Bitcoin is being embraced by Wall Street almost in contradiction to the philosophy of decentralization from its initial launch. Bittensor, on the other hand, stands out as a challenge to the 'big boss' of centralization. This is currently a very hot topic. With the rise of artificial intelligence, concerns about concentration and centralization in technology have also increased.
Bittensor and its associated cryptocurrency TAO aim to decentralize artificial intelligence services. Although it has lost about 53% of its value by 2025, some investors see Bittensor as a new generation Bitcoin suitable for the age of artificial intelligence. But how realistic is it to be this optimistic?
The Foundation of Bittensor and Promises for the Future
The network's reward halving was completed on December 15, and the amount of coins issued has decreased. However, this story feels very familiar to investors.
Many cryptocurrencies have claimed 'we are the next Bitcoin': Because serious revenue is generated with this narrative.
However, there may be real value for Bittensor in the long run – of course, like all ambitious projects at this scale, overcoming obstacles is a must. It wouldn't be wrong to compare Bittensor's story to Bitcoin's: There are strong competitors, and a new network could disrupt, or even completely change, this order.
For years, influencers have clung to a similar slogan: 'Buy Bitcoin, take a position against banks.' Now, despite Bitcoin's presence in Wall Street banks and publicly traded DAT stocks, this narrative has performed well recently.
The main claim here is this: Companies like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Deepseek have grown too large and powerful, which raises concerns.
The core idea of Bittensor is to decentralize artificial intelligence processes and enable the solving of real-world useful AI jobs instead of proof-of-work.
Evan Malanga, a manager of one of the biggest supporters of the Bittensor platform called Yuma, made the following statement to BeInCrypto: 'Bitcoin has proven that cryptographic incentives can coordinate a global hardware network to maintain a ledger. Bittensor takes the same mechanism and directs computational power to an area that will provide direct benefits in today's world: Training and operating artificial intelligence models, applications, and infrastructure.'
Another Bitcoin, really?
It is worth noting that Yuma is a company linked to Digital Currency Group (DCG), one of the first investors in many cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Zcash, and Decentraland.
Barry Silbert, CEO of DCG, which also invested early in Coinbase, Circle, and Chainalysis, openly supports Bittensor: This could be a positive signal for some investors.
Bittensor has some characteristics similar to Bitcoin. Only 21 million TAO exist; this is a clear reference to BTC. Additionally, halvings also occur in Bittensor. In fact, in December, rewards dropped from 7,200 TAO daily to 3,600 TAO.
Instead of Bitcoin's energy-consuming proof-of-work system, Bittensor uses a mechanism called proof-of-intelligence, which requires nodes to complete artificial intelligence tasks. The higher the quality of a node's task, the greater the chance of receiving a TAO reward.
Nodes joining the Bittensor network are currently assigned to 128 specialized subnets in different fields. Each subnet provides services in a different area of artificial intelligence.
Arrash Yasavolian, co-founder of Taoshi, says: 'Each subnet is like a specialized marketplace for a specific artificial intelligence service – some focus on visual generation while others concentrate on language models.'
Comparison of Centralization and Decentralization
Concerns about artificial intelligence generally focus on the market being dominated by a few companies. Concentration in most sectors often leads to rising prices and deteriorating services – sometimes both problems occur together.
Thanks to its decentralized features, Bittensor aims to transform artificial intelligence into a global public good. Independent node operators powering subnets are a great example of this.
Ken Jon Miyachi, CEO of BitMind, operates a subnet focused on deepfake detection on Bittensor and states: 'Artificial intelligence is reshaping every sector. Bitcoin revolutionized the concept of value storage, but Bittensor is fundamentally changing all economic systems by making intelligence a global value.'
How decentralized is this network really? On July 10, 2024, the Bittensor network was halted after a hack attack in which $8 million was stolen. The chain was put into a 'safe mode' where transactions could not be made, and it continued to produce blocks.
'There are legitimate centralization concerns today,' says Yasavolian from Taoshi, 'The OpenTensor foundation is the sole authority responsible for verifying blocks. The top 10 subnet validators hold approximately 67% of the total network share.'
Some believe that Bittensor's security risks and the ability to stop the network are completely contrary to the understanding of decentralization. However, advocates of the network argue that true decentralization will come in time and that Bittensor will be 'reliably neutral' just like Bitcoin.
Yasavolian stated, 'Bittensor's long-term strategic goal is to become a reliable and neutral artificial intelligence development tool. This is also a gradual decentralization process, as we saw with Ethereum.'
Artificial Intelligence Alarm
One way to increase Bittensor's decentralization and hear different opinions is through subnet operators. These communities invest time and money into the network, just like Yasavolian, making their voices heard.
The increase in the number of subnets is remarkable. Since the beginning of 2025, the number of subnets has grown by 97%, from 65 to 128.
Sergey Khusnetdinov, the Artificial Intelligence Director of Gain Ventures, thinks that the subnet community is critical for the future of Bittensor.
'As a result, a meritocratic ecosystem is emerging organically from an unlicensed community worldwide, not tied to a single laboratory or company,' he said.
Today, centralized artificial intelligence companies are reaching extraordinary valuations: OpenAI is valued at $500 billion, Anthropic at $350 billion. It is rumored that China-based Deepseek has reached a valuation of $150 billion. Given this, what could the potential value of a powerful artificial intelligence network like Bittensor be?
Miyachi, CEO of BitMind operating a deepfake detection subnet, believes with an optimistic outlook that the Bittensor network could surpass even the Bitcoin network in the future.
Miyachi, speaking to BeInCrypto, said, 'The value produced by the Bittensor ecosystem could surpass Bitcoin's value in the long run.'
Of course, all this depends on how people will approach centralized artificial intelligence systems over time or whether they will have concerns about it. However, Bitcoin has historically experienced significant rises in centralization issues, from pandemics to banking crises and fiat currency devaluation.
Maybe soon influencers will also start saying 'long Bittensor, short decentralized AI.' Who knows? Sometimes the future can be so strange that even artificial intelligence cannot predict it.
