio at or above 7.1 percent throughout this period.
All U.S. Bancorp regulatory capital ratios continue to reflect strong capital levels and exceed “well-capitalized” requirements. U.S. Bancorp’s CET1 capital to risk-weighted assets ratio using the Basel III standardized approach was 10.8 percent as of March 31, 2026.
U.S. Bancorp’s planned capital actions include a 3.8 percent increase in its quarterly common stock dividend from $0.52 to $0.54 per share, subject to approval by U.S. Bancorp's Board of Directors, effective in the third quarter of 2026. Additionally, as of March 31, 2026, U.S. Bancorp had $4.1 billion of remaining capacity under its existing $5 billion share repurchase program.
U.S. Bancorp has published its company-run DFAST results, which are available on the company’s website at www.usbank.com under “About Us,” “Investor Relations,” “Financials,” “Supporting documents” and “Dodd-Frank Act Stress test results.”
“In banking, trust is everything—and it’s tested most in times of uncertainty,” said Gunjan Kedia, Chairman and CEO of U.S. Bancorp. "Our role is to provide strength and stability for our clients, no matter the environment. That requires a long-term focus, disciplined risk management, and a commitment to doing the right things consistently. Our recent stress test results show that we are built for that responsibility. They underscore the strength of our balance sheet, the resilience of our business model, and our ability to continue serving clients through a wide range of economic scenarios.”
About U.S. Bancorp
Headquartered in Minneapolis, U.S. Bancorp is the parent company of U.S. Bank National Association, the fifth-largest commercial bank in the United States. Our three major business lines serve 15 million clients throughout the U.S., Canada and Europe, and our team of nearly 70,000 people invest our hearts and minds to power human potential every day. Ranked 110th on the Fortune 500, we are deeply respected for our culture and long-term stewardship and admired for our diversified business mix and product capabilities.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements about U.S. Bancorp. Statements that are not historical or current facts, including statements about beliefs and expectations, are forward-looking statements and are based on the information available to, and assumptions and estimates made by, management as of the date hereof. These forward-looking statements cover, among other things, U.S. Bancorp’s SCB requirement and capital action plans. Forward-looking statements involve inherent risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those set forth in forward-looking statements, including changes to statutes, regulations, or regulatory policies or practices and the risks and uncertainties more fully discussed in the section entitled “Risk Factors” of U.S. Bancorp’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2025, and subsequent filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on any forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date hereof, and U.S. Bancorp undertakes no obligation to update them in light of new information or future events.
Grayscale's head of research, Zach Pandl, commented on the Anthropic ban, drawing attention to Bittensor.
16.06.2026 - 15:21
Update: 16.06.2026 - 15:21
The Anthropic Claude model, which was taken offline at the request of the US government for its Mythos 5 and Fable 5 versions, has reignited debates in the artificial intelligence world.
While this ban has also attracted market attention, Grayscale research head Zach Pandl evaluated the developments in the latest report.
As is known, on June 12, the US government announced that it was blocking access to Anthropic’s Mythos-level models for foreign nationals on grounds of national security.
Grayscale research director Zach Pandl stated that the US ban on the Anthropic AI model has strengthened decentralized projects.
Accordingly, Pandl argued that the US government’s decision to block Anthropic’s latest AI model has increased demand for decentralized AI projects like Bittensor (TAO).
At this point, Pandl noted that in the US and China, the two leading countries in the field of artificial intelligence, very few companies hold control over the AI sector.
In response, Pandl stated that Bittensor aims to provide permissionless AI access through an open, global, and decentralized network, and that Bittensor is the Bitcoin of the AI sector.
“Bittensor is the Bitcoin of the AI sector… What Bitcoin did for money, Bittensor is doing for AI.”
Recently, access to artificial intelligence has also become very important.
Pandl also noted that the price of TAO increased by 30% in 12 hours following the announcement of the restrictions on the Mythos model, concluding that demand for decentralized alternatives is increasing as centralized providers restrict access to AI.
*This is not investment advice.
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Target: Managing Cyclical Revenue TrendsTarget (TGT +5.13%) primarily generates its revenue by selling a diverse mix of groceries, apparel, home decor, and general merchandise through its nationwide network of physical stores and its digital storefronts.
It recently appointed a new chief global supply chain officer and raised its quarterly dividend, while reporting a 3% net income margin for the quarter ended May 2, 2026.
Costco: Steady Growth Through Membership WarehousesCostco (COST +0.32%) operates global membership-based retail warehouses that offer customers bulk groceries, consumer electronics, and apparel, alongside ancillary services such as pharmacies, food courts, and gas stations.
It recently rolled out membership card entrance scanners nationwide and expanded its warehouse footprint, while posting a 13% gross margin for the quarter ended May 10, 2026.
Why Revenue Matters for Retail InvestorsRevenue here refers to the total amount of money a business brings in before deducting any operational expenses. It serves as a critical starting point for investors to understand the overall size, scale, and growth trajectory of a retail business.
Quarterly Revenue for Target and CostcoQuarter (Period End)Target RevenueCostco RevenueQ3 2024$25.5 billion (period ended Aug. 2024)$79.7 billion (period ended Sept. 2024)Q4 2024$25.7 billion (period ended Nov. 2024)$62.2 billion (period ended Nov. 2024)Q1 2025$30.9 billion (period ended Feb. 2025)$63.7 billion (period ended Feb. 2025)Q2 2025$23.8 billion (period ended May 2025)$63.2 billion (period ended May 2025)Q3 2025$25.2 billion (period ended Aug. 2025)$86.2 billion (period ended Aug. 2025)Q4 2025$25.3 billion (period ended Nov. 2025)$67.3 billion (period ended Nov. 2025)Q1 2026$30.5 billion (period ended Jan. 2026)$69.6 billion (period ended Feb. 2026)Q2 2026$25.4 billion (period ended May 2026)$70.5 billion (period ended May 2026)Data source: Company filings. Data as of June 23, 2026.
Foolish TakeExamining the revenue trends for Target and Costco reveal insightful information helpful to evaluating investments in these retail giants. Target’s sales spikes in the first quarter are because its fiscal Q1 spans the key holiday shopping season. Retailers typically see their largest sales during that time of year.
Costco experiences annual spikes in its fiscal third quarter, during the summer months, because it is a different kind of retailer from Target. It sells products in bulk, and during the summer, customers buy food for barbecues and purchase pricey items such as outdoor furniture. Consumers typically do not buy gifts in bulk during the holiday period.
Costco’s quarterly revenue is substantially higher than Target’s as a result not only of its bulk sales, but also to membership fees that Target lacks. These fees added $1.4 billion to Costco’s top line in its fiscal third quarter ended May 10.
As their revenue trends show, Target and Costco may both operate in the retail category, but their business models differ enough to make meaningful impacts on their income.
"I think that it still looks good and I have a bag of it that I'm trading," one popular analyst stated.
Many leading altcoins are well in the green today (June 16), but Bittensor (TAO) has failed to follow the overall upswing, posting a substantial daily decline.
Even so, several analysts think it could be gearing up for a rebound that might carry it back to multi-month highs.
Big Pump Incoming? TAO currently trades at around $268, a 7% plunge over the past 24 hours. It is important to note that its decline occured despite Grayscale’s positive remarks. Just hours ago, the digital asset management company claimed that centralized companies like Anthropic are more vulnerable to government intervention and decentralized projects like Bittensor “offer an alternative.”
“Bittensor provides open-source, permissionless access to AI through a decentralized global network,” the firm posted on X.
X user Altcoin Sherpa noted that TAO has lagged behind numerous well-known cryptocurrencies, suggesting the weakness may stem from traders pre-positioning and many already being fully allocated. At the same time, the analyst said TAO still “looks good” and that they remain invested in it.
“This current area is a bit of a resistance spot, 200d EMA + S/R level, but if it can break here, I think the low $300s is my next area up,” the X user added.
Ali Martinez also gave his two cents. He argued that TAO is approaching the top of its descending channel and predicted that a decisive break could open the door to a jump to $350 and then $420.
The asset’s recent exchange netflow raises the possibility of a short-term revival. Over the past few weeks, outflows have surpassed inflows, suggesting that many investors have abandoned centralized trading venues in favor of self-custody solutions, thereby reducing immediate selling pressure.
TAO Exchange Netflow, Source: CoinGlass How About $500? Another analyst who seems very fond of TAO is Michael van de Poppe. A few days back, he described the token’s chart as “phenomenal” and envisioned a potential price explosion to $500.
You may also like: Analyst Identifies 3 Altcoin Sectors Positioned to Survive Market Shakeout Analyst Predicts ‘Massive Bull Rally’ if US-Iran Peace Deal Is Signed Analyst: BTC’s 50% Drop Could Be Setting Up a 2017-Style Altcoin Rally Shortly after, he opined that the strongest altcoins from the previous months, including TAO, could extend their solid performance in the near term, provided Bitcoin (BTC) has already bottomed.
Recall that at the start of June, the primary cryptocurrency briefly collapsed to around $59,000 – its lowest point in 19 months. And while it has recovered well above $65,000 following the peace deal between Iran and the US, some analysts believe the worst for this cycle has yet to come.
SponsoredUpdated Jun 17, 2026, 1:11 p.m. Published Jun 17, 2026, 12:54 p.m.
2 min read
Summary
A new Bittensor proposal called Root Reborn would overhaul how yield is paid to TAO stakers by turning validators into active allocators of capital across AI subnets.Instead of automatically selling subnet tokens for TAO each block, validators would reinvest rewards into selected subnets, creating compounding baskets that stakers can still cash out to TAO at any time.The code, currently submitted for a test network on GitHub, has already undergone an automated review that flagged two serious issues the author says are now fixed, with further cleanup planned before any mainnet release.A new proposal for Bittensor, the decentralized AI network behind the TAO token, would change how the network pays its validators and turn them into something closer to fund managers.
Bittensor is built from dozens of subnets, each a marketplace for a different AI task, with its own token. TAO is the network's main token. Users earn yield by staking TAO to validators on the root, the layer considered the network's safest place to park capital.
The new proposal changes how yield is paid.
Right now, the system funds it by selling the rewards owed to root stakers and automatically swapping out subnet tokens for TAO. That means the network is constantly selling the very tokens its subnets are built on, which drives down their prices.
The proposal, called Root Reborn and submitted by developer 'unconst,' flips that.
Instead of selling everything, each validator would choose a set of subnets to support, much like picking holdings for a fund. The yield that would have been sold is reinvested into the chosen subnets, held as a basket that compounds over time, and staked back to the validator. Stakers still get their yield and can cash out to TAO whenever they want.
Such a mechanism stops the constant selling pressure and turns it into net buying that supports subnet prices.
Validators turn from passive yield pipes into active curators, since subnets they back attract fresh capital, while those they judge to be bad actors get starved of it.
The proposal is a code submission on Bittensor's GitHub as of Wednesday, aimed at a test network rather than the main one.
Meanwhile, an early automated review flagged two serious issues, including an upgrade step that could choke on large amounts of data and a payout path that could shortchange stakers when a subnet shuts down. The author said in a GitHub response that those issues are fixed, with more cleanup listed before any mainnet release.
Bittensor's token, TAO, has fallen 28% over the last 12 months, while bitcoin has fallen 38% over the same period. The token's staking yield currently sits around 17% if users hold TAO for a year.
17 June 2026 | 19:34 A new proposal shared on Bittensor's GitHub could reshape how the network's root layer handles capital, turning validators from passive reward routers into active investors deciding which AI subnets deserve funding.
