AI Crypto Tokens Gain 10% on Nvidia's $1T Forecast

Edgen Crypto

·Mar 17 2026, 04:03

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Key Takeaways

Comments from Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang during the company's GTC developer conference on March 16 ignited a significant price increase across cryptocurrencies associated with artificial intelligence. Huang's bullish outlook on AI infrastructure demand reinforced investor confidence in the convergence of AI and Web3 technologies.

AI-linked cryptocurrencies including NEAR, FET, and WLD each gained more than 10% after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's keynote speech.
Huang projected a $1 trillion chip demand backlog through 2027, driven by the rapid development of autonomous "agentic AI" systems.
The market rally highlights a growing investment thesis that decentralized crypto networks will provide the essential infrastructure for future AI agents to transact and coordinate.

AI Tokens Gain Over 10% on Nvidia CEO's Comments

Artificial intelligence-related cryptocurrencies advanced sharply on Monday, March 16, after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang detailed his vision for the future of AI. During the company's GTC developer conference, several AI-focused tokens, including NEAR Protocol (NEAR), Fetch.ai (FET), and Worldcoin (WLD), each registered gains of more than 10%. The move came as traders priced in the implications of the chipmaker's central role in the global AI expansion. In contrast, Nvidia's own stock (NVDA) saw a more muted reaction, closing the day approximately 1.5% higher.

Huang's $1 Trillion Forecast Cements Agentic AI Narrative

Huang's speech centered on a massive projection for the industry, forecasting a $1 trillion chip demand backlog through 2027. He attributed this growth to the rise of "agentic AI"—autonomous systems that can perform complex tasks independently. Huang specifically highlighted the viral OpenClaw project and Nvidia's own enterprise-grade version, NemoClaw, as foundational for this next wave of technology. While the keynote did not mention crypto, the market's reaction signals a strengthening investor narrative. Traders are increasingly betting that as AI agents proliferate, they will require decentralized crypto rails to transact, coordinate, and access computing power, positioning Web3 projects as critical infrastructure for the AI-driven economy.