Binance's AI Investment Portfolio Roundup: Who Will Be the Next Alpha Leader?
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Binance's AI Investment Portfolio Roundup: Who Will Be the Next Alpha Leader?
Which projects has Binance invested in within the AI赛道, and which one might emerge as the new leader in the second half?
Navigating Web3 tides with focused insightsWho will be the next leader in the AI & Web3 narrative?
As a central storyline tightly aligned with global tech trends in 2024, the AI & Web3 sector briefly surged after Binance listed the flagship project Bittensor (TAO) in April, triggering broad gains across related tokens—though unfortunately failing to sustain momentum. Beneath the surface, however, Binance’s bets on AI have clearly accelerated:
This year alone, from Aggregata joining the latest MVB accelerator cohort, to Binance Labs announcing major investments in Sahara AI and Myshell, and projects like Sleepless AI and io.net successively listing on Binance,multiple investment arms under Binance have been actively and increasingly active in the AI & Web3 space.
Subtle clues foreshadow significant shifts. Binance’s intensified focus on AI is introducing a new variable that could stir the market, likely catalyzing a wave of new alpha projects with extraordinary growth potential—ready to take up the mantle from TAO.
So amid this backdrop, which project will become the catalyst for the next wave of AI & Web3 momentum? And which one will emerge as the breakout beneficiary of Binance’s capital and ecosystem spillover?
Binance’s AI Strategy and Investment Levers
First, we need to understand: how does Binance view the AI & Web3 narrative?
In a recent interview, Binance co-founder He Yi shared her perspective on AI development and its convergence with blockchain technology, stating: “AI is sparking a revolution in productivity whose impact far exceeds our imagination. While blockchain primarily transforms labor relations and profit distribution models, AI is a revolutionary technology that directly enhances user productivity.”
On specific investment strategy, she breaks it down into several key modules—on the application layer, common examples are products like OpenAI's chatbots that assist with writing, design, video creation, and other diverse tasks; beneath them lie large language model (LLM) development teams; further upstream are compute providers, where NVIDIA’s dominance makes competition extremely difficult.
Put simply,Binance’s interest in the AI & Web3 space spans nearly all product dimensions—any project capable of delivering high-quality products and services with viable business models is a potential investment target.
So if we want to dissect Binance’s current positioning within the AI narrative, where should we start? In fact, by focusing on three core threads, we can grasp the essence of Binance’s approach to any trending narrative.
Indeed, Binance currently leverages three primary “investment levers”—incubation programs (MVB, Binance Labs Incubation), direct Binance Labs investments, and exchange-listed tokens—to cover the full lifecycle (early-stage incubation, investment support, public trading) of projects in high-potential sectors like AI:
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Incubation programs—including MVB and Binance Labs Incubation—operate similarly to Y Combinator, broadly supporting early-stage startups through wide-net scouting. They provide multi-dimensional support such as market strategy and user growth, eventually selecting a subset for small-scale investment to help them transition from 0 to 1;
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Binance Labs, as Binance’s venture capital and incubation arm, targets high-potential Web3 projects across domains. Its investment targets typically feature more mature product architectures, business models, and teams, with larger funding amounts aimed at deep resource integration to accelerate competitive advantage;
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Exchange-listed tokens represent a key milestone for mature crypto projects, offering massive exposure and direct access to the largest pools of users and capital;
Through these three “investment levers,” Binance effectively covers every stage of an AI project’s lifecycle—early incubation, strategic investment, and public listing—thereby driving progress across the board and capturing broader growth across the AI landscape.
A Comprehensive Overview of Binance’s AI Ecosystem
Based on these three “investment levers,” what exactly comprises Binance’s current AI portfolio? (Note: Given the accelerating convergence between AI and Web3, the following list focuses exclusively onnative AI projects featuring core AI components such as data processing, model algorithms, training compute, and real-world applications, excluding hybrid projects combining AI with other sectors.)