Key Takeaways A GitHub proposal would turn Bittensor validators into active capital allocators. It replaces automatic subnet-token selling with a reinvestment model. The change could ease structural sell pressure on TAO. TAO trades near $253 after a sharp June recovery. What Bittensor Is For readers new to it, Bittensor is a decentralized network that tries to turn machine intelligence into an open market rather than a product owned by a handful of tech giants. Founded in 2019 by Jacob Steeves and Ala Shaabana through the Opentensor Foundation, it runs on the Subtensor blockchain and rewards participants in its native token, TAO, for contributing useful AI work.
This activity is organized through specialized “subnet” networks, independent artificial intelligence ecosystems within Bittensor that compete with one another to create valuable models, data, and services. Each subnet focuses on a specific task or area of artificial intelligence, and validators assess the quality of the results and direct rewards to the projects that create the most value for the network.
The 2025 dTAO upgrade pushed this further, letting TAO holders direct rewards toward the subnets they believe create real value.
The Price: A Violent Flush, Then a Sharp Recovery The token’s recent chart tells a story of capitulation and rebound. TAO trades near $253, having reclaimed its 200-day moving average at roughly $248 after early-June sell-off that dragged it from around $260 on 31st of May all the way down to the $185 zone in a matter of days. That low established a clear support floor, and the bounce off it was sharp enough to pull price back above the 200-day line, a tentative signal that momentum may be shifting, led by broader crypto market gains, started by Iran-US peace agreement.
The structure is not clean yet. Price is still pinned below the falling 50-day average near $263 while trading at $253 at the time of writing on 17th of June, which now acts as overhead resistance, leaving TAO consolidating in a band between roughly $248 support and $260 to $265 resistance. With the RSI sitting at a neutral 53, the chart reflects a market that has stopped falling but has not yet proven it can break higher.
The Proposal: Validators as Capital Allocators Against that backdrop comes a proposal, shared on GitHub and informally dubbed “Root Reborn,” that would change how the root layer works at a structural level. Currently, the returns for participants in root staking, the primary staking layer in the Bittensor ecosystem—are generated through the sale of subnet tokens and their conversion into TAO. It is precisely this mechanism that creates constant selling pressure on the subnet networks.
The proposal could reverse the flow. Instead of automatically selling subnet rewards, validators would decide which subnets deserve capital, reinvesting rewards into the ones they back rather than dumping them. The result would be a compounding portfolio of subnet positions that can later be redeemed for TAO, transforming the validator’s role from passive yield distributor into active investor.
Why It Matters The shift is bigger than a tokenomics tweak. It would change Bittensor from a system that extracts value from subnets into one that recycles capital back into them, and the second-order effects are where it gets interesting:
Less sell pressure: subnet tokens would no longer face constant, automatic selling to fund rewards. Active investors: validators would behave like fund managers rather than reward routers. Capital follows performance: strong subnets would attract more funding, while weak ones would receive less. Skill-based yield: root staking returns would become tied to how well validators allocate capital. Taken together, that starts to look less like a reward-distribution system and more like a decentralized asset-management network, one where capital flows, rather than governance committees, decide which AI subnets grow and which fade.
If it works as intended, the proposal could create a self-reinforcing loop: better subnets attract more validator capital, that capital supports subnet-token values, higher values generate larger rewards, larger rewards lift root staking yields, and higher yields draw more capital into TAO. In that framing, the change converts root staking from a value-extraction mechanism into a capital-allocation engine that strengthens the whole ecosystem rather than slowly bleeding it.
The Caveat Worth Keeping in Mind For now, this is a proposal, not a shipped feature, and that distinction matters. A change this fundamental to how rewards and sell pressure work would need to clear technical review and community alignment before it goes live, and the actual impact would depend entirely on whether validators allocate capital wisely. Concentrating allocation power in a small set of validators, a known feature of Bittensor’s current structure, could just as easily channel capital poorly as well. The thesis is genuinely compelling, but it rests on execution that has not happened yet.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. Consult a professional before making investment decisions.
Author
Kosta has reported on cryptocurrency markets and blockchain infrastructure since 2020, bringing over six years of hands-on experience in the crypto industry built through daily tracking of markets, trends, and emerging blockchain developments. Specializing in Bitcoin on-chain analysis, institutional ETF flows, and digital asset price action, his work at Coindoo has been cited by other news agencies and consistently covers market developments with a focus on data-driven reporting across Bitcoin, Ethereum, Solana, and XRP. Over the years, Kosta has contributed to multiple crypto media outlets in different regions, authoring over 6,000 articles across the sector. His reporting spans cryptocurrency markets and the broader fintech industry, tracking not only price action but also the technological and regulatory forces shaping the ecosystem. To support his analysis, Kosta actively leverages on-chain data and metrics from leading platforms such as Santiment, Glassnode, and CryptoQuant, enabling deeper, evidence-based market insights. He believes in the power of transparency and the data that underpins the blockchain ecosystem. His academic background in Marketing Management from Denmark further complements his analytical approach, adding a strong understanding of communication strategy and content positioning to his work.
Manako Labs has launched a vision AI agent platform that converts standard enterprise cameras into real-time operational intelligence systems, powered by Bittensor’s decentralized Score Subnet 44 (SN44).
How Manako’s vision AI actually works Manako’s platform uses a no-code interface that lets users describe what they want to monitor in plain English. You type “alert me when someone enters the restricted zone” or “detect spills on the warehouse floor,” and the system generates a lightweight vision model to handle it.
The models are roughly 19MB in size, small enough to run on a standard CPU. Users can test these models with uploaded footage before connecting them to live camera feeds. Manako reportedly doesn’t access any of the video feeds itself — processing happens at the edge, on the enterprise’s own infrastructure.
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When the system detects something noteworthy, it sends Slack notifications along with timestamped video clips.
According to Manako, enterprises currently generate actionable insights from less than 2% of captured camera data.
The Bittensor connection Manako’s platform runs on Bittensor’s Score Subnet 44, a decentralized computer vision network within the broader Bittensor ecosystem. SN44 focuses specifically on computer vision scoring, where miners compete to develop and deliver the most effective models for tasks such as object detection and event recognition.
Strategic milestones In April 2026, Manako secured a strategic partnership with PwC France & Maghreb for enterprise advisory integration.
The company won the overall Start in Block 2026 award at Paris Blockchain Week, selected from a pool of over 1,000 applicants.
On June 2, 2026, Manako received a $1 million investment from TaoWeave, earmarked specifically for expansion into the North American market.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Robbins LLP informs stockholders that a class action was filed on behalf of all investors who purchased or otherwise acquired First Solar, Inc. (NASDAQ: FSLR) securities between February 26, 2025 and February 24, 2026. First Solar is a solar technology company that provides photovoltaic (“PV”) solar energy solutions.
Robbins LLP is Investigating Allegations that First Solar, Inc. (FSLR) Misled Investors Regarding its Financial Prospects
ShareFor more information, submit a form, email attorney Aaron Dumas, Jr., or give us a call at (800) 350-6003.
The Allegations: Robbins LLP is Investigating Allegations that First Solar, Inc. (FSLR) Misled Investors Regarding its Financial Prospects
According to the complaint, during the class period, defendants failed to disclose that: (i) defendants had overstated First Solar’s capacity to manage the impact of U.S. tariff policy on the Company’s business; (ii) defendants understated the extent to which its responses to U.S. tariff policy, including the intentional underutilization of production facilities in Malaysia and Vietnam, and attempted relocation of production to the U.S., were likely to negatively impact First Solar’s projected performance in the 2026 fiscal year; and (iii) as a result, defendants’ public statements were materially false and misleading at all relevant time.
Plaintiff alleges that on January 7, 2026, Jefferies downgraded First Solar to Hold from Buy, noting that during 2025, the Company had lowered guidance, faced significant de-bookings and experienced margin compression through 2025. Jefferies also flagged that “[international] facilities remain a pain point while tariffs exist” and “underutilization at [international] facilities remains a concern.” The Jefferies analyst also predicted that First Solar’s deployment opportunities were likely to be more limited in 2026. On this news, First Solar’s stock price fell $27.67 per share, or 10.29%, to close at $241.11 per share on January 7, 2026.
Then, on February 24, 2026, First Solar issued a press release “announc[ing] financial results for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2025.” Among other items, First Solar announced earnings that missed expectations by a wide margin and issued lower-than-expected FY 2026 revenue guidance, citing customer headwinds such as permitting delays under the Trump administration. Following First Solar’s announcement, Baird Research downgraded its stock to Neutral from Outperform, citing “several question marks in forward outlook”. On this news, First Solar’s stock price fell $33.09 per share, or 13.61%, to close at $210.12 per share on February 25, 2026.
What Now: You may be eligible to participate in the class action against First Solar, Inc. Shareholders who wish to serve as lead plaintiff for the class should contact Robbins LLP. The lead plaintiff is a representative party who acts on behalf of other class members in directing the litigation. You do not have to participate in the case to be eligible for a recovery. If you choose to take no action, you can remain an absent class member. For more information, click here.
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Bittensor (TAO) price edges below $250 at press time on Thursday, marking its fourth straight day of losses. The AI token is losing retail demand as TAO futures Open Interest dips over 8% in the last 24 hours. The technical outlook for TAO highlights the 20-day Simple Moving Average (SMA) at $231 as the immediate support guarding the downside toward $200.
Retail demand wanes in TAOBittensor, one of the leading AI tokens in the crypto market, is losing its retail interest as the broader market sentiment falters. CoinGlass data show TAO futures Open Interest (OI) at $260.24 million, down over 8% in the last 24 hours, indicating a sharp decline in the notional value of active contracts.
Strengthening risk-off sentiment, total liquidations over the same period reached $1.66 million, led by a $1.42 million worth of bullish positional wipeout. The 14% drop in volume to $624.85 million and the funding rate down to 0.0018% reaffirms reduced trading activity and willingness to buy long positions.
TAO derivatives data. Source: CoinGlassBittensor closes in the last line of defense before $200Bittensor trades below the $250 psychological support on Thursday, extending its losses below the 50-day and 200-day Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs) at roughly $251 and $265. The AI token has been in a declining trend since the upper Bollinger Band capped its recovery last week near $290.
From a technical perspective, TAO remains above the 20-period SMA, around $231, which serves as the Bollinger Band's midline. A decisive close below $231 could expose downside risk to the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement level at $196, measured over the $538 to $143 downswing, and then to the lower Bollinger Band at $181.
That said, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) is hovering near a neutral 50, while the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) histogram contracts in the positive territory, which implies that last week's recovery was a corrective rebound rather than a sustained trend reversal.
TAO/USDT daily price chart.On the topside, the 50% retracement level at $278 serves as crucial resistance, close to the upper Bollinger Band at $281. Beyond this, a clear breakout could open the path toward the 78.6% Fibonacci retracement level at $406.
(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool.)
Yuma, one of Bittensor’s largest contributors and the network’s third-largest validator, has published a detailed critique of the proposed “Root Reborn” upgrade, arguing that the design introduces governance, regulatory, and market structure risks that outweigh its potential benefits.
Summary
Yuma has opposed Bittensor’s proposed Root Reborn upgrade, warning that it could introduce conflicts of interest, regulatory concerns, and new risks for stakers. The proposal would allow validators to allocate root staking rewards across subnet tokens instead of automatically converting rewards into TAO. Yuma said subnets backed by validator allocations could benefit from additional demand, but called for more testing, risk analysis, and a formal upgrade roadmap before deployment. The proposal, currently under review and not yet active on mainnet, would overhaul how root staking rewards are handled. Under the existing system, root dividends are effectively paid by automatically converting subnet alpha emissions back into TAO. The new design would stop those automatic sales.
🧠 Bittensor $TAO upgrade watch: Root Reborn
A new Subtensor PR proposes one of the larger changes to Bittensor’s root validation structure so far.
Today, root dividends are effectively paid by auto-swapping subnet alpha back into TAO. This creates constant sell pressure on… pic.twitter.com/UNLFsKzcsl
— tao.bot (τ, τ) (@taodotbot) June 18, 2026 Instead, validators would set allocation weights across subnets. Root emissions would then be deployed into validator-selected baskets of subnet tokens, with stakers receiving redeemable claims on those positions rather than direct TAO rewards.
The proposal states that the change would reduce automatic sell pressure on subnet assets and make validator allocation decisions a more important part of the network economy. It would also introduce new tools to track validator basket net asset value, subnet allocations, staker liabilities, and network-wide basket performance.
Yuma said the proposal changes the role of validators from infrastructure operators into active allocators of capital.
“In its current form, the Root Reborn proposal carries substantial unmitigated risk that outweighs its benefits,” the validator group wrote.
The following analysis is a byproduct of lack of process within the ecosystem that leaves business builders limited notice or ability to properly plan, assess risk, and execute.
We are responding rapidly to the code we’ve seen thus far, in the forum where we see it being… https://t.co/cZ3DQD2gkU
— Yuma (@YumaGroup) June 18, 2026 Yuma warns of conflicts and regulatory exposure Yuma argued that validators would gain significant influence over capital flows inside the Bittensor ecosystem, creating incentives that may not always align with the interests of delegators.
The group said validators could direct allocations toward subnets in which they already hold positions or accept external incentives from subnet operators seeking additional capital. Yuma compared the structure to the lessons of the LIBOR scandal, where a small group of participants held influence over key financial benchmarks.
“Moral hazard is acute,” Yuma wrote, adding that validators should be expected to maximize their own financial returns.
The organization also questioned whether validator performance could be measured effectively under the proposed system. It said validators would not control redemption timing, making it difficult to maintain target portfolio allocations as users enter and exit positions.
Over time, Yuma argued, new emissions would represent an increasingly small portion of large validator baskets, limiting a validator’s ability to materially influence performance through future allocation decisions.
The report also raised concerns about regulatory treatment. Yuma said validators currently direct blockchain emissions, but Root Reborn would place them in a position where they actively determine subnet token exposure for delegators.
“Validators are no longer simply providing a neutral technological service due to the requirement to also set weights for subnet token rewards,” the group wrote.
Proposal seeks to reduce sell pressure on subnet assets Supporters of the proposal have presented the upgrade as a mechanism to keep more value inside the subnet economy.
A summary accompanying the Subtensor pull request stated that root yield would move away from automatic subnet token sales and toward reinvestment across validator-selected subnets. The proposal described the change as a way to make validator selection depend on capital allocation decisions rather than primarily on fees or staking yields.
The proposal also said delegators would gain additional transparency through dashboard tools that display basket composition, net asset value, and outstanding liabilities owed to stakers.
Yuma acknowledged that subnets receiving validator allocations could benefit from increased demand and stronger token prices. The group wrote that subnets awarded meaningful weights would likely experience net-positive price effects, while subnets receiving little or no allocation could see neutral outcomes.
At the same time, Yuma warned that the structure could encourage lobbying efforts by subnet operators seeking validator support. The report said new projects may face greater barriers to entry if relationships with validators become an important factor in attracting capital.
The validator group also identified operational risks. Its report cited escrow concentration in a single coldkey, redemption dynamics that could create losses for late redeemers during periods of heavy withdrawals, repeated slippage costs from basket rebalancing, and execution challenges if network activity scales significantly.
Yuma urged the OpenTensor Foundation and network stakeholders to consider alternative approaches that allow stakers to express subnet preferences directly through opt-in mechanisms rather than concentrating allocation decisions among validators.
The group also called for a published upgrade roadmap, a defined release process, additional testing, and formal risk evaluation before any implementation proceeds.
The debate arrives days after Bittensor attracted renewed market attention following comments from Grayscale Head of Research Zach Pandl, who argued that recent U.S. restrictions on Anthropic’s advanced AI models could strengthen demand for decentralized AI networks. Pandl wrote that investors may increasingly look toward alternatives such as Bittensor as access to frontier AI systems becomes subject to centralized controls.
TAO (TAO) climbed roughly 30% within 12 hours after those developments, as per previous coverage on crypto.news. However, as of press time, TAO is down over 6% as traders weigh the recent concerns around the Root Rebor proposal.
FOSTER CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Gilead Sciences, Inc. (Nasdaq: GILD) today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Trodelvy® (sacituzumab govitecan-hziy), a first-in-class Trop-2-directed antibody-drug conjugate (ADC), for the first-line treatment of adult patients with unresectable locally advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC). Trodelvy is now approved in first-line mTNBC either as a single agent for patients who are not candidates for PD-(L)1 inhibitor-based therapy or in combination with Keytruda® (pembrolizumab) or Keytruda Qlex™ (pembrolizumab and berahyaluronidase alfa-mph) for patients whose tumors express PD-L1 (CPS ≥10) as determined by an FDA-authorized test.
“For people living with mTNBC, the first treatment choice can be pivotal, as many patients may not have the opportunity to receive subsequent therapies,” said Sara Tolaney, MD, MPH, Chief of the Division of Breast Oncology at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and a principal investigator of the ASCENT-03 and ASCENT-04 studies. “This approval is heartening news for patients and the clinical community, and I believe offers a practice-changing first-line treatment option for all patients across PD-L1 status.”
The FDA approval is based on highly statistically significant and clinically meaningful progression-free survival (PFS) data from the Phase 3 ASCENT-03 and ASCENT-04/KEYNOTE-D19 trials, where Trodelvy-based regimens significantly reduced the risk of disease progression or death in first-line mTNBC—by 38% as monotherapy versus chemotherapy in PD-L1 ineligible disease in ASCENT-03 and by 35% in combination with Keytruda versus Keytruda plus chemotherapy in PD-L1+ disease in ASCENT-04.
Across ASCENT-03 and ASCENT-04, Trodelvy-based regimens delivered markedly more durable responses, with median duration of response of 12.2 versus 7.2 months with chemotherapy in ASCENT-03 and 16.5 versus 9.2 months for Trodelvy plus Keytruda versus Keytruda plus chemotherapy in ASCENT-04 by blinded independent central review.
“For patients with metastatic TNBC, a new first-line treatment option offers optimism to a community with historically few choices,” said Ricki Fairley, Co-Founder and CEO of TOUCH, The Black Breast Cancer Alliance. “TNBC disproportionately affects younger women - many in the prime of their lives - and often leads to poorer outcomes. Because so many patients may never receive subsequent lines of therapy, the ability to start with a promising option like Trodelvy with or without Keytruda is critical. We have sought additional alternatives to chemotherapy-containing regimens in the first-line metastatic setting since TNBC was classified as a disease more than 20 years ago. As such, this approval represents meaningful progress for the families impacted by this disease.”
“The FDA’s approval of Trodelvy provides a new standard of care for the most aggressive form of breast cancer,” said Dietmar Berger, MD, PhD, Chief Medical Officer, Gilead Sciences. “For more than twenty years, patients with mTNBC have had limited choices in first-line treatment. Building on its impact in second-line mTNBC, Trodelvy now offers patients a powerful new backbone therapy option in the first-line setting.”
Based on the ASCENT-03 and ASCENT-04 positive study results, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) recommends Trodelvy with or without Keytruda as a category 1 preferred first-line treatment option for people with mTNBC across PD-L1 status in the NCCN Guidelines®i. Trodelvy also has a category 1 recommendation in second-line mTNBC and in pre-treated HR+/HER2-negative (IHC 0, IHC 1+ or IHC 2+/ISH-) metastatic breast cancer (mBC).
Healthcare professionals have well-established experience with Trodelvy, with more than 75,000 breast cancer patients treated across more than 60 countries over the past six years. It remains the only Trop-2-directed ADC to demonstrate meaningful overall survival benefits in both second-line or later metastatic TNBC and pre-treated HR+/HER2- mBC. It is also the only ADC with four positive Phase 3 trials in HER2-negative (IHC 0, IHC 1+ or IHC 2+/ISH-) mBC.
Please see below for the U.S. Indication and Important Safety Information for Trodelvy, including Boxed Warning.
KEYTRUDA® and KEYTRUDA QLEX™ are trademark(s) of Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA.
About Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
TNBC is the most aggressive type of breast cancer and has historically been difficult to treat, accounting for approximately 15% of all breast cancers. TNBC disproportionally impacts younger, premenopausal, and Black and Hispanic women. TNBC cells do not have estrogen and progesterone receptors and have limited HER2 expression. Due to the nature of TNBC, treatment options are extremely limited compared with other breast cancer types. TNBC has a higher chance of recurrence and metastases than other breast cancer types. The average time to metastatic recurrence for TNBC is approximately 2.6 years compared with 5 years for other breast cancers, and the relative five-year survival rate is much lower. Among women with metastatic TNBC, the five-year survival rate is 12%, compared with 28% for those with other types of mBC.
First-line metastatic TNBC has seen limited new approvals in recent years and additional options are urgently needed. Over 50% of patients do not receive treatment beyond first-line, reinforcing the urgent need for new options to help improve patient outcomes. Breast cancers expressing PD-L1 are overall more aggressive and associated with reduced survival time.
About Trodelvy
Trodelvy (sacituzumab govitecan-hziy) is a first-in-class Trop-2-directed antibody-drug conjugate. Trop-2 is a cell surface antigen highly expressed in multiple tumor types, including in more than 90% of breast and lung cancers. Trodelvy is intentionally designed with a proprietary hydrolyzable linker attached to SN-38, a topoisomerase I inhibitor payload. This unique combination delivers potent activity to both Trop-2 expressing cells and the tumor microenvironment through a bystander effect.
Trodelvy is currently approved in more than 60 countries for second-line or later metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC) and in more than 50 countries for certain patients with pre-treated HR+/HER2- metastatic breast cancer (mBC). Global regulatory submissions for the approval of Trodelvy based on ASCENT-03 and ASCENT-04 are underway.
Trodelvy is currently being evaluated in multiple ongoing Phase 3 trials across a range of tumor types with high Trop-2 expression. These studies with Trodelvy, both in monotherapy and in combination with pembrolizumab, involve earlier lines of treatment for TNBC and HR+/HER2- breast cancer—including in curative settings—as well as in lung and gynecologic cancers, where previous proof-of-concept studies have demonstrated clinical activity.
INDICATIONS
TRODELVY® (sacituzumab govitecan-hziy) is a Trop-2–directed antibody and topoisomerase inhibitor conjugate indicated in adult patients:
Locally Advanced or Metastatic Triple-Negative Breast Cancer
First Line
As a single agent for the first-line treatment of unresectable locally advanced or metastatic triple-negative breast cancer (mTNBC) who are not candidates for PD-1 or PD-L1 inhibitor-based therapy In combination with pembrolizumab or pembrolizumab and berahyaluronidase alfa-pmph for the first-line treatment of unresectable locally advanced or mTNBC whose tumors express PD-L1 [Combined Positive Score (CPS ≥10)] as determined by an FDA-authorized test Second Line or Later
For the treatment of unresectable locally advanced or mTNBC who have received two or more prior systemic therapies, at least one of them for metastatic disease. Locally Advanced or Metastatic HR-positive, HER2-negative Breast Cancer
For the treatment of unresectable locally advanced or metastatic hormone receptor (HR)-positive, human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2)-negative (IHC 0, IHC 1+, or IHC 2+/ISH–) breast cancer who have received endocrine-based therapy and at least two additional systemic therapies in the metastatic setting. IMPORTANT SAFETY INFORMATION
BOXED WARNING: NEUTROPENIA AND DIARRHEA
TRODELVY can cause severe, life-threatening, or fatal neutropenia. Withhold TRODELVY for absolute neutrophil count below 1500/mm3 or neutropenic fever. Monitor blood cell counts periodically during treatment. Primary prophylaxis with G-CSF is recommended for all patients at increased risk of febrile neutropenia. Initiate anti-infective treatment in patients with febrile neutropenia without delay. TRODELVY can cause severe diarrhea. Monitor patients with diarrhea and give fluid and electrolytes as needed. At the onset of diarrhea, evaluate for infectious causes and, if negative, promptly initiate loperamide. If severe diarrhea occurs, withhold TRODELVY until resolved to ≤Grade 1 and reduce subsequent doses. CONTRAINDICATIONS
Severe hypersensitivity reaction to TRODELVY. WARNINGS AND PRECAUTIONS
Neutropenia: Severe, life-threatening, or fatal neutropenia can occur as early as the first cycle of treatment and may require dose modification. Neutropenia occurred in 64% of patients treated with TRODELVY. Grade 3-4 neutropenia occurred in 48% of patients. Febrile neutropenia occurred in 6%. Neutropenic colitis occurred in 1.4%. Primary prophylaxis with G-CSF is recommended starting in the first cycle of treatment in all patients at increased risk of febrile neutropenia, including older patients, patients with previous neutropenia, poor performance status, organ dysfunction, or multiple comorbidities. Monitor absolute neutrophil count (ANC) during treatment. Withhold TRODELVY for ANC below 1500/mm3 on Day 1 of any cycle or below 1000/mm3 on Day 8 of any cycle. Withhold TRODELVY for neutropenic fever. Treat neutropenia with G-CSF and administer prophylaxis in subsequent cycles as clinically indicated or indicated in Table 2 of USPI.
Diarrhea: Diarrhea occurred in 62% of all patients treated with TRODELVY. Grade 3-4 diarrhea occurred in 10% of patients. One patient had intestinal perforation following diarrhea. Diarrhea that led to dehydration and subsequent acute kidney injury occurred in 0.6% of all patients. Withhold TRODELVY for Grade 3-4 diarrhea and resume when resolved to ≤Grade 1. At onset, evaluate for infectious causes and, if negative, promptly initiate loperamide, 4 mg initially followed by 2 mg with every episode of diarrhea for a maximum of 16 mg daily. Discontinue loperamide 12 hours after diarrhea resolves. Additional supportive measures (eg, fluid and electrolyte replacement) may also be employed as clinically indicated. Patients who exhibit an excessive cholinergic response to treatment can receive appropriate premedication (eg, atropine) for subsequent treatments.
Hypersensitivity and Infusion-Related Reactions: TRODELVY can cause serious hypersensitivity reactions, including life-threatening anaphylactic reactions. Severe signs and symptoms included cardiac arrest, hypotension, wheezing, angioedema, swelling, and skin reactions. Hypersensitivity reactions occurred in 28% of patients with 13% occurring within 24 hours of dosage. Grade 3-4 hypersensitivity occurred in 1.5% of patients with 0.4% of these occurring within 24 hours of dosage. The incidence of hypersensitivity reactions leading to permanent discontinuation of TRODELVY was 0.4%. The incidence of anaphylactic reaction was <0.1%. Pre-infusion medication is recommended. Have medications and emergency equipment to treat such reactions available for immediate use. Closely monitor patients for hypersensitivity and infusion-related reactions during each infusion and for at least 30 minutes after completion of each infusion. Permanently discontinue TRODELVY for Grade 4 infusion-related reactions.
Nausea and Vomiting: TRODELVY is emetogenic and can cause severe nausea and vomiting. Nausea occurred in 63% of all patients treated with TRODELVY, and Grade 3-4 nausea occurred in 3% of these patients. Vomiting occurred in 33% of patients, and Grade 3-4 vomiting occurred in 2% of these patients. Premedicate with a two- or three-drug combination regimen (eg, dexamethasone with either a 5-HT3 receptor antagonist or an NK1 receptor antagonist, as well as other drugs as indicated) for prevention of chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting. Withhold TRODELVY doses for Grade 3 nausea or Grade 3-4 vomiting and resume with additional supportive measures when resolved to ≤Grade 1. Additional antiemetics and other supportive measures may also be employed as clinically indicated. All patients should be given take-home medications with clear instructions for prevention and treatment of nausea and vomiting.
Increased Risk of Adverse Reactions in Patients With Reduced UGT1A1 Activity: Patients homozygous for the uridine diphosphate-glucuronosyl transferase 1A1 (UGT1A1)*28 allele are at increased risk for neutropenia, febrile neutropenia, and anemia and may be at increased risk for other adverse reactions with TRODELVY. The incidence of Grade 3-4 neutropenia was 57% in patients homozygous for the UGT1A1*28 allele, 48% in patients heterozygous for the UGT1A1*28 allele, and 41% in patients homozygous for the wild-type allele. The incidence of Grade 3-4 anemia was 17% in patients homozygous for the UGT1A1*28 allele, 9% in patients heterozygous for the UGT1A1*28 allele, and 8% in patients homozygous for the wild-type allele. Closely monitor patients with known reduced UGT1A1 activity for adverse reactions. Withhold or permanently discontinue TRODELVY based on clinical assessment of the onset, duration, and severity of the observed adverse reactions in patients with evidence of acute early-onset or unusually severe adverse reactions, which may indicate reduced UGT1A1 function.
Embryo-Fetal Toxicity: Based on its mechanism of action, TRODELVY can cause teratogenicity and/or embryo-fetal lethality when administered to a pregnant woman. TRODELVY contains a genotoxic component, SN-38, and targets rapidly dividing cells. Advise pregnant women and females of reproductive potential of the potential risk to a fetus. Advise females of reproductive potential to use effective contraception during treatment with TRODELVY and for 6 months after the last dose. Advise male patients with female partners of reproductive potential to use effective contraception during treatment with TRODELVY and for 3 months after the last dose.
ADVERSE REACTIONS
In the pooled safety population of TRODELVY as a single agent, the most common (≥25%) adverse reactions, including laboratory abnormalities, were decreased leukocyte count (83%), decreased neutrophil count (77%), decreased hemoglobin (71%), nausea (63%), diarrhea (62%), decreased lymphocyte count (60%), fatigue (59%), alopecia (47%), increased glucose (40%), constipation (37%), vomiting (33%), decreased albumin (32%), increased alkaline phosphatase (30%), decreased appetite (28%), abdominal pain (27%), decreased creatinine clearance (27%), decreased magnesium and potassium (26% each).
In the safety population of TRODELVY in combination with pembrolizumab, the most common (≥25%) adverse reactions, including laboratory abnormalities, were decreased neutrophil count and hemoglobin (86% each), decreased leukocyte count (84%), diarrhea (72%), nausea (68%), decreased lymphocyte count (61%), fatigue (58%), alopecia (52%), increased alkaline phosphatase and glucose (50% each), increased alanine aminotransferase (47%), constipation (41%), increased aspartate aminotransferase (40%), rash (37%), decreased potassium (35%), increased lactate dehydrogenase (34%), vomiting (29%), abdominal pain, headache, and increased eosinophils (26% each), and decreased albumin (25%).
In the ASCENT-03 study (single agent in previously untreated, unresectable locally advanced or mTNBC), the most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥25%) were nausea, diarrhea, alopecia, fatigue, constipation, and vomiting. The most frequent serious adverse reactions (SAR) (>2%) were diarrhea, febrile neutropenia, and neutropenia (3.6% each), and pneumonia (2.9%). SAR occurred in 26% of patients, and 3.6% permanently discontinued TRODELVY due to adverse reactions. Fatal adverse reactions occurred in 2.5% of patients and included sepsis (1.1%), and acute respiratory failure, neutropenic colitis, pneumonia, and septic shock (0.4% each). The most common Grade 3-4 lab abnormalities (incidence ≥25%) were decreased neutrophils and leukocytes.
In the ASCENT-04 study (in combination with pembrolizumab in previously untreated, unresectable locally advanced or mTNBC whose tumors express PD-L1), the most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥25%) were diarrhea, nausea, fatigue, alopecia, constipation, rash, vomiting, abdominal pain, and headache. The most frequent SAR (≥2%) were febrile neutropenia (7%), neutropenia (6%), diarrhea (5%), and fatigue and pneumonia (2.3% each). SAR occurred in 38% of patients, and 7% permanently discontinued TRODELVY due to adverse reactions. Fatal adverse reactions occurred in 3.2% of patients and included death (unknown cause) (0.9%) and completed suicide, neutropenic sepsis, sepsis, pneumonia, and pulmonary embolism (0.5% each). The most common Grade 3-4 lab abnormalities (incidence ≥25%) were decreased neutrophils and leukocytes.
In the ASCENT study (previously treated locally advanced or mTNBC), the most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥25%) were fatigue, diarrhea, nausea, alopecia, constipation, vomiting, abdominal pain, and decreased appetite. The most frequent SAR (>1%) were neutropenia (7%), diarrhea (4%), and pneumonia (3%). SAR occurred in 27% of patients, and 5% permanently discontinued TRODELVY due to adverse reactions. Fatal adverse reactions occurred in 1.2% of patients and included respiratory failure (0.8%) and pneumonia (0.4%). The most common Grade 3-4 lab abnormalities (incidence ≥25%) were decreased neutrophils, leukocytes, and lymphocytes.
In the TROPiCS-02 study (locally advanced or metastatic HR+/HER2– breast cancer), the most common adverse reactions (incidence ≥25%) were diarrhea, fatigue, nausea, alopecia, and constipation. The most frequent SAR (>1%) were diarrhea (5%), febrile neutropenia (4.1%), neutropenia (3%), abdominal pain (2.2%), neutropenic colitis and vomiting (1.9% each), and colitis and pneumonia (1.5% each). SAR occurred in 28% of patients, and 6% permanently discontinued TRODELVY due to adverse reactions. Fatal adverse reactions occurred in 2.2% of patients and included arrhythmia, COVID-19 pneumonia, pneumonia, nervous system disorder, pulmonary embolism, and septic shock (0.4% each). The most common Grade 3-4 lab abnormalities (incidence ≥25%) were decreased neutrophils and leukocytes.
DRUG INTERACTIONS
UGT1A1 Inhibitors: Avoid administering UGT1A1 inhibitors with TRODELVY. SN-38 is a UGT1A1 substrate. Concomitant administration of TRODELVY with inhibitors of UGT1A1 may increase the incidence of adverse reactions due to potential increase in systemic exposure to SN-38.
UGT1A1 Inducers: Avoid administering UGT1A1 inducers with TRODELVY. SN-38 is a UGT1A1 substrate. Concomitant administration of TRODELVY with inducers of UGT1A1 may reduce exposure to SN-38.
Please see full Prescribing Information, including BOXED WARNING.
About Gilead and Kite Oncology
Gilead and Kite Oncology are working to transform how cancer is treated. We are innovating with next-generation therapies, combinations and technologies to deliver improved outcomes for people with cancer. We are purposefully building our oncology portfolio and pipeline to address the greatest gaps in care. From antibody-drug conjugate technologies and small molecules to cell therapy-based approaches, we are creating new possibilities for people with cancer.
About Gilead Sciences
Gilead Sciences, Inc. is a biopharmaceutical company that has pursued and achieved breakthroughs in medicine for more than three decades, with the goal of creating a healthier world for all people. The company is committed to advancing innovative medicines to prevent and treat life-threatening diseases, including HIV, viral hepatitis, COVID-19, cancer and inflammation. In 2025, Gilead announced a planned $32 billion investment to further strengthen its U.S. footprint to power the next era of discovery, job creation and public health preparedness – while continuing to invest globally to ensure patients everywhere benefit from its scientific innovation. Gilead operates in more than 35 countries worldwide, with headquarters in Foster City, Calif.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors, including Gilead’s ability to initiate, progress or complete clinical trials or studies within currently anticipated timelines or at all, and the possibility of unfavorable results from ongoing and additional clinical trials or studies, including those involving sacituzumab govitecan-hziy (such as ASCENT-03 and ASCENT-04); uncertainties relating to regulatory applications and related filing and approval timelines, including potential applications for programs and/or indications currently under evaluation, and the risk that any regulatory approvals, if granted, may be subject to significant limitations on use or subject to withdrawal or other adverse actions by the applicable regulatory authority; the possibility that Gilead may make a strategic decision to discontinue development of these programs and, as a result, these programs may never be successfully commercialized for the indications currently under evaluation; the risk that physicians and patients may not see advantages of Trodelvy for first-line mTNBC and may therefore be reluctant to prescribe the products; and any assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. These and other risks, uncertainties and factors are described in detail in Gilead’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2026, as filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. These risks, uncertainties and other factors could cause actual results to differ materially from those referred to in the forward-looking statements. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed forward-looking statements. The reader is cautioned that any such forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and involve risks and uncertainties and is cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All forward-looking statements are based on information currently available to Gilead, and Gilead assumes no obligation and disclaims any intent to update any such forward-looking statements.
Trodelvy, Gilead and the Gilead logo are trademarks of Gilead Sciences, Inc., or its related companies.
U.S. Prescribing Information for Trodelvy, including BOXED WARNING, is available at www.gilead.com.
For more information about Gilead, please visit the company’s website at www.gilead.com, follow Gilead on X/Twitter (@Gilead Sciences) and LinkedIn (@Gilead-Sciences).
Bittensor’s TAO token has fallen nearly 20% from its June 15 peak after governance concerns, derivatives liquidations, and a risk-off macro backdrop combined to erase much of last week’s rally.
Summary
TAO has fallen nearly 20% from its June 15 high as governance concerns and liquidations hit sentiment. Criticism of the Root Reborn proposal has raised questions about validator power, liquidity, and regulation. Technical indicators show sellers remain in control, with $220 acting as a key near-term support level. According to data from crypto.news, Bittensor (TAO) price dropped 4.3% in the last 24 hours to trade near $225 on June 19, bringing its losses to nearly 20% since June 15, when the AI-focused token peaked around $283 before governance concerns and derivatives liquidations triggered a reversal.
Bittensor’s decline accelerated after criticism emerged around the proposed Root Reborn governance overhaul, a plan designed to reduce persistent subnet token selling by changing how validators allocate capital across the network.
While supporters view the proposal as a long-term fix for Bittensor’s tokenomics, opponents argue it could introduce governance concentration, liquidity stress, and regulatory complications.
Among the most vocal critics, validator group Yuma warned that Root Reborn would transform validators from neutral network operators into active capital allocators. According to Yuma, the framework could create incentives for collusion, preferential treatment, and frontrunning while encouraging subnet teams to prioritize validator relationships over AI product development.
“Such a change could fundamentally alter the role of validators,” Yuma wrote in its assessment of the proposal.
At the same time, derivatives traders rapidly reduced exposure. CoinGlass data showed TAO futures open interest falling more than 8% over a 24-hour period to roughly $252 million-$260 million. More than $1.66 million in bullish leveraged positions were liquidated during the same stretch, adding forced market selling as prices moved lower.
Trading activity also weakened. Daily volume dropped roughly 14% to about $624 million as traders reassessed protocol risk ahead of further discussions surrounding the governance proposal
Concerns extended beyond governance mechanics. Yuma argued that rewards tied to baskets of subnet tokens could become difficult to liquidate during periods of market stress, while a wave of unstaking could create execution disadvantages for later redeemers.
Macroeconomic conditions added another headwind. Crypto markets remained under pressure after Federal Reserve Chair Kevin Warsh reinforced expectations that U.S. interest rates may remain elevated for longer than previously expected.
The stronger U.S. dollar and declining appetite for speculative assets pushed capital away from high-beta sectors, including artificial intelligence-linked cryptocurrencies.
TAO technical structure favors sellers below key resistance The daily chart shows TAO breaking below a major horizontal support zone near $237, a level that acted as a floor during April and May. What previously served as support now risks becoming resistance after the breakdown.
TAO price has lost a key support level on the daily chart — June 19 | Source: crypto.news Murrey Math levels place the token below the 3/8 trading range support at $218.8, while the next major resistance stands near the 4/8 pivot at $250. A recovery above that region would be required to restore bullish momentum and reopen a path toward $281, where the June rally stalled.
On the four-hour chart, TAO has also fallen beneath the 23.6% Fibonacci retracement level at $228.2 after rejecting the 0.786 retracement near $273.8 earlier this week. Price continues to trade below a descending trendline that has capped every recovery attempt since June 15.
TAO 4-hour price chart — June 19 | Source: crypto.news Momentum indicators remain weak. The MACD has crossed into negative territory with expanding bearish histogram bars, while Chaikin Money Flow sits at -0.27, showing capital leaving the market. Although the Stochastic RSI remains above oversold levels on the daily timeframe, both signal lines have turned lower.
According to the 4-hour chart, TAO’s failure to reclaim the broken $237 support leaves the market vulnerable to another leg lower toward the $208 Fibonacci support zone.
TAO loses key support as sellers target lower liquidity zones CoinGlass liquidation heatmap data shows dense liquidity clusters concentrated between $239 and $241, creating a potential magnet should buyers regain control. Several additional liquidation pockets sit near $244 and $245, where short positions could come under pressure if TAO stages a relief rally.
TAO liquidation heatmap | Source: CoinGlass The downside picture remains equally important. A concentration of leveraged positions has formed around the $225-$226 area, while thinner support appears below current prices until the $220 region. A decisive break beneath $220 could expose the June swing low near $190 before attention turns toward the longer-term support band between $180 and $200.
Regulatory concerns surrounding Root Reborn present another risk. Yuma argued that validators directing capital allocations could attract scrutiny typically associated with investment management activities, potentially complicating participation for exchanges, custodians, and institutional operators.
If uncertainty surrounding the proposal persists while macro conditions remain restrictive, TAO may struggle to reclaim the $237-$250 zone that bulls need to regain control.
Disclosure: This article does not represent investment advice. The content and materials featured on this page are for educational purposes only.
Bittensor [TAO] remained under strong selling pressure. Since its rejection at $285, the altcoin has posted lower lows for seven consecutive days.
During this decline, TAO dropped to $222 and appeared close to erasing all gains made earlier this month.
Amid the sustained sell-off, the altcoin fell below both its short- and long-term moving averages, signaling persistent bearish pressure.
Source: TradingView On top of that, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) formed a bearish crossover and dropped to 44. The RSI’s move deeper into bearish territory reinforced the weakening market structure.
Are whales driving TAO lower? AMBCrypto observed that TAO’s recent weakness coincided with rising whale activity. Data from CryptoQuant’s Spot Average Order Size showed large orders entering the market over the past week.
Source: CryptoQuant The spike suggested heightened whale participation in the Spot market. However, the metric alone could not determine whether whales were buying or selling.
By contrast, Spot Taker CVD remained negative throughout the same period. That indicated sellers maintained control of market activity.
Source: CryptoQuant Taken together, the two metrics suggested active whales were primarily selling. That selling pressure appeared to be a key driver behind TAO’s continued decline.
In fact, the Spot Buy Sell Volume metric reinforced this trend. Since the 14th of June, sell volume has consistently exceeded buy volume.
As a result, the Buy Sell Delta remained negative for seven straight days, highlighting persistent Spot selling pressure.
Source: CryptoQuant Can TAO avoid another drop? Bittensor [TAO] continued to face strong downward pressure, with whale-led selling dominating market activity.
If current conditions persist, the altcoin could revisit $214. A break below that level may expose the key psychological support at $200.
Even so, losing $200 could strengthen bearish momentum and open the door to a decline toward $185.
To invalidate the bearish outlook, TAO would need to reclaim its short-term EMAs and close above $248. If buyers achieve that, the altcoin could regain strength and attempt a move toward $280, where the previous rally stalled.
Final Summary Bittensor’s recent decline coincided with rising whale selling, which helped push TAO below key moving averages. Spot market data showed sellers remained dominant, increasing the risk of another move toward $214 or $200.
PANews, June 22 — Bittensor co-founder const posted on X detailing the project’s current state of decentralization, future roadmap, and goals. Bittensor has not yet achieved decentralization at the economic incentive layer and is still steered by the core team, including const himself, two engineers, and a group of core contributors. The project has been live for over five years, has no pre-mine, and features 128 subnet teams and more than 20 core validator teams. Decentralization has already been achieved in terms of ownership distribution. The team chose to iterate rapidly at the cost of “remaining centralized” rather than slowly advancing “democratized” decision-making.
Regarding future update plans, Bittensor will push validators back into a competitive mechanism while opening liquidity pools for two-way investment to symmetrize the market and prevent on-chain signals from being manipulated. In addition, a conviction mechanism will be introduced to grant voting rights to Alpha token holders. Updates to TaoFlow and its derivatives will also roll out in the coming weeks, further fine-tuning the issuance distribution algorithm to optimize how inflation is allocated. const expects to complete the core mechanism within the next year and a half, at which point the three pillars — incentive alignment, value optimization, and true ownership — will operate in synergy, ultimately achieving full decentralization by abandoning centralized control.
On June 22, Bittensor co-founder Const published a comprehensive article outlining the project’s current centralized governance framework and its roadmap to full decentralization. He noted Bittensor is not yet fully decentralized—unlike Bitcoin—but clarified this is not a design flaw; rather, it’s a strategic choice tailored to AI’s early, fast-evolving phase. Unlike Bitcoin, which faced headwinds from national financial systems at its launch, AI is still in its infancy, so Bittensor is prioritizing innovation speed and protocol iteration efficiency over early adoption of slow, on-chain governance led by a decentralized community. Instead, the core team will steer key upgrades to refine network mechanics and economic models in the near term. Const emphasized Bittensor has already achieved decentralization at its most critical levels: token distribution, network ownership, and ecosystem participation rights. Since launch, the project has never engaged in pre-mining, has operated for over five years, and distributed TAO tokens to global contributors via open, competitive processes. Today, its ecosystem includes 128 subnet teams, more than 20 core validator groups, plus numerous independent developers and community members. Anyone can build a subnet, participate in mining, or use AI services on the network without permission, which Const frames as "ownership decentralization." The only remaining centralized elements relate to core protocol development direction and upgrade decisions—parallel to Bitcoin’s early days, when Satoshi Nakamoto led network progress. Looking ahead, Bittensor plans to: boost validator competition mechanisms; add bidirectional trading and shorting features to open liquidity pools; grant Alpha token holders governance rights via its Conviction mechanism; refine the TaoFlow and DTAO emission distribution models; and clean out teams that long extract value without contributing to ecosystem growth. Const expects that in roughly 18 months, once its incentive, value discovery, and ownership systems are fully integrated, Bittensor will complete its final stage of decentralization. At that point, the core team will step away from control, allowing the network to operate independently in a programmatic, tamper-proof manner—ultimately realizing its vision of the "Millennial Intelligent Federation."
