Franklin Templeton Spotlights Rising AI Tokens, Virtual and AI16z

Franklin Templeton, a global investment management company, described the idea of AI-driven interactions on blockchains as "exciting".

In a January 15 post on X, the company noted the recent growth of two AI tokens, VIRTUAL and AI16z.

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The VIRTUAL token, part of the Virtuals Protocol on Ethereum's ETH $1,623.62 Base network, has risen by 15% on January 14, reaching $2.98. This token is used to power AI tools like AiXBT, which recently came close to its highest price.

Meanwhile, AI16z, which powers an investment-focused decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), saw its token increase by over 18% in value on January 14. After a dip last week, its price recovered to $1.30.

Despite this rebound, the token is still down 32% from its value a week ago and remains 47% below its all-time high of $2.47. Meanwhile, Binance $9.3B announced in a January 2 post on X that it would introduce perpetual futures contracts for AI16z.

AI agents, designed to carry out tasks independently, have sparked interest. Franklin Templeton acknowledged the industry’s early-stage limitations but expressed optimism about its long-term potential.

The company stated:

Although these agents are not yet fully autonomous, and have little utility in their current state, this emerging sector may hold significant promise and is worth watching closely as it evolves and matures.

Recently, Bitwise CEO Hunter Horsley compared AI agents to the early development of corporations in the 19th century. What did he say? Read the full story.