1. Incubation Programs (Selected and Invested)
As noted earlier, Binance’s incubation process (MVB, Binance Labs Incubation) generally follows: open application → selection → incubation program → evaluation → selective investment.Therefore, AI projects associated with incubators fall into two categories: those merely selected, and those both selected and later funded. The focus here is on the latter—projects that received investment:
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Privasea (formerly Nulink): A decentralized AI network enabling data value circulation via FHEML, providing distributed computing resources for FHE-based AI operations.Selected for Binance Labs Season 4 Incubation Program in May 2022; announced a $5 million seed round in March 2024, with participation from Binance Labs;
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DIN (Web3Go): A modular, AI-native data preprocessing layer.Joined the MVB Accelerator in 2023 and completed a $4 million seed round led by Binance Labs in July;
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Sleepless AI: An AI-powered virtual companion game using AIGC and LLMs to create immersive, story-driven gameplay with organic character interaction.In April 2023, Sleepless AI joined the 6th season of the MVB Accelerator; in August 2023, it received investment through the same program;
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QnA3.AI: An AI-driven Web3 knowledge-sharing platform.Joined Binance Labs’ 6th Incubation Season in September 2023; secured further investment from Binance Labs in March 2024, with a current FDV of $77 million;
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NFPrompt (NFP): An AI-powered Web3 content creation platform allowing users to generate, own, and monetize digital art and NFTs via various AI tools and interfaces.Joined Binance Labs’ 6th Incubation Season in September 2023; received additional investment from Binance Labs in March 2024;
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MyShell: A decentralized AI ecosystem enabling anyone to build, own, and share AI applications.Joined the 6th Incubation Program in September 2023; Binance Labs announced its investment via the program in August 2024;
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Aggregata: A decentralized data marketplace powered by AI, aggregating high-quality AI data and leveraging decentralized storage so users retain full ownership of their AI assets.Officially joined the 7th MVB Accelerator in March 2024; received Binance Labs investment through the same program in August 2024;
2. Binance Labs (Direct Investments)
Unlike projects that entered incubation and later received funding, projects receiving direct Binance Labs investments involve larger sums, higher valuations, and are generally more mature in product architecture, business model, and team.
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Arkham: An AI-powered blockchain intelligence and data platform offering granular insights and visualization tools for on-chain activity.Listed on Binance in July 2023; Binance Labs announced investment in ARKM, Arkham’s native token, in November 2023;
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Sahara AI: A pioneer in the concept of “AI Assets,” building a blockchain-based AI platform that ensures secure control and “copyright” protection for users and developers, fairly attributing contributions and rewards.In August 2024, Sahara AI announced a $43 million funding round led by Binance Labs and Polychain Capital;
3. Exchange-Listed Tokens
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Fetch.ai (FET): A blockchain-based machine learning platform enabling traditional products to integrate AI via the Fetch.ai token without modifying underlying applications.Listed on Binance in February 2019; current FDV stands at $2.8 billion;
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NFPrompt (NFP): After being selected for Binance Labs’ 6th Incubation Program and receiving investment,launched on Binance Launchpool in December 2023; current FDV is $190 million;
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Sleepless AI (AI): Following selection for the 6th MVB Accelerator and investment from Binance Labs,launched on Binance Launchpool in January 2024; currently has an FDV of $360 million;
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Bittensor (TAO): A decentralized AI network composed of smaller specialized subnets, each focused on different areas of AI.Listed on Binance in April 2024; current FDV is $11.4 billion;
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io.net: A decentralized cloud computing platform aggregating GPU resources for AI and machine learning companies.Launched on Binance Launchpool in June 2024; current FDV reaches $1.2 billion;
Overall, Binance has historically cast a wide net in AI via incubation programs (MVB, Binance Labs Incubation). However, when it comes to larger investments and deep resource integration through Binance Labs direct funding,this tier remains highly exclusive—with only Sahara AI and Arkham to date.
Notably, since ARKM is already listed on Binance, among Binance’s direct AI investments, only Sahara AI remains unlisted—a sole standout yet to go live.
