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Wow, what a whirlwind 2024 has been.

And… it disappeared in the blink of an eye.

The year kicked off with a bang: the long-awaited approval of the Bitcoin ETF. For a moment, it felt like everything was lining up perfectly. But then came the twists and turns as the markets unravelled in ways few of us could have predicted.

The good news is that we’ve found our footing again post-election. Nations are seriously discussing strategic Bitcoin reserves, while stablecoin supply and usage have hit all-time highs. Crypto has never been more relevant to the world.

Meanwhile, AI continues its relentless march forward, showing no signs of slowing down or scaling laws breaking.

Crypto and AI are transformative, secular shifts that define this era. And here’s the best part: we’re still in the first innings. To witness both unfold in real-time is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

By being here, dear reader, you’re already ahead of the curve. You’re in a perfect position to capitalize on this moment and actively shape the future.

Let’s make it count.

Chain of Thought began as a humble newsletter in early 2024—a personal experiment to organize my thoughts about the emergent Crypto AI sector. Writing has always been my way of taming the chaos of unformed ideas, turning them into something coherent and actionable.

While I was delving deep into AI and research papers, one concept stood out: “Chain of Thought”. In AI, this refers to a reasoning technique where models solve problems by generating step-by-step explanations, enabling them to handle complex tasks that require logical reasoning.

The name resonated deeply. It also made perfect sense for an organisation focused on two groundbreaking technologies—blockchain and artificial intelligence. This was before OpenAI’s o1 model catapulted the concept into the mainstream, using CoT reasoning to unlock new capabilities.

Fast forward to today, and Chain of Thought has grown beyond anything I imagined.

Nearly 4,000 of you tune in weekly for our research articles and newsletters. In December alone, we sent over 25,000 emails across 10 unique pieces. Our readership spans 77 countries, with the United States leading the charge, followed by Europe (the UK, France, Germany), Canada, Australia, Singapore, Hong Kong, and India.

We’ve published 27 editions of our weekly AI newsletter—without missing a week (thanks, Josh!). Our Discord community has grown to 400+ active members discussing the latest developments in the space every day.

AI agents are undoubtedly having their moment, with our ai16z and Virtuals deep dives (courtesy of our core contributor, ChappieOnChain) becoming our most-read pieces.

Meanwhile, innovative upstarts are breaking new ground, tackling critical problems within their verticals: ARC agents (gaming), Almanak (DeFi), Mira (verification), Spectral (trading) are all pushing the boundaries of what’s possible.

We’ve also published 1.5 parts of our Crypto AI thesis, where we explain why this sector is poised to be the fastest-growing in crypto. From GPU marketplaces to training and inference, decentralized compute is the backbone of Crypto AI—a trend everyone should have on their radar in 2025.

• Part I (Convergence)

• Part II (Decentralised compute)

I still owe you another 1.5 parts to complete the trilogy. Watch for this in the coming weeks.

And let’s not forget the evergreen Crypto AI Primer, which we regularly update to ensure it remains the definitive repository for knowledge and insights on Crypto AI.

I’m grateful to be able to wake up every morning and work in this industry. And I’m even more grateful that you take the time to read and engage with our work. Thank you for being part of this journey. 🫶

FYI: we’re just getting started.

Why are we here?

Every day, I pour my heart and soul into this with a single mission in mind:

To grow the pie and inspire more people to join us in shaping the future of decentralized intelligence.

For Crypto AI to succeed, we need many, many more people to embrace the philosophy of AI that is open, collaborative, and owned by many. Not controlled by a few.

We do our part in research and writing, ensuring that people understand what’s actually happening without getting lost in jargon. We separate the signal from the noise.

Behind the scenes, we work to connect the dots—bringing together investors, startups, builders, and users to accelerate the evolution of decentralized AI.

To our readers, we hold ourselves to an uncompromising standard of quality for every piece of research we publish and send your way. Your time is valuable, and we make sure it’s worth it. Each article is carefully crafted to teach you something new (hopefully) or uncover opportunities others haven’t spotted yet—often, both.

If you enjoy what we write, we only ask that you share it with others who might find it valuable, too.

For startups, we help translate complex technical ideas into clear, compelling stories that resonate with people—without losing the nuance they deserve. There are so many incredible teams in Crypto AI doing groundbreaking work, but many struggle to reach the audience they need to thrive. That’s where we come in. We help bridge the gap. Reach out if you want to work with us.

So what’s ahead for 2025?

The narrative around Crypto AI isn’t slowing down anytime soon.

Prices often front-run actual product traction, and it’s something always to be cautious about.

But the sheer number of intelligent, passionate, and dedicated builders in this space makes it hard to imagine the pace letting up. Whether AI agents or something entirely new, one thing is clear: Crypto AI is here to stay.

Here’s a glimpse of what’s ahead for Chain of Thought in 2025:

• A brand new website

• Deep dives into the most critical trends and the overlooked underdogs in AI.

• Agent-centric research tools to keep us (and you) ahead of the curