Decentralized AI is in a trough but real opportunities are emerging, crypto VCs say
Crypto VCs believe decentralized AI is in a quiet phase, shifting focus from overhyped areas to utility-driven, full-stack solutions.Summary
Anand Iyer of Canonical Crypto and Kelvin Koh of Spartan Group stated at Consensus Hong Kong 2026 that the decentralized AI sector is currently in a "trough" following a frothy period. Both investors criticized overinvestment in GPU marketplaces and attempts to create decentralized alternatives to large models like OpenAI's, citing the prohibitive capital requirements. Instead, they see emerging opportunities in purpose-built, full-stack solutions addressing specific problems from the model to the data layer. They emphasized that success now requires focusing on users, proprietary data, regulatory advantages, or go-to-market edges, noting that simply wrapping ChatGPT is no longer sufficient for raising capital. The broader context at the conference included Hong Kong's push into digital assets and visions of an AI-driven "machine economy."
(Source：CoinDesk)