Which Project Has the Strongest "Alpha" Potential Among Binance’s Bets?
As previously mentioned, Binance’s strategy in the AI & Web3 space emphasizes integrating blockchain with AI to advance decentralized applications (DApps)—particularly favoring foundational infrastructure that empowers the AI ecosystem via blockchain technology.
From this perspective, if TAO has emerged as the beta cornerstone of the AI narrative, thenSahara AI—as a platform-level project encompassing both application and model layers highlighted by He Yi—is most likely the new alpha leader Binance sees stepping into TAO’s role in the next phase:
Currently, the AI narrative is largely dominated by tech giants, lacking a true infrastructure that enables small innovators and everyday users to co-create and share value. Sahara AI directly targets this gap—through its pioneering “AI Asset” concept and proprietary infrastructure, it aims to democratize the development, deployment, and monetization of AI assets (including models, datasets, agents, and other AI-related components):
Whether professional developers, entrepreneurs, or casual enthusiasts, anyone can easily build or deploy personalized AI products on Sahara AI, earning rewards through contribution, development, and deployment—co-creating a more democratic and equitable AI collaborative ecosystem.
Sahara AI consists of four architectural layers—application, transaction, data, and execution—that form the foundation of its collaborative economy, delivering seamless experiences for developers, data providers, and end-users alike. This structure could catalyze a “Cambrian explosion” of personalized, user-driven AI use cases:
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Application Layer: Sahara AI offers tools like secure asset vaults, a decentralized AI marketplace, no-code toolkits, and Sahara ID to ensure data privacy, fair compensation, and simplified AI creation and deployment for all users;
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Transaction Layer: Powered by the Sahara Blockchain, it handles all AI asset transactions, securely recording, verifying, and attributing every operation. With native precompiles optimized for AI processing, it enables efficient on-chain computation, boosting system performance;
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Data Layer: Manages both on-chain metadata (ownership, commitments, proofs) and off-chain data (datasets, AI models, supplementary info), emphasizing irreversible records to ensure credibility and transparency, while cryptographic techniques safeguard data integrity and security;
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Execution Layer: Serving as Sahara AI’s off-chain AI infrastructure, it seamlessly interacts with the transaction and data layers, executing protocols related to AI computation and functionality, securely retrieving data from the data layer, and dynamically allocating compute resources for optimal performance;
In short, Sahara AI has the potential to evolve into an open AI platform infrastructure accessible to all,enabling the broadest possible user base—developers, entrepreneurs, and hobbyists alike—to easily build and deploy personalized AI products.
On this foundation, Sahara AI could unlock the vast user base, capital inflows, and market attention long missing from the AI space, injecting fresh vitality and possibilities into the entire sector.
This may explain why top-tier investors like Binance, Pantera Capital, and Polychain Capital, along with AI industry leaders such as Together AI, Midjourney, and Anthropic, have chosen to back Sahara AI—a platform capable of genuine co-creation and value-sharing, attracting widespread participation from users and capital, holds immense appeal.
Conclusion
Looking back, Binance’s current AI strategy appears comprehensive and deeply aligned,almost a direct reflection of He Yi’s original vision and analysis of the AI industry. It clearly centers on AI’s transformative potential in finance and society at large, shaping Binance’s trajectory in this space:
From early-stage incubation to mid-stage strategic investment, and finally to public listing, Binance covers the full lifecycle of AI projects, deploying a multi-layered support system to build a robust AI ecosystem.
Narrative leaders often set valuation benchmarks for their entire sectors. Theoretically, if Binance and other top VCs aim to ignite the broader AI market and their portfolio, they’ll need a spark—one that can ignite market sentiment.
While we don’t yet know who the next leader will be or when it will emerge,it must offer sufficient room for imagination and upside potential. Therefore, given Binance’s backing and its differentiated infrastructure positioning, Sahara AI already shows strong signs of being the natural successor to Bittensor (TAO).
Subtle signals quietly building in the background will gradually come into view. Let’s wait and see.
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