Venice AI, an artificial intelligence project on the Base network, has seen its native token VVV sharply reverse gains after a massive initial surge.
While the project faces allegations of insider trading and has reclaimed some losses, the AI Agents project iDEGEN is racing to accelerate its presale. At the same time, AI-focused investors adjusted positions last week as events around the DeepSeek R1 launch impacted U.S. tech stocks.
Despite the withdrawals, market sentiment toward crypto remains largely bullish, and the widely publicized iDEGEN stands out as a potential investment opportunity.
Venice AI token plunges 50%
Venice AI (VVV) debuted on a major exchange via Coinbase, and first-day trading support pushed the token to an early high of $22.58. The gains quickly reversed, and VVV is now trading below $10, representing a roughly 56% drop from the peak reached on January 28.
VVV’s decline followed insider trading allegations involving two contributors associated with Aerodrome Finance.
Putting those accusations aside, Venice AI has attracted significant attention and may be positioned for a rebound. The project aims to build core infrastructure for AI agents, developers, and third-party applications, with a privacy-focused, low-cost approach that could be an important advantage.
According to analytics platform Nansen, VVV has been “the volume king on Base and a hot trend among our paid users” since launch.
Currently, VIRTUAL, AIXBT and AERO lead volume, while Venice AI continues to seek a breakout.
Is iDEGEN an opportunity?
As VVV and other AI tokens draw attention, the AI agent iDEGEN — soon to launch — continues to dominate presale activity. The project could pose a challenge to established players once it begins trading on exchanges in the coming weeks.
iDEGEN takes a distinctive approach that sets it apart from leading AI trends, new agent projects and meme coins. Its model is straightforward: training draws directly from crypto degen communities on platforms like X and Telegram, with minimal filters. Upcoming upgrades will expand the agent’s degen-style interactions to TikTok and Instagram.
Notably, many AI agents face restrictions during training; iDEGEN runs largely unfiltered and can produce both chaotic and elevated outputs.
The project’s controversial nature led to two X (formerly Twitter) bans for the agent, which paradoxically fueled interest. The presale accelerated past $10 million, and within weeks total presale proceeds nearly doubled as IDGN token sales exceeded $18.6 million.
Developments across AI and the iDEGEN project suggest some investors view the broader market pullback and the presale’s low price as a buying opportunity. One plan includes launching iDEGEN on DeepSeek.
Here is a post from the U.S. account:
We’re about to drop iDEGEN on DeepSeek!
AI-off: Our US model versus China 🤝
Both @iDEGEN_AI and @iDEGEN_DeepSeek will use the same knowledge base and we will see which one of our sentient AI friends produce the most controversial, degenerate content 👀
The main AI will not…
— iDEGEN UPDATES (@iDEGEN_Updates) January 28, 2025
What is iDEGEN’s price?
iDEGEN is currently available in presale at $0.0161, rising to $0.0177 in the next phase. With the presale closing on February 26 and the exchange debut scheduled for February 27—less than 30 days away—traders and investors seeking low entry prices have become active buyers.
When the AI meme token reaches its final presale stage, the IDGN price will be $0.038.
That implies a substantial increase from current levels and would contribute to a headline return since launch that the project cites as an impressive multiple since the late-November market debut.
For more information about iDEGEN, visit the official website.