Even though the crypto market is consolidating and fluctuating, the funds for AI agent concept coins are bustling.

On January 2, VIRTUAL rose by more than 18% in 24 hours and is now quoted at US$4.72. Its market value has risen to US$4.72 billion, setting a record high.

ZEREBRO rose by more than 16% in 24 hours, with a quotation of US$0.72, and its market value rose to over US$700 million, a record high.

AI16Z has increased by more than 31% and is now quoted at US$2.37. Its market value once exceeded US$2.5 billion, setting a record high.

COOKIE has risen 119% and is now quoted at $0.52, with a current market value of $72 million. Even GOAT, which is almost forgotten by the market, has increased by more than 19% and is now quoted at $0.6, while ACT has increased by 18% and is quoted at $0.33.

The AI ​​agent concept is in chaos, what’s going on behind the scenes?

OpenAI will release the AI ​​agent tool "Operator" this month

As early as November last year, OpenAI planned to release an AI codenamed "Operator" in January 2025 Agent Tools. The tool automates tasks on the user's computer, such as writing code or booking a trip. The tool will be launched as a research preview and made available to developers via an API, people familiar with the matter said.

In addition, OpenAI even boldly predicted in October of that year that AI agents would "become mainstream" next year. Kevin Weil, chief product officer of OpenAI, said, "These more agent-like systems will become possible, which is why I think 2025 will be the year that agent systems finally enter the mainstream."

As an important brand in the AI ​​industry, any major updates and developments in its products will attract market attention and become the target of speculation funds. Therefore, it is not surprising that some hot and high-quality project tokens have gained popularity in the market.

AI agentWhat exactly is it? What are the possibilities in combination with Crypto?

In short, an AI agent is an efficient and intelligent tool capable of automating tasks as diverse as email management, travel scheduling, and even assisted programming. This allows people to focus more on other important matters at work.

If you are still confused about this, imagine that when you need to buy fruit, you often open the mobile APP yourself, then search and fill in the address. , confirm the order, and final payment.

In the era of AI agents, now you only need to say to the AI ​​agent, make a call for me, buy $30 worth of mangoes, and have them delivered to your home. The AI ​​agent will call the merchant directly and explain the specific needs, and the user only needs to wait for the goods to be delivered.

In an era where everything can be powered by AI, what kind of chemical reaction will occur when the cryptocurrency field is combined with AI? At present, this kind of exploration has become a market trend. Putting aside WLD and AI data analysis Arkham, which have focused on the OpenAI Ultraman concept in the past, the concept of on-chain AI agents has become the latest trend.

From the beginning, AI+MEME represented such as GOAT, and then evolved into application exploration tracks, such as replying to comments on Twitter, and even currency price analysis. , such as AIXBT, and also includes AI-influenced content generation on music, such as Zerebro.

The third type is Virtual and Clanker, which use Launchpad as a function to create a wealth effect. If such platforms can produce good returns and high-quality projects, they will often form a good leading effect, as evidenced by Virtual's continuous record highs.

More possibilities include the combination of AI agents and DeFi, such as realizing automated investment, intelligent early warning, increasing yields, etc. USV co-founder Fred Wilson even predicted that in 2025, his fund’s chief artificial intelligence robot went out of control, gained access to USV’s crypto wallet, and began making seed investments, one of which ended up paying off handsomely.

However, at present, AI agents in the field of cryptocurrency are still mainly hot topics of speculation, and their actual specific applications still need to beObserve and discover.

What do big names and institutions think?

The AI ​​craze has also made many institutions and investors express optimism about its future development. Binance Labs predicts that underperforming industries such as gaming, ZK technology, and privacy solutions may make a comeback in 2025 as they transition from development to production, supporting new use cases. Additionally, existing narratives such as DeSci, RWA/stablecoins, and AI agents should continue to perform well with strong momentum.

Ryan Rasmussen, director of research at Bitwise, predicts that tokens launched by AI agents will lead to a meme coin craze bigger than 2024.

Dragonfly general partner Rob Hadick and CoinFund managing director David Pakman pointed out that the greatest value of AI to the encryption field is to improve development efficiency, because software development is still encryption core of the field. However, Pakman is relatively optimistic about the future of AI agents, believing that cryptocurrencies can provide an ideal payment infrastructure for AI agents.