Bitcoin trails as AI tokens advance

Bitcoin’s recovery attempt is losing momentum as equity markets push higher, leaving traders focused on whether the largest digital asset is forming another lower high after a two-week pullback.

The token was trading near $77,000 on Tuesday, after falling about 7 per cent over two weeks and failing to regain the stronger technical posture it held earlier this month. Ether was near $2,120, still trapped in a months-long range and down more than 10 per cent over the same period. The divergence has become more striking because S&P 500 and Nasdaq 100 futures moved higher, showing that risk appetite in traditional markets has not translated evenly into crypto majors.

Market technicians are watching bitcoin’s inability to reclaim the $80,000 area with conviction. A lower high would strengthen a bearish structure that has been visible since October, when each rebound failed below the previous peak. That pattern does not guarantee a deeper fall, but it signals that buyers are becoming less willing to chase rallies and that sellers continue to use strength as an exit point.

Bitcoin’s intraday range also points to a market waiting for a catalyst. The asset moved between roughly $76,400 and $77,800, while liquidity remained concentrated around key options levels. Traders are tracking the $75,000 zone as near-term support and the $80,000 strike as the first meaningful upside hurdle. A clean break below support could invite momentum selling, while a close above resistance would ease concern that the rally from the month’s low has already stalled.

Ether’s weakness has added to caution. The second-largest crypto asset has struggled to attract sustained demand despite upgrades across the Ethereum ecosystem and continuing institutional interest in tokenisation, staking and settlement infrastructure. Its underperformance suggests investors are still selective rather than broadly bullish on digital assets. The market has favoured projects with strong narratives or visible revenue links over larger tokens weighed down by macro sensitivity.

AI-linked tokens are the clearest exception. Computing and artificial-intelligence-related crypto assets have outperformed broader benchmarks, helped by renewed investor interest in decentralised compute, data networks, machine-learning infrastructure and agent-based blockchain applications. Tokens linked to projects such as Near Protocol, Render, Bittensor, The Graph and the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance have benefited from the wider enthusiasm around artificial intelligence, even as bitcoin and ether struggle to recover lost ground.

The rotation mirrors a pattern seen across equity markets, where AI infrastructure and chip-linked stocks continue to support major indices. Investors appear willing to take risk, but only where the growth story is strong enough to offset uncertainty over interest rates, geopolitical stress and liquidity conditions. That has left bitcoin in an awkward position: still treated as a macro asset, but not currently receiving the same bid as technology shares or AI-themed crypto sectors.

Macroeconomic expectations remain central to the next move. The coming inflation data in the United States will shape views on the Federal Reserve’s rate path. A stronger-than-expected reading could lift Treasury yields and the dollar, pressuring bitcoin by making speculative assets less attractive. A softer number could revive expectations of easier policy and draw capital back into crypto funds, particularly if equity markets continue to advance.

Exchange-traded fund flows are another pressure point. Spot bitcoin products have been vulnerable to outflows during periods of rate uncertainty, while ether-linked products have struggled to generate the same level of consistent demand. Large institutional holders remain active, but flows have become more tactical. That shift has reduced the market’s ability to absorb selling during periods of weak momentum.

Derivatives positioning also shows a market divided between defensive hedging and selective upside bets. Options traders have built exposure around near-term expiry levels, with puts clustered near support and calls concentrated above the current range. Such positioning can magnify price moves if bitcoin breaks sharply in either direction, especially when spot liquidity is thin.

The broader crypto market is no longer moving as one bloc. Hyperliquid’s strength, interest in prediction-market infrastructure, and the rebound in AI tokens indicate that traders are still willing to pursue high-beta opportunities. Privacy tokens and some smaller thematic assets have also seen episodic demand, while older large-cap altcoins remain under pressure. That fragmentation points to a maturing but more difficult market, where liquidity follows specific catalysts rather than the entire asset class.