Decentralized AI startup Nous Research has raised $50 million in a Series A 
round led by crypto venture giant Paradigm, marking one of the largest 
investments at the intersection of blockchain and artificial intelligence to 
date.
According to an April 25 report from Fortune, the funding round values Nous at 
a $1 billion token valuation. Previous investors include Distributed Global, 
North Island Ventures, and Delphi Digital, who contributed to Nous&#8217;s earlier 
$20 million seed rounds.
Operating since 2022, Nous Research is stepping into the spotlight with the 
latest fundraising to develop open-source AI models powered by decentralized 
infrastructure.
The company leverages the Solana blockchain to coordinate and incentivize 
global participation in training its AI models, aiming to challenge 
centralized giants like OpenAI and DeepSeek.
_Nous Research announcing Nous Psyche on Solana. Source:__Nous Research_
 _**Related:**__**Angels from Citadel, Jane Street, JPMorgan back $20M raise 
for Theo network**_
## Nous harnesses global idle compute power for AI training
Founded by AI researchers, including collaborators like Diederik Kingma (co- 
inventor of the Adam optimizer), Nous is taking a different approach from 
typical crypto-AI projects.
Instead of relying on centralized data centers, it enables individuals 
worldwide to contribute idle computing power for AI training.
Blockchain technology underpins this model, ensuring secure, incentivized 
participation while mitigating risks like data poisoning through features such 
as Byzantine fault tolerance.
&#8220;We very much came from a mentality that we want to create and serve the 
world&#8217;s best AI,&#8221; co-founder Karan Malhotra told Fortune.
Per the report, the 20-person team at Nous Research will allocate much of the 
new capital toward scaling compute resources and advancing research.
In December 2024, Nous told Venture Beat that it is pre-training a 15-billion- 
parameter LLM in a decentralized manner, livestreaming progress to showcase 
transparency and performance.
Meanwhile, Paradigm&#8217;s backing signals a deepening interest in AI within crypto 
venture circles.
&#8220;This open, community-oriented approach is a powerful contrast to the closed, 
centralized efforts from incumbent labs,&#8221; Paradigm partner Arjun Balaji 
reportedly told the outlet.
_**Related:**__**Crypto users cool with AI dabbling with their portfolios: 
Survey**_
## Paradigm becomes top-performing crypto VC
Paradigm is one of the biggest and most successful crypto venture capital 
firms.
In March, Web3 data platform Kaito AI ranked Paradigm as the top-performing 
crypto VC over the past year, posting an impressive 11.80% performance metric, 
outperforming other major players like Alliance (10.64%), Dragonfly (8.32%), 
a16z (6.94%) and Multicoin Capital (5.86%).
_Source:__Rory_
Founded by Coinbase&#8217;s Fred Ehrsam and ex-Sequoia partner Matt Huang, Paradigm 
has built a strong reputation for spotting high-potential crypto projects 
early.
Its portfolio includes leading DeFi platforms like Uniswap (UNI) and dYdX, as 
well as consistent backing for Ethereum scaling solutions such as Optimism.
Paradigm also led a $255 million round for StarkNet, a key player in zero- 
knowledge rollup technology.
_**Magazine: **__**Stablecoin for cyber-scammers launches, Sony L2 drama: 
Asia Express**_

Nous Research secures $50M from Paradigm to build decentralized AI on Solana

Despite concerning headlines of fresh tariffs, fractured alliances, and 
looming recession fears, there are still strong reasons for investors to 
remain positive, according to Nigel Green, CEO and founder of deVere Group. In 
a note sent to crypto.news, Green pushed…

Pro: Trade wars are causing recalibration, not collapse for investors

The XRP price rallied again to $2.22 after a relief rally rocked Bitcoin and 
the crypto market. This was fueled by comments from US President Donald Trump 
that the tariffs on China are expected to be significantly reduced, even 
though they would not be zero. In the aftermath of this recovery, though, the 
XRP price has begun to retrace, suggesting that a local top may have been 
reached. However, some developments for XRP could see a kickstart to the bull 
rally. CME Group Announces XRP Futures Launch The XRP community has been 
rocked by positive news once again after the CME Group announced that it would 
be launching a futures contracts investment vehicle for XRP. The derivatives 
exchange seems to be taking advantage of the hype around the XRP price over 
the last few months, especially with the conclusion of the Ripple vs. SEC 
lawsuit on the horizon. Related Reading: Bitcoin Sees Largest ETF Inflows 
Since January, Becomes 5th Largest Asset In The World CME Group revealed that 
the futures contracts would be a cash-settled one, allowing investors to be 
able to bet on the XRP price rising or going down. This allows for exposure to 
XRP without having to actually buy and hold the digital asset itself. This is 
akin to the Bitcoin futures launched back in October 2021, setting the stage 
for the approval of Spot Bitcoin ETFs later in January 2024. The exchange 
revealed that it plans to launch the very first XRP futures contract on May 
19th if the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gives its approval. This 
news has been positively received in the XRP community, with Ripple CEO Brad 
Garlinghouse calling it “an incredibly important and exciting step in the 
continued growth of the XRP market.” Additionally, the XRP price jumped above 
$2.2 in response to the news. Related Reading: Why Did The Dogecoin And Shiba 
Inu Prices Surge Over 10%? Sentiment Recovers Around XRP Price Despite the 
decline in the XRP price following the market slowdown on Thursday, sentiment 
around the altcoin continues to be very positive. Data from CoinMarketCap 
shows that positive sentiment around the XRP price has rebounded after briefly 
dipping when the altcoin fell below $2.22. It is now sitting at an 88% of all 
votes being bullish, with only 12% expecting the price to fall further from 
here. Crypto analyst Armando Pantoja has also called out a possible bullish 
action brewing for the XRP price. According to the analysis, momentum is 
building after the price bounced off key support just above $2, and there is 
no major resistance in sight. He set the target at $2.50, which would mean a 
20% jump in price from here. Featured image from Dall.E, chart from 
TradingView.com

