Institutional Bittensor Access Arrives as Yuma Fund Launches with DCG Support
Asset managers are broadening TAO investment products while decentralized artificial intelligence networks experience growing interest amid recent regulatory actions targeting Anthropic's AI models.
An investment company backed by Digital Currency Group called Yuma has introduced a new fund designed to offer institutional investors comprehensive exposure to the Bittensor ecosystem, marking another step in the expansion of investment products focused on decentralized artificial intelligence by asset management firms.
A Thursday announcement revealed that the Yuma Total Market Fund delivers exposure to both TAO, Bittensor's native token, and a collection of AI-focused subnets bundled together in one investment vehicle. The approach aims to make accessing the wider Bittensor ecosystem more straightforward by eliminating the need for investors to choose specific subnet tokens individually.
Seed capital for the fund came from an anchor investor whose identity has not been disclosed.
The Bittensor network operates as a decentralized platform that facilitates the creation of AI infrastructure and applications via specialized subnets covering various domains including compute, marketplaces and identity. Yuma states that the network's 128 subnets have a combined value exceeding $900 million. That said, information from Taostats, a network tracking platform, indicates the combined subnet value is actually closer to $300 million.
The Bittensor ecosystem has witnessed increasing institutional interest that parallels the network's growing subnet economy. During the fund's quarterly rebalance in April, Grayscale boosted TAO's weighting in its Grayscale Decentralized AI Fund to 43%. Since then, TAO's allocation has decreased to approximately 20%, while the fund's largest holding is now NEAR, the token of Near Protocol, which makes up roughly 44%.
Efforts to expand investor access to TAO are underway among asset managers as well. In April, Bitwise submitted a filing for a TAO Strategy ETF to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Grayscale filed an amended registration statement seeking to transform its existing Bittensor Trust into a spot TAO exchange-traded fund that would be listed on NYSE Arca subject to approval.
Anthropic restrictions renew focus on decentralized AI
Decentralized AI, which spreads AI infrastructure and computing power across blockchain-based networks instead of depending on a single provider, attracted fresh attention following the US Commerce Department's decision to suspend public access to Anthropic's Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models due to national security and export control concerns.
At that time, Zach Pandl, Grayscale head of research, stated that the restrictions highlighted the dangers of depending on centralized AI providers. The government directive restricting access to Anthropic's Fable 5 and Mythos 5 "highlights the risks of centralized control of AI," Pandl said. "We expect demand for decentralized AI, like Bittensor and its TAO token, to rise as investors seek alternatives."
The restrictions appear to be easing. The Commerce Department restored access to Mythos 5 on Friday, and Axios reported Saturday that the Trump administration is expected to allow Anthropic to resume public access to Fable 5 as soon as next week.