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Bitcoin (BTC) upholds a subtle recovery outlook on Monday, trading above $64,000 as investors reengage amid easing geopolitical tensions, particularly in the Middle East. Altcoins are broadly rising, led by Zcash (ZEC) and Bittensor (TAO), indicating a positive short-term turnaround.
Still, a broader scope reveals that the prevailing risk-off sentiment, as reflected in the derivatives market, may limit recovery potential.
US-Iran peace talks drive Bitcoin’s recoveryHigh-stakes talks between the United States (US) and Iran aimed at achieving a lasting peace agreement began over the weekend. Both nations reportedly agreed on a preliminary framework under which the US would grant a waiver to ease sanctions on Iranian Oil exports, a key prerequisite for advancing nuclear discussions.
The negotiations, which took place in Switzerland, brought together US Vice President JD Vance, Iranian officials and Qatari mediators. Vance downplayed the impact of recent Israeli strikes in Lebanon, emphasizing that negotiations are yielding tangible results toward de-escalation.
Despite mediators describing the talks as making “encouraging progress,” with both countries agreeing on a roadmap toward a final agreement within 60 days, US President Donald Trump said that “Iran must immediately stop their highly paid PROXIES in Lebanon from causing trouble,” or risk fresh attacks.
It is worth mentioning that Iranian negotiators unexpectedly paused the peace talks following a series of verbal threats from Trump.
Despite Bitcoin’s subtle rebound, the crypto market remains on edge, weighed down by deteriorating sentiment. The crypto Fear & Greed Index, which holds at 20 in the Extreme Fear territory on Monday, down from 23 the day before, signals that risk-averse sentiment is an overhang.
Crypto Fear & Greed Index | Source: AlternativeMeanwhile, Bitcoin trades above the $64,000 short-term support, advancing from last week’s low at $62,272. The 50-day Exponential Moving Average (EMA) at roughly $69,093, the 100-day EMA near $72,120 and the 200-day EMA around $77,631 line up as a layered cap above the market, suggesting rallies are likely to face supply while the Relative Strength Index (RSI) hovers in the low-40s on the daily chart.
A positive Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) histogram suggests downside momentum is not aggressive, but it does little to alter the overarching capped structure, while spot trades under these key trend averages.
On the topside, immediate resistance lies at the 50-day EMA around $69,093, with further barriers at the 100-day EMA near $72,120 and the 200-day EMA close to $77,631, forming a broad supply band that would need to be reclaimed to ease the current bearish tone.
BTC/USDT daily chartWith no nearby structural supports highlighted by the available indicators, buyers would seek to reengage at key psychological areas, including last week's lows near $62,000 and $60,000.
Zcash and Bittensor rise amid subdued retail interestZcash advances above $450 as bulls build on the support established at around $436. Recovery appears to be gaining momentum, as reflected in the MACD histogram remaining positive on the daily chart and the RSI approaching the midline.
ZEC/USDT daily chartOn the topside, immediate resistance emerges at the 50-day EMA around $474, with the upper boundary of the downward parallel channel near $500 acting as the next hurdle if buyers manage a breakout. Looking down, initial support is aligned with the 100-day EMA at roughly $436, ahead of the more strategic 200-day EMA near $380. A sustained break below that zone would expose the channel’s lower boundary around $239 as the next significant demand region.
Subdued retail demand for Zcash derivatives remains a major overhang, especially with futures Open Interest (OI) falling to $919 million on Monday, down from slightly above $1 billion the previous day. The current OI pales in comparison to $1.67 billion, recorded in late May.
ZEC Futures OI | Source: CoinGlassBittensor trades at $232, keeping a bearish near-term bias as the spot price holds below key EMAs despite improving momentum signals. The pair has rebounded from recent lows, but the MACD histogram remains only modestly positive and the RSI hovers just below the midline, which together suggest a corrective bounce within a broader capped structure rather than a confirmed trend reversal.
TAO/USDT daily chartOn the topside, initial resistance lies at the downtrend resistance trendline break region around $294, where a daily close above would be needed to ease the current bearish tone. Conversely, the broader structure finds layered support from the 200-day EMA near $265, the 100-day EMA around $254 and the 50-day EMA close to $248, with more distant structural backing from the prior uptrend support break area near $188 if selling pressure resumes and the current recovery falters.
Bittensor's derivatives market reflects weak retail demand, with futures OI moderating downward at $239 million on Monday, from $250 the previous day. A persistent sell-off would weigh on TAO's structural outlook, which remains weak despite the minor rebound above $232.
TAO Futures OI | Source: CoinGlassFor now, holding support at $225 is critical for a sustained short-term recovery. However, it does not remove the overarching risk of a continued sell-off toward the demand regions at $200 and $188.
(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool.)
Open Interest, funding rate FAQs Higher Open Interest is associated with higher liquidity and new capital inflow to the market. This is considered the equivalent of increase in efficiency and the ongoing trend continues. When Open Interest decreases, it is considered a sign of liquidation in the market, investors are leaving and the overall demand for an asset is on a decline, fueling a bearish sentiment among investors.
Funding fees bridge the difference between spot prices and prices of futures contracts of an asset by increasing liquidation risks faced by traders. A consistently high and positive funding rate implies there is a bullish sentiment among market participants and there is an expectation of a price hike. A consistently negative funding rate for an asset implies a bearish sentiment, indicating that traders expect the cryptocurrency’s price to fall and a bearish trend reversal is likely to occur.
Bittensor co-founder Jacob Steeves wants the protocol he helped build to no longer need him. The man known as “Const” in crypto circles has published a roadmap to fully decentralize Bittensor within 18 months, targeting a completion date around December 2027.
The decentralization deficit Bittensor, co-founded by Steeves and Ala Shaabana, has built genuine decentralized ownership among its participants over more than five years of operation. The network currently runs 128 active subnet teams and more than 20 core validator teams.
But ownership and control are not the same thing. Bittensor’s governance structure has relied on what’s been called a “triumvirate” model, and critics have argued it concentrates too much power in too few hands. The core team’s grip on the economic incentive layer, the mechanism that determines how rewards flow through the network, has been a persistent sore point.
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That criticism reached a boiling point in April 2026 when Covenant AI, a participant in the Bittensor ecosystem, exited the network entirely. Covenant AI accused the protocol of “decentralization theatre,” alleging unilateral control by Steeves over key network decisions. TAO’s price dropped roughly 18-20% in the aftermath.
The roadmap: what Steeves is actually proposing Steeves’ plan isn’t a single flip-the-switch moment. He’s outlined a phased approach that touches several core components of how Bittensor operates.
First, the roadmap calls for raising validator competition. Second, the plan includes implementing bidirectional liquidity pools. Third, Steeves wants to introduce a conviction-based voting mechanism for Alpha token holders. This type of system weights votes based on how long a holder commits their tokens, rewarding long-term alignment over short-term speculation.
The roadmap also includes updates to the TaoFlow algorithm, which governs how incentives are distributed across the network’s subnets.
Steeves resigned as CEO of the Opentensor Foundation in February 2026, months before announcing this roadmap. The move was explicitly framed as reducing key-person dependency.
What this means for investors For TAO holders, the roadmap addresses the single biggest governance risk that has weighed on the token. The April 2026 price drop following Covenant AI’s departure demonstrated how directly governance concerns translate into market impact.
The conviction-based voting mechanism deserves particular attention from investors. If implemented correctly, it could create a structural incentive for longer-term holding, reducing sell pressure and rewarding patient capital. If implemented poorly, it could entrench existing large holders and create a new form of centralization dressed in governance clothing.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Editorial Team. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
Four months after giving up the CEO title at the Opentensor Foundation in what observers called a "Satoshi moment," Bittensor co-founder Jacob Steeves, known online as @const_reborn, is saying openly what critics have long alleged: core direction still runs through him. In a new essay, Steeves acknowledges that the AI network is not fully decentralized where it matters most, and argues that is a deliberate choice rather than a failure.
The Case for Centralized Speed Steeves frames the current structure as a practical necessity. According to Crypto Times, the project intentionally maintains a controlled leadership structure so it can move quickly and keep pace with rapid AI development. His argument draws a direct comparison to Bitcoin: where Bitcoin needed to be fully decentralized from day one to resist financial control, AI is still in early stages and has not yet faced the same regulatory pressure, so Bittensor can grow first and decentralize later.
His plan is not a single switch-flip but a phased approach targeting roughly 18 months, with a completion date around December 2027. The roadmap calls for raising validator competition, implementing bidirectional liquidity pools, and introducing a conviction-based voting mechanism for Alpha token holders, a system that weights votes based on how long a holder commits their tokens. Steeves also points to what he considers irreversible foundations: no pre-mine, no presale, no founder allocation, five years of live operation, and 128 active subnets across the network.
Governance Under Pressure Steeves resigned as CEO of the Opentensor Foundation in February 2026, months before publishing this roadmap. At the time, he indicated the primary shift would be legal and structural rather than operational, noting that day-to-day development would continue as before. Critics were quick to note the gap between the symbolic gesture and operational reality.
That criticism reached a breaking point on April 10, 2026. The Block reported that Covenant AI, a major subnet developer on Bittensor, announced it was leaving the network entirely. Founder Sam Dare accused Steeves of operating what he called "decentralization theatre," alleging that Steeves "maintains effective control over the triumvirate, resists any meaningful transfer of authority, and deploys changes unilaterally whenever he chooses, without process and without consensus." Covenant AI also sold approximately 37,000 $TAO tokens valued at over $10 million during the exit. $TAO dropped roughly 15 to 27% in the immediate aftermath, one of its worst single-day moves.
On the same day, a newly launched site called Tao Papers published what it described as on-chain forensics from multiple whistleblowers, claiming that of 41 Bittensor network upgrades between 2023 and 2026, 38 were proposed and deployed from infrastructure controlled by Steeves. Steeves disputed the allegations, arguing his actions fell within normal network participation and were visible on-chain.
The new essay and roadmap are, in part, a direct response to that episode. Whether a phased plan steered by the same individual constitutes a credible path to decentralization is now the central question for $TAO holders and builders considering the network.
Sources:
The Block: Covenant AI exits Bittensor, TAO drops 15%
Crypto Times: Bittensor isn't fully decentralized yet, co-founder explains why
Crypto Briefing: Bittensor founder targets full decentralization within 18 months
Bittensor co-founder Jacob Steeves has acknowledged that the protocol is not yet fully decentralized, saying the network still relies on core-team control in key areas while outlining a roadmap to complete decentralization within the next 18 months. Steeves, known in the crypto community as Const, said the current structure was not a design failure but a strategic decision made during the rapid development phase of artificial intelligence.
Bittensor has become one of the most prominent crypto-AI networks, using its TAO token to reward participants that contribute useful digital commodities, including machine intelligence, compute, storage and other services across specialized subnets. The project has attracted strong investor attention because it attempts to create an open market for AI resources outside the control of large technology companies.
However, its decentralization claims have faced growing scrutiny. Critics have argued that while Bittensor has open participation and distributed token ownership, important parts of the protocol still depend on a small group of engineers and core contributors. Steeves’ roadmap appears to directly address that criticism by acknowledging that Bittensor is not yet comparable to Bitcoin in terms of decentralization.
Centralization was a strategic trade-off Steeves said Bittensor’s centralization reflects the need to move quickly in a fast-changing AI market. Unlike Bitcoin, which was designed primarily as a censorship-resistant monetary system, Bittensor is trying to build an adaptive intelligence marketplace. That has required frequent upgrades, rapid error correction and active protocol design.
The key issue is the economic incentive layer. Reports summarizing Steeves’ roadmap say Bittensor remains directionally guided by the core team, particularly around emissions, validator behavior and protocol-level incentives. That matters because Bittensor’s value proposition depends on whether the network can fairly reward useful intelligence production without excessive control from insiders or dominant validators.
The network has expanded significantly, with active subnet teams and validators competing to produce and evaluate different digital services. But decentralization is not only about the number of participants. It also depends on who controls upgrades, who determines incentives, how emissions are allocated and whether governance can function without informal founder authority.
Steeves’ admission may therefore be important for credibility. Rather than defending the protocol as already fully decentralized, he is framing decentralization as a process that must now become the project’s main priority.
Roadmap aims to reduce founder control The 18-month roadmap includes several mechanisms intended to shift Bittensor away from core-team dependence. Planned changes include stronger validator competition, new liquidity pools that could help balance market dynamics, a conviction mechanism that allows token holders to signal long-term commitment, and steps to remove value extractors from the ecosystem.
The conviction mechanism is especially important because it could give committed TAO holders more formal influence while making short-term manipulation harder. Liquidity pools and shorting mechanisms could also help create more efficient markets around subnet assets and reduce the risk that attackers manipulate network growth or emissions.
If successful, the changes would move Bittensor closer to a model where validators, subnet operators and token holders collectively govern the system. That would help answer one of the biggest questions facing crypto-AI networks: whether they can scale without becoming dependent on the same centralized decision-making they claim to replace.
The challenge is execution. Decentralizing too quickly could slow development or expose the protocol to governance attacks. Moving too slowly could strengthen criticism that Bittensor is decentralized in branding but centralized in practice.
For investors, the roadmap adds both opportunity and risk. TAO’s long-term value depends heavily on whether Bittensor can become credible infrastructure for decentralized AI. Full decentralization would strengthen that thesis, but failure to deliver could undermine one of the protocol’s core narratives.
Steeves’ message is ultimately a reset of expectations. Bittensor is not yet fully decentralized, but its founder is now putting a timeline on when it should become so. The next 18 months may determine whether Bittensor can evolve from a founder-led crypto-AI network into a genuinely decentralized intelligence market.
Bittensor has dropped 4%, reaching $223. TAO’s daily trading volume is up by 81%. The fear sentiment in the market has pushed the majority of the assets into the red zone. Among the tokens, Bittensor (TAO) is losing momentum, registering a 4.05% drop. In the early hours, it traded at $235.86, and with the bears entering the TAO market, the price dropped to the $220.59 range.
At the time of writing, Bittensor traded within the $223.01 zone, with the market cap found at $2.46 billion. Moreover, the daily trading volume of the asset has exploded by over 81.92%, reaching the $664.09 million mark, according to the CoinMarketCap data.
Zooming in on the 4-hour price chart of Bittensor, there is an active downside momentum, slipping to the $212.38 support range. With a continuous bearish correction, a death cross might take place, and the bears could likely push the asset’s price even lower, below $201.02.
On the other hand, assuming an uptrend emerges, the Bittensor price could climb to the immediate resistance level at around $234.37. If the bulls gain more strength, with the potent upside correction, a golden cross would emerge and drive the price to $245.73 or even higher.
Will Bearish Momentum Drive Bittensor to New Lows? Bittensor’s technical analysis reports that both the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) and signal lines are below the zero line. It indicates the bearish trend. The price action is trading below its longer-term average, and the sellers continue to control the broader direction of the market.
Furthermore, the Chaikin Money Flow (CMF) reading stationed at -0.14 suggests moderate selling pressure with a noticeable outflow of capital. The volume favours distribution rather than accumulation. The bearish sentiment of TAO is currently stronger, and selling activity continues to outweigh buying interest.
The daily Relative Strength Index (RSI) value is found at 34.68. Also, this points to weak bearish momentum, with Bittensor approaching its oversold territory. With the downside pressure present, though, the asset is getting closer to levels where a short-term bounce could emerge if buying interest returns.
Moreover, TAO’s Bull Bear Power (BBP) of -16.8 showcases strong bearish pressure in the market. The price is trading below its average, showing that sellers are firmly in control. It reflects sustained downside momentum with buyers needing to regain momentum before a recovery can take shape.
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The cryptocurrency market trades amid increasing sell-side pressure on Tuesday, reflecting a broader deterioration in sentiment and appetite for risk assets. Artificial Intelligence (AI)-linked tokens such as Bittensor (TAO) and Near Protocol (NEAR) exhibit both fundamental and technical weaknesses, trading at $217 and $1.99, respectively.
The ongoing crypto market downturn, highlighted by Bitcoin (BTC) retesting the $62,000 support level, appears primarily driven by persistent geopolitical uncertainty. Investors remain cautious as the United States (US) and Iran issued conflicting statements regarding the peace framework reached at last weekend’s negotiations in Switzerland.
Sentiment in the wider crypto market remains in Extreme Fear territory, as evidenced by the Fear & Greed Index, which climbed only marginally to 23 on Tuesday, up from 20 the day before. This subdued sentiment indicates that appetite for risk assets is significantly low, leaving prices vulnerable to limited liquidity, low demand and lack of a follow-through tailwind.
Crypto Fear & Greed Index | Source: AlternativeBittensor remains under pressure amid lingering capital outflowsRetail participation in Bittensor continues to wane, with Futures Open Interest (OI) averaging $223 million on Tuesday, down from $239 million the previous day. While OI briefly surged to $357 million on June 15 amid heightened derivatives activity, the subsequent unwinding of long positions underscores a prevailing lack of confidence in Bittensor’s capacity to maintain upward momentum.
Bittensor Futures OI | Source: CoinGlassBittensor trades around $217, maintaining a bearish near-term tone as price holds beneath a dense cluster of Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs). The 50-day EMA at $247, the 100-day EMA at $253 and the 200-day EMA near $267 all sit overhead as dynamic resistance, reinforcing the broader downtrend marked by the descending resistance trend line projecting toward the $291 area.
Momentum appears mixed with the Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) histogram contracting just above the zero line on the daily chart, hinting at fading downside pressure. On the other hand, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) around 41 on the same chart reflects subdued buying interest rather than a convincing bullish reversal.
TAO/USDT daily chartInitial resistance is aligned with the Bollinger Bands’ center line at roughly $227, with further hurdles at the 50-day EMA near $247 and the 100-day EMA at $253. A sustained break above the 200-day EMA around $265 would be needed to challenge the broader downtrend and re-expose the descending trendline region near $291. Conversely, support is anticipated at the $200 psychological level, followed by the lower Bollinger Band, currently near $181, which mark the next meaningful demand areas if bearish pressure intensifies.
Near Protocol drawdown continues amid waning retail demandCapital outflows from Near Protocol derivatives remain persistent, as reflected in the perpetual futures OI falling to $390 million on Tuesday from nearly $453 million the day before. CoinGlass data show a brief surge in OI to $558 million on June 16, followed by a decline that hints at diminishing risk appetite.
Near Protocol | Source: CoinGlassNEAR trades around $1.99, consolidating in the middle of its downward-sloping channel and facing a mildly bearish near‑term tone as it sits just under the 50‑day EMA at $2.01. The spot price remains above the 100‑day and 200‑day EMAs at $1.82 and $1.79, respectively, which suggests an underlying medium‑term base.
Nevertheless, the negative MACD histogram on the daily chart and an RSI around 45 hint that upside momentum is fading. Near Protocol is also capped below the Parabolic SAR at $2.56.
NEAR/USDT daily chartOn the topside, initial resistance is highlighted by the 50‑day EMA at $2.01. A daily close above this level would expose the upper boundary of the descending channel near $2.23, ahead of a stronger barrier at the latest Parabolic SAR reading around $2.56. Looking down, immediate demand is seen at the 100‑day EMA at $1.82, followed by the 200‑day EMA at $1.79. A decisive break below this support cluster could open the way toward the channel floor down at $1.08.
(The technical analysis of this story was written with the help of an AI tool.)
Open Interest, funding rate FAQs Higher Open Interest is associated with higher liquidity and new capital inflow to the market. This is considered the equivalent of increase in efficiency and the ongoing trend continues. When Open Interest decreases, it is considered a sign of liquidation in the market, investors are leaving and the overall demand for an asset is on a decline, fueling a bearish sentiment among investors.
Funding fees bridge the difference between spot prices and prices of futures contracts of an asset by increasing liquidation risks faced by traders. A consistently high and positive funding rate implies there is a bullish sentiment among market participants and there is an expectation of a price hike. A consistently negative funding rate for an asset implies a bearish sentiment, indicating that traders expect the cryptocurrency’s price to fall and a bearish trend reversal is likely to occur.
Key HighlightsInfrastructure Overhaul and Security Validation CompletePrivacy Coin Integration Advances Post-RecoveryAdditional Asset Integrations On Development Roadmap Cross-chain protocol THORChain reinstates trading following $10.7M security incident Complete vault infrastructure overhaul and keyshare validation enable network relaunch Zcash integration scheduled for deployment following successful recovery Monero trading functionality awaits activation after comprehensive testing completion Bittensor integration planned as protocol expands asset offerings THORChain has successfully relaunched its decentralized exchange network following extensive security enhancements that resolved vulnerabilities responsible for a $10.7 million loss. After remaining offline for over thirty days, the protocol has reactivated swap capabilities, transaction signing, liquidity operations, and vault management. The relaunch came after comprehensive vault inspections, keyshare authentication, node software updates, and complete infrastructure transition.
Infrastructure Overhaul and Security Validation Complete The decentralized exchange suspended all operations on May 15 after security researchers identified an attack exploiting weaknesses in its GG20 threshold signature scheme. The vulnerability gradually leaked cryptographic key information, enabling an unauthorized node operator to reconstruct a complete private key. This security breach resulted in the unauthorized withdrawal of $10.7 million from protocol-controlled vaults.
Development teams deployed an urgent security patch on May 20 to safeguard remaining funds within operational vaults. A comprehensive software upgrade followed on June 9, eliminating the signature scheme vulnerability that attackers had exploited. Additional refinements arrived via a June 11 update, which enhanced system stability and resolved KeyVerify operational issues.
The protocol subsequently employed KeyVerify functionality to authenticate vault security across the network and validate every individual node keyshare. Teams decommissioned outdated vault infrastructure and transferred all assets into freshly established vaults before reactivating the network. Full functionality has returned, including transaction signing, node rotation, asset custody, trading operations, liquidity management, and cross-chain swaps.
Privacy Coin Integration Advances Post-Recovery The protocol plans to introduce native Zcash trading and vault capabilities approximately two weeks following network restoration. This addition will facilitate direct ZEC transactions without requiring wrapped token alternatives or centralized service providers. Protocol developers have not yet announced a definitive activation date for this functionality.
The Zcash implementation will broaden the platform’s cross-chain ecosystem beyond currently established cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin and Ethereum. The protocol currently facilitates direct value transfers between supported blockchain networks through decentralized liquidity mechanisms. This upcoming integration introduces another privacy-oriented digital asset to the available options.
Development teams will closely track vault functionality and signing operations throughout the initial post-relaunch period. Node operators continue maintaining network security through distributed key custody and transaction validation processes. The protocol prioritizes operational stability over rapid feature deployment during this recovery phase.
Additional Asset Integrations On Development Roadmap The platform also intends to activate native Monero trading following successful Zcash deployment. Technical teams report that comprehensive XMR swap testing has already achieved functionality, though public launch remains pending. Direct integration would enable Monero to interact seamlessly with all other supported assets within the protocol ecosystem.
Developers additionally anticipate introducing Bittensor support approximately six weeks after network operations resumed. This integration would incorporate TAO into the decentralized cross-chain trading infrastructure. However, the projected schedule remains contingent upon sustained network stability and successful technical implementation.