Is The XRP Price Rally Over At $2.22? New Developments Suggest Major Pump Is Coming

The crypto industry is bracing for a significant shift in regulatory tone 
following Paul Atkins&#8217; swearing-in as chair of the US Securities and Exchange 
Commission on April 21. A former SEC commissioner with deep roots in 
deregulatory philosophy, Atkins replaces Gary Gensler, whose combative stance 
toward crypto defined much of the agency&#8217;s recent legacy.
In the latest episode of _Byte-Sized Insight with Cointelegraph_ , key 
industry figures weigh in on the implications of this leadership change and 
what it might unlock for innovation, investment and clarity for digital 
assets.
## **Crypto &#8216;s &#8220;golden age&#8221; continues**
Chris Perkins, president of CoinFund, spoke with host Savannah Fortis and 
described his excitement regarding the new SEC chair, predicting a reduction 
in regulatory uncertainty under the new administration.
&#8220;We were under this regulatory reign of terror, you know, under the Biden 
administration,&#8221; said Perkins. &#8220;Investors in assets, they&#8217;re very comfortable 
taking market risk&#8230; but they&#8217;re not comfortable taking reputational risk, 
and along with that is regulatory risk.&#8221;
He pointed out how it was not only investors and companies who were nervous 
under the last administration, but also developers in the crypto space who had 
been targeted for their work.
Perkins highlighted how a shift in the regulatory climate could catalyze 
growth.
&gt; &#8220;Now, again, you&#8217;re taking that personal liability off… So in a way, you 
&gt; have this perfect storm of new institutional capital coming in and new 
&gt; developers coming in. And I think the this is going to be a golden age for 
&gt; venture and value creation.&#8221;
_**Related:**__**Paul Atkins &#8216; loosely linked RSR token rises 13% after 
Coinbase listing**_
Katherine Dowling, general counsel and chief commercial officer at Bitwise 
Asset Management, agreed that change is already visible.
&#8220;The mood has already changed,&#8221; she said. &#8220;We&#8217;ve seen a flurry of activity 
around certain legal cases&#8230; being dismissed, dropped&#8230; not because all 
regulation is going away&#8230; but because more work needs to be done to define 
what these digital assets are.&#8221;
Dowling emphasized that the shift is about clarity, not deregulation.
&gt; &#8220;It&#8217;s a signal shift towards let&#8217;s take a step back and define what these 
&gt; are, what they look like, and how they should be regulated.&#8221;
## **What to expect from the Atkins era**
James Gernetzke, chief financial officer of Bitcoin and crypto wallet Exodus, 
added that &#8220;the promise of being able to engage with a regulator on a 
reasonable basis… is going to be very helpful.&#8221;
Gernetzke said he expects a return to &#8220;more normal time frames&#8221; for IPOs and 
access to capital markets.
&gt; &#8220;I think the IPO rush&#8230; you will see probably towards the end&#8230; maybe 
&gt; months 10, 11, 12&#8230; it&#8217;s coming for sure.&#8221;
Perkins captured the broader sentiment, calling the incoming market structure 
bill a potential unlock.
&gt; &#8220;This market structure bill is going to have a really big impact&#8230; because 
&gt; then I know what my asset is, and I have a process for capital formation. I 
&gt; have a process for disclosures&#8230; It&#8217;s going to be awesome.&#8221;
Listen to the full episode of _Byte-Sized Insight_ for the complete interview 
on Cointelegraph&#8217;s Podcasts page, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And don&#8217;t forget 
to check out Cointelegraph&#8217;s full lineup of other shows!
_**Magazine: SEC &#8216;s U-turn on crypto leaves key questions unanswered**_

Atkins SEC era sparks massive industry optimism, crypto execs speak out

U.S. stocks traded lower on Friday as Wall Street remained upbeat on a 
potential easing of the China- U.S. trade war. The Dow Jones Industrial 
Average was down 0.4% or 166 points, while the S&amp;P 500 fell 0.26%, and the…

Cryptocurrency price in BTC