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Originally launched on Base, the AI engine hosts popular agents but has experienced a sharp decline in new debuts.
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New artificial intelligence agent launches on the Virtuals Protocol plummeted in February amid sharp drawdowns in AI token prices, according to data from Dune Analytics.
Fewer than 100 new AI agent tokens have launched on the Virtuals platform so far in February, sharply down from November highs that saw as many as 1,300 new pairs debut in a single day, according to Dune.
Virtuals is an engine for launching AI agents and associated tokens. Originally deployed on the Ethereum layer-2 network Base, Virtuals is preparing to expand to Solana, which is considered a hub for AI token activity.
The protocol is best known for hosting AI agents such as Aixbt, which monitors social media sentiment to identify promising cryptocurrency trades and operates its own X account. As of Feb. 7, the AIXBT token trades at a market capitalization of more than $200 million, according to Virtuals’ website.
In total, developers have launched more than 17,000 AI agent tokens on Virtuals, data shows. Fewer than 100 trade at market capitalizations of over $1 million, according to Virtuals’ website.
New pair launches on Virtuals. Source: Dune Analytics
Related: AI tokens down up to 90% from 2024 highs
Sharp drawdowns
Agentic AI tokens, which clocked massive gains in the fourth quarter of 2024, are among the biggest losers of the cryptocurrency market’s drawdown since January.
Tokens tied to artificial intelligence agents are down by as much as 90% from 2024 highs, according to data from CoinGecko.
Top agentic AI platforms — including AI Rig Complex (ARC), ElizaOS (AI16Z) and Virtuals (VIRTUAL) — have shed between roughly 75% and 90% of their market capitalization since January, according to data from CoinGecko.
In early January, the VIRTUAL token reached a peak market capitalization of more than $4.5 billion. It has since traded down to around $750 million as of Feb. 7, according to CoinGecko.
Agentic AIs — machines pursuing complex goals autonomously — are reshaping the digital economy, contributing to Web3 applications, launching tokens and interacting with humans autonomously.
Asset manager VanEck expects upward of 1 million AI agents to populate blockchain networks by the end of 2025.
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This article first appeared at Cointelegraph.com News
