Grayscale Launches Decentralized AI Fund, Targeting Blockchain-AI Convergence
Grayscale Investments, the world’s largest crypto asset manager, has unveiled its latest offering: the Grayscale Decentralized AI Fund LLC. Announced on July 17, 2024, this new fund aims to provide accredited investors with exposure to the burgeoning sector of decentralized artificial intelligence within the cryptocurrency ecosystem.
The fund’s initial portfolio comprises a diverse basket of tokens from five prominent blockchain-AI protocols:
- Near (NEAR): 32.99%
- Filecoin (FIL): 30.59%
- Render (RNDR): 24.86%
- Livepeer (LPT): 8.64%
- Bittensor (TAO): 2.92%
Rayhaneh Sharif-Askary, Grayscale’s Head of Product & Research, emphasized the strategic importance of this launch, stating, “The blockchain-based AI protocols embody the principles of decentralization, accessibility, and transparency, and the Grayscale team feels strongly that these protocols can help mitigate the fundamental risks emerging alongside the proliferation of AI technology.”
The fund will focus on three primary categories of decentralized AI assets:
- Protocols building decentralized AI services, such as chatbots and image generation services
- Solutions addressing centralized AI-related problems, including authenticity checks against bots, deep fakes, and misinformation
- Infrastructure critical to AI technology development, including decentralized marketplaces for data storage, GPU computation, and streaming services
This initiative comes as the intersection of blockchain and AI gains traction in the crypto industry. Recent developments in this space include Sentient’s $85 million funding round for an open-source AI platform and the creation of the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance by SingularityNET, Fetch.ai, and Ocean Protocol.
The Grayscale Decentralized AI Fund will rebalance quarterly and is available only to accredited investors. As of July 17, 2024, the fund’s net asset value (NAV) per share stood at $9.87, with 55,300 shares outstanding, representing a total value of approximately $551,238.97.
Barry Silbert, founder and CEO of Digital Currency Group (Grayscale’s parent company), expressed enthusiasm for the new fund on social media, highlighting the growing interest in blockchain-AI convergence among industry leaders.
While the fund presents an opportunity for investors to gain exposure to this emerging sector, it’s important to note that, like all cryptocurrency investments, it carries inherent risks. Potential investors should conduct thorough research and consider their risk tolerance before participating in this or any other crypto-related fund.