This relaunch concludes the protocol’s most extended operational suspension in recent history. THORChain returns to service with corrected signature software, authenticated keyshares, and completely rebuilt vault architecture. The platform’s immediate focus centers on maintaining stable operations, expanding asset availability, implementing dynamic fee structures, and increasing liquidity depth.
Oliver Dale
Editor-in-Chief of Blockonomi and founder of Kooc Media, A UK-Based Online Media Company. Believer in Open-Source Software, Blockchain Technology & a Free and Fair Internet for all. His writing has been quoted by Nasdaq, Dow Jones, Investopedia, The New Yorker, Forbes, Techcrunch & More. Contact [email protected]
Kim Asendorf's PXL DEX is an onchain art collection that links NFTs and ERC-20s in a way we've never seen before.
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In recent times, there's been a wave of experiments tying NFTs and fungible ERC-20s more tightly together. Think DN-404, ERC-20z, Apptokens, etc.
But what happens when an artist dives in at this crossroads to make an entirely new kind of onchain artwork?
We got a glimpse at the possibilities here this month, as Kim Asendorf just released his latest series PXL DEX.
— FLAMINGO 🦩 (@FLAMINGODAO) January 16, 2025 Asendorf is a German visual artist who specializes in digital conceptual art. People in the NFT space are most likely to recognize his work via collections like Cargo and SABOTAGE.
His creations challenge viewers to reflect on their relationship with technology, presenting both simple and complex digital worlds for interpretation. This same spirit unsurprisingly animates PXL DEX.
Congrats to @kimasendorf on the release of PXL DEX, thrilled to see dynamic artworks onchain receiving so much positive attention and deserved acclaim.
PXL DECK 175, owned by @matto__matto
2025 looking to be a great year for art on Ethereum 🫡 pic.twitter.com/nVvlX7akBd
— Material Protocol Arts (@material_work) January 22, 2025 Yet PXL DEX stands out in Asendorf's oeuvre in the way that it combines both NFTs and ERC-20 tokens toward achieving dynamism and interactivity.
How PXL DEX worksWhen collectors minted one of the 256 PXL DEX NFTs, they simultaneously minted a corresponding number of PXL tokens (ERC-20).
By default, 50,000 PXL tokens fill the NFT, starting its pixelated animation. Collectors could mint up to 500,000 PXL tokens during the initial minting, plus they can later choose to add more.
Each PXL token represents a pixel within the NFT’s animation, with the number of PXL tokens determines the artwork's density, from faint and minimal to dense and vibrant.
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— marka (@marka_eth) January 21, 2025 Accordingly, collectors can adjust their Deck’s appearance over time by depositing or withdrawing PXL tokens, curating the animation’s complexity.
All elements of the NFTs—animations, metadata, and visuals—are notably stored directly on Ethereum, i.e. fully onchain. There's no reliance on private servers, Arweave, IPFS, etc.
As for the animations, they're rendered in real-time using custom WebGL and shader coding, and they can become so complex that they essentially become impossible to convey.
"At the blockchain level it's technically possible to add infinitely more PXL to a Deck, but eventually it will strain the ability of any computer to render the animation," as the critic and filmmaker Kevin Buist noted in his editorial Tokenizing Pixels.
Why it mattersSpeaking of Buist, he also perfect summarized why PXL DEX is artistically significant in that same editorial:
"Digital art, particularly when made from the ground up with custom code, lends itself naturally to the kind of broad conceptual questions that move past the visual content of a work and straight to the heart of what a thing is and what it does. The animations of PXL DEX are beautiful and entrancing, but this is not a screensaver. This is a series that probes the borders of what screen-based work can be, which also involves the viewer/collector in a way that pushes beyond perception into collaboration."That said, PXL DEX is onchain not just for the sake of being onchain, but specifically to use tokens to enable the very collaboration that the series artistically and foundationally springs from.
But another reason why PXL DEX is significant is because what it will inspire going forward—both in the artist and across the wider cryptoart community.
What I mean with regard to Asendorf is that he's only just beginning to dig into the possibilities here, as he's planning more PXL releases in the future.
"PXL DEX is the first artwork within the PXL ecosystem, an ongoing work series to experiment with pixels as utility tokens," he's explained.
I don't want to rank or say what project is best, but PXL DEX by @kimasendorf is a gorgeous and thoughtful piece of work. Visually stunning, exploring the medium's native capabilities and self-releasing the work. Excited about what's coming this year. pic.twitter.com/gLjIF9elh5
— rudxane (@rudxane1) January 21, 2025 This collection has already become a sensation with more than a few cryptoart and fully onchain connoisseurs, so the prospects of more and potentially larger related experiments is something collector types will want to track in the months ahead.
And then as far as the community goes, it's no stretch to assume that PXL DEX will inspire a new wave of hybrid NFT and ERC-20 projects that are explicitly artistic in nature rather than directly tied to games, PFPs, etc. So that's another thread you'll want to keep an eye on.
This new release may fly under the radar for many as niche. But for those of us who do zoom in, it reminds us that the line between creator and audience is increasingly being blurred in onchain art, and in that blurring, even more experiments and opportunities are on the way.
Ethereum gaming network Ronin has opened its doors for any developer to build new games, decentralized applications, or other projects in its ecosystem as part of a broader “Open Ronin” push.
Previously, Ronin has operated as a curated blockchain, with the Ethereum sidechain building a reputation for prominent crypto gaming experiences and developing a die-hard fan base in the process. Ronin’s RON token has grown to become the second largest gaming chain token by market capitalization at $720 million, according to CoinGecko, since it launched in 2021.
Ronin is the home to the popular farming game Pixels, strategy title Apeiron, as well as the seminal play-to-earn game Axie Infinity—which was developed by Ronin creator Sky Mavis itself. Over the past year, multiple developers have switched to the gaming network citing the “Ronin Effect,” referencing the apparent boost that games see from the Ronin audience.
As part of the Open Ronin announcement, Pirate Nation developer Proof of Play said that the game is expanding from Arbitrum to Ronin, with a Ronin NFT mint planned ahead.
“Over the past four years, we’ve cemented our status as the premier gaming chain, and now we’re evolving once again,” Sky Mavis CEO and co-founder Trung Nguyen said, in a statement. “With Open Ronin, we’re accelerating our growth—unlocking more games, DeFi applications, and dApps than ever before. I believe this moment will be studied for years to come.”
With this move, Sky Mavis has released the Ronin Developer Console as a toolkit to help those building on the network. The toolkit will aid developers in creating simple NFT listings, sponsored transactions (so that players avoid paying gas fees), and in-game marketplaces, plus will provide smart contract templates.
1/ The Golden Age of Ronin Starts NOW!
We have just submitted a transaction to break down the allowlist for deploying contracts on Ronin.
From this moment forward, Ronin is open.
Here’s what this grand opening means for our movement 🧵👇 pic.twitter.com/Wmr3Pimaqb
— Ronin (@Ronin_Network) February 12, 2025
“Today marks the dawn of Ronin’s golden age,” Nguyen said. “If you’re building something that will make sense to everyday people, we want you to build it on Ronin.”
Since its inception, Ronin has opted for a closed, curated approach—only accepting developers of projects they deemed high-quality enough. Sky Mavis and Ronin co-founder Jeff “Jihoz” Zirlin told Decrypt this is because there is an “overabundance” of games in crypto, while there remains a lack of gamers. But, even during that mid-2024 interview, he had an eye on the chain going “pervasively permissionless.”
“Now, with a more mature ecosystem and growing market demand, it makes sense to transition into a more self-serve model,” Nguyen told Decrypt in a statement, “allowing more developers and creators to build, experiment, and scale on Ronin while maintaining the quality and success that made it appealing in the first place.”
Zirlin said that by going permissionless, the number of games deploying on the gaming network would accelerate. In doing this, he hopes one of those games would help drive the growth of Ronin—like Pixels did in 2024, and Axie Infinity did during the play-to-earn boom of 2021.
“The endgame is to create an ecosystem that seamlessly blends gaming with ecommerce and payment apps,” Zirlin told Decrypt in 2024. "We believe the path to getting there is by bootstrapping adoption and attention through gaming, and then expanding into payments and ecommerce, thereby disrupting the predatory banking system and credit card industry.”
Edited by Andrew Hayward
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Pixels and Forgotten Runiverse, a pair of crypto games on the gaming-focused Ethereum scaling network Ronin, are teaming up to bring Pixels’ PIXEL token to the Runiverse—the massively-multiplayer online role-playing game or MMORPG that just opened to the public in early access.
Forgotten Runiverse, developed by Biosonic, is based on the lore of the Ethereum NFT collection Forgotten Runes Wizard’s Cult. The game opted to move from layer-2 Arbitrum to Ronin in July 2024 and will eventually have its own native token, XP, which will act as the ecosystem token for Forgotten Runes.
Social farming game Pixels also made its own move to Ronin in late 2023, driving substantial renewed attention to the Ethereum network ahead of last year’s launch of the PIXEL token. Amid a recent push to open up Ronin to all builders, the two teams are now collaborating.
“We’ve always seen a lot of potential synergy between our teams, as we both are focused on creating interoperable, sustainable Web3 economies, and we’re constantly thinking about how we can work together to push that vision forward,” Pixels founder Luke Barwikowski told Decrypt.
“Honestly, if there’s one thing the industry needs right now, it’s more collaboration,” he added. “Ultimately, this is a win-win for all of us.”
Thanks to the collaboration, Runiverse players will be able to claim PIXEL rewards with Quanta—the in-game currency of the Forgotten Runiverse. PIXEL will also be used for purchasing mana, boosts, and exclusive items within the game.
How the Pixels x Forgotten Runiverse collaboration will work. Image: Pixels/Forgotten Runiverse“By integrating PIXEL into the Runiverse, we’re offering players the chance to engage with a proven token economy inside a new game,” Biosonic COO Shane Bierwith told Decrypt. “This not only adds immediate utility for PIXEL, but also strengthens our own ecosystem as we prepare to launch our native token, XP.”
The teams expect that the integration will not only enhance token utility for PIXEL, but also “offer valuable data to optimize player engagement and play-to-earn strategies.”
“Success, for us, comes down to the data,” said Barwikowski. “We’re all about using big data, AI, and predictive analytics to refine our play-to-earn models and boost reward efficiency.”
“Partnering with Forgotten Runiverse allows us to dive deep into player behavior, optimize our P2E systems, and ultimately improve retention and engagement,” he continued. “By building more insights through this partnership, we aim to develop strategies and data points that we can take to additional teams in the future.”
Bierwith too will be analyzing the data, telling Decrypt that Biosonic will measure “how effectively PIXEL drives repeat engagement, retention, and meaningful in-game spend,” including how many users swap Quanta into PIXEL and how it’s used in the game’s gacha-style rewards system called the Font of Memory.
To commemorate the collaboration, Runiverse-themed quests will launch in Pixels, plus a special Runiverse avatar will be available prior to the official launch of PIXEL in the fantasy MMORPG. That token integration is expected to take place sometime this quarter.
Barwikowski said that this integration with the Forgotten Runiverse team is “just the start.”
“The ultimate goal is to work together and bring Web3 into the mainstream,” he told Decrypt. “At Pixels, we’re committed to sharing our insights and tools to help other games scale and grow because collective progress helps us all in the long-term.”
Pixels has generated more than $20 million in revenue and boasts more than 10 million registered players, according to its team. PIXEL has already been integrated into not only the core Pixels game but also spinoff Pixel Dungeons, which launched in December.
Edited by Andrew Hayward
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