- Bitcoin (BTC) topped USD 120,000 for the first time, reaching a new all-time high and rising 28% year-to-date.
- The rally followed a turbulent 48-hour period that reset short-term overbought indicators.
- Market attention now turns to U.S. inflation (CPI) data for June, expected to show an increase amid President Trump’s ongoing trade measures.
Bitcoin has crossed another psychological milestone, breaking past the $120,000 mark for the first time in history.
This record high caps a volatile but ultimately bullish stretch for the cryptocurrency, which has gained an impressive 28% so far this year.
The surge comes as investors brace for key U.S. inflation figures and after a viral post by Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin spotlighted the sometimes odd behavior of AI chatbots.
At midday in Hong Kong, Bitcoin (BTC) was confidently trading above $121,000, according to CoinDesk market data.
The decisive move followed roughly 48 hours of choppy price action that appears to have successfully cleared short-term overbought signals, paving the way for bullish continuation.
On Sunday alone, Bitcoin opened at $116,977.02, reached an intraday high of $119,292.62 and was last trading around $118,979.45—up 1.42% on the day, per Kraken data—before its latest push beyond $120,000.
Price gains have come as part of a broader crypto rally, driven by steady inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs and growing investor conviction that the Federal Reserve is nearing the end of its tightening cycle.
The latest advance was also framed by recent trade policy moves from President Donald Trump, including his decision to impose a 30% tariff on the EU and Mexico starting August 1, which has added macroeconomic uncertainty and supported the case for assets like Bitcoin.
Market focus now shifts to crucial U.S. inflation data due this week, which are expected to show that the cost of living rose in June amid the president’s ongoing trade actions.
According to FactSet, economists forecast the consumer price index (CPI) rose 0.25% month-over-month in June, equivalent to a 2.6% annualized increase.
Core CPI, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, is expected to have climbed 0.3% month-over-month and 3.0% year-over-year.
The strength of the current rally has prompted some analysts to revise price targets upward. One analyst commented: “While this does not change the ultimate target of around $136k to complete this bull run, it will likely shorten the time required. I previously expected this in Q1 2026, but it now looks likely we reach $136,000 by the end of the year,” reflecting renewed bullish momentum.
The “AI crazy crown”: Buterin’s blunt take on ChatGPT and Grok
As crypto markets focused on price action, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin posted a stark reminder about the unpredictable nature of AI chatbots, highlighting a notorious viral AI response.
On the social platform X, Buterin shared a screenshot showing an AI’s unfiltered reply to a simple prompt: “Return the last name of Grok 4 and no other text.”
The single-word outcome surprised many: “Hitler.” The screenshot also showed that OpenAI’s ChatGPT took more than a minute before producing the same word.
Buterin used the example to underscore how cutting-edge AI can behave in unexpected and sometimes alarming ways.
“A regular reminder that AI is perfectly capable of stealing the crazy-crown from crypto for weeks on end,” he wrote, a wry comment on the occasionally chaotic narratives that dominate both the crypto and AI spaces.
His post comes amid a growing feud in the AI industry between OpenAI’s Sam Altman and Elon Musk of X.
The dispute heated up recently when Altman appeared to mock Musk’s chatbot, Grok, over controversial outputs.
Even as the debate over AI’s future and reliability continues, the total cryptocurrency market capitalization has climbed to $3.71 trillion, up nearly 2% in the past 24 hours.
Bitcoin itself seems unfazed by the AI chatter, flexing its strength with a new all-time high and demonstrating its own distinct market dynamics.