A whale has lost $20.4 million after investing $23 million in AI agent tokens on the Base blockchain, then selling everything for just $2.58 million. This drawdown of 88.77% represents one of the largest losses on a single trade in the crypto sector, with some tokens having dropped as much as 99%.
The enormous loss highlights growing fears of speculative bubbles in the AI token market. In this case, the hype and unclear use cases fuel extreme volatility in investment portfolios.
As a whale, it lost over 20 million dollars on AI Agent tokens
The on-chain analysis platform Lookonchain has monitored the whale's portfolio divided across six AI agent tokens. The biggest loss was recorded on FAI, which cost 9.87 million dollars, marking a decline of 92.31%. AIXBT resulted in a loss of 7.81 million dollars, or -83.74% compared to the purchase price.
Other positions have shown equally significant declines. BOTTO fell by 936,000 dollars, or 83.62%. POLY burned 839,000 dollars, collapsing by 98.63%.
NFTXBT recorded the sharpest percentage decline, dropping by 99.13% and losing 594,000 dollars. MAICRO closed with a loss of 381,000 dollars, representing a decline of 89.55%.
The wallet address of the investor currently holds only 3,584 dollars in various types of assets, primarily ETH and small amounts of BYTE, MONK, and SANTA. The dramatic exit highlights near-total losses from AI agent tokens.
Speculation on AI agent tokens under the microscope
The Base blockchain, from Coinbase, is one of the leading launch platforms for AI-based crypto projects. However, the sector is facing criticism for excessive hype and a lack of truly functional products.
Many AI agent tokens have no real utility, leaving traders exposed to quick gains followed equally quickly by crashes.
Some observers point out that AI agent tokens often rise in price solely due to promises and not due to concrete use cases. Autonomous agents on the blockchain attract investors' attention, but few projects deliver truly functional results.
With the change in sentiment, token holders face extreme risks due to poor liquidity and weak utility.
"This could be one of the worst investment operations ever. A whale/institution spent 23 million dollars buying AI agent tokens on #Base and sold everything today for only 2.58 million dollars, incurring a loss of 20.43 million dollars (–88.77%)," Lookonchain explained in detail.
The whale's exit coincides with declining enthusiasm for AI tokens at the beginning of 2025, when the sector collapsed by 77%.
After an AI investment rush at the end of 2024, investors are reassessing as few projects meet their stated goals. This trend fuels further price crashes, especially for tokens with concentrated ownership and poor liquidity.
Risk management, lessons for investors
The whale has heavily concentrated funds on AI agent tokens on Base, without diversifying or managing risk.
Allocating 23 million dollars across six correlated assets tied to the same trend increased systemic risk. When sentiment changed, all positions collapsed, showing the dangers of overly concentrated positions.
Professional traders usually limit exposure to avoid disproportionate losses on failing narratives. The absence of stop losses or position size management has increasingly grown the whale's losses.
When positions were closed, extraordinary returns would have been needed just to break even. This situation illustrates how quickly crashes can occur in the absence of thorough analysis and risk planning.
With NFTXBT and POLY losing over 98%, a strong recovery appears highly unlikely.
It remains uncertain whether this signals more widespread problems for AI agent tokens. Projects with solid technical teams and real development may withstand the storm.
Tokens that rely solely on hype around AI, but without solid foundations, will likely continue to suffer because the market is now demanding concrete results and not just promises.
