Grayscale Adds Support for New Assets in Top Tokens for Q1 2025 Including AI Launchpads and Solana DeFi Apps
Grayscale has updated its list of top 20 tokens to watch in the first quarter of 2025 by adding several new artificial intelligence (AI) platforms and decentralized finance (DeFi) applications. This development was announced in a December 30 research note.
New Additions to the Watch List
The Q1 2025 watch list now includes:
- Hyperliquid (HYPE): A high-performance layer-1 network
- Ethena (ENA): An AI platform
- Virtuals (VIRTUAL): An AI platform
- Jupiter (JUP): A DeFi app native to the Solana ecosystem
- Jito (JTO): A DeFi app native to the Solana ecosystem
- Grass (GRASS): An AI platform
Industry Trends Behind New Additions
The new additions benefit from three industry trends:
- Friendlier US Regulatory Environment: The incoming administration’s promises to appoint industry-friendly leaders and make the US "the world’s crypto capital" have created a more favorable environment for DeFi applications.
- Breakthroughs in Decentralized AI: The increasing adoption of AI agents in decentralized communities is expected to drive growth in this space.
- Growth in the Solana Ecosystem: The surge in total value locked on Solana, from around $1.5 billion in January to nearly $8.5 billion as of December, according to data from DefiLlama, has created a thriving environment for DeFi apps.
Continued Inclusion of Established Themes
In addition to the new additions, Grayscale continues to include tokens that represent established themes such as:
- Ethereum Scaling Solutions: Represented by Optimism (OP)
- Tokenization: Represented by Chainlink (LINK)
- Decentralized Physical Infrastructure (DePIN): Represented by Helium (HNT)
Smart Contract Platforms Remain Competitive
Grayscale notes that smart contract platforms, such as Ethereum (ETH), Solana (SOL), Avalanche (AVAX), and Sui (SUI), "may be the most competitive market segment in the digital assets industry." The proliferation of alternative layer-1 blockchain networks partially accounts for why ETH under-performed its peers in 2024.
Related: Bitcoin Yield Opportunities are Booming
The article concludes with a mention of related topics, including:
- Bitcoin Yield Opportunities: A growing trend that is expected to continue in the coming year.
- DeFi and AI Adoption: The increasing adoption of DeFi applications and AI agents in decentralized communities is driving growth in this space.
Industry Trends
Cryptocurrencies saw significant gains after Donald Trump’s election victory, with many believing that his win will benefit the industry. Trump has promised to appoint industry-friendly leaders to key regulatory agencies and make the US "the world’s crypto capital." This is expected to drive growth in DeFi applications, staking, real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, and agentic AI.
Expert Insights
Industry executives have expressed their optimism about the future of the space. Raj Brahmbhatt, CEO of Web3 settlement company Zeebu, stated: "In the US, with Trump’s victory, I am aggressively bullish on the US becoming a global leader in the space by the end of the year." J.D. Seraphine, CEO of Web3 AI developer Raiinmaker, added that AI agents are expected to take on a more prominent role within decentralized communities.
Conclusion
Grayscale’s updated watch list reflects the growing importance of DeFi applications and AI platforms in the digital assets industry. As the space continues to evolve, investors should remain aware of these trends and opportunities.
