AI Tokens Lose $4.69B in 3 Days: Here’s What to Know

AI tokens’ $4.69B loss in 3 days suggests doubts from investors about the much-anticipated “UPtober” trend. NEAR among the tokens hit hard.

Artificial intelligence (AI) and big data tokens took a sharp hit recently, losing $4.69 billion in market capitalization over just three days. The market’s total cap dropped from $38.82 billion on September 30 to $34.13 billion by October 3.

This development has raised concerns among investors who had anticipated a bullish trend for October, often referred to as “UPtober” due to its historical pattern of price gains. Despite the typically positive expectations for October, the month this year is headed in a different direction as of this writing.

The sudden dip suggests that the once hopeful “UPtober” may be turning into what some are now calling “Octo-bear.”

Near Protocol Suffers Biggest Decline

Among the leading tokens in the AI and big data sector, Near Protocol (NEAR) was hit the hardest, with a 14.88% decline over the past seven days. NEAR now trades at $4.61 per token.

Bitensor (TAO) saw a 9.37% loss, while Internet Computer (ICP) dropped 13.35% during the same period. Other AI tokens also noted significant losses. Render (RNDR) lost 13.64% of its value, and the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (FET) dropped by 16.68%.

Geopolitical Pressures and AI Market Downturn

The nearly $5 billion decline in market capitalization for AI and big data tokens within the first three days of October is an unexpected blow to investor confidence. Analysts blame the broader factors, such as geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, along with regulatory and macroeconomic pressures, for this downturn.

Despite the recent losses, the market for AI and big data tokens is still up significantly compared to where it was a few months ago. In July, the total market cap for this sector was around $20 billion, meaning that even with the October losses, the market has been up over $13 billion since then.

Although the sharp drop in the first few days of October signals short-term volatility, many investors are cautiously optimistic about the long-term prospects of AI and big data tokens.

CARV Partners with AI Giants to Boost Gaming Ecosystem

Meanwhile, CARV, a leading modular identity and data layer for AI and gaming applications, has wrapped up its most successful quarter yet. In Q3 2024, CARV secured over ten partnerships, strengthening its foothold in the AI and gaming sectors.

Among CARV’s new partners are big names like Base, Monad, EigenLayer, and Nuffle. These partnerships are designed to enhance CARV’s capabilities in data management and scalability.

Additionally, CARV has teamed up with AI trailblazer Inferium AI and decentralized platforms XAI and Avail to expand its reach in the AI space. Notably, CARV’s partnerships extend beyond AI and infrastructure to gaming.

The company has also joined forces with Intella X, a gaming platform created by the Korean giant NEOWIZ, and Telgather, known for its innovative minigame platform. These collaborations are to enhance CARV’s gaming offerings and help it build a stronger presence in the Web3 space.

Victor Yu, CARV’s co-founder, noted that the new collaborations are key to advancing CARV’s long-term goals. He added that the partnerships with Base and EigenLayer will bolster security and cost-effectiveness for the CARV Protocol. At the same time, the collaboration with Monad and Nuffle will help improve data management and scalability across its platform.

CARV Play Sees Rapid User Growth

Meanwhile, CARV Play, the company’s AI-powered super-app, is also seeing growth thanks to these partnerships. With nearly 9.5 million registered users and 1.3 million daily active users, CARV Play has rapidly become a go-to platform for gamers.

By leveraging AI, CARV Play offers intelligent game discovery and rich social interactions, attracting users from around the world. Backed by HashKey Capital and Consensys, the company’s $50 million accelerator (CARV Labs) is focused on building projects that will drive mass adoption of CARV’s data protocol.

One of its recent successes includes BANANA, an idle game built on TON that has already attracted over 12 million users in its first month. CARV’s partnership with Intella X is particularly notable.

Intella X, which previously invested in CARV’s verifier node sale, is helping to onboard incubated projects to its Web3 crowdfunding platform, Alphastarter. Thus, it can provide crucial funding and technical support for new projects in the Web3 gaming space.

Meanwhile, Telgather is working with CARV to strengthen play-to-earn and social-to-earn environments on Telegram, the popular chat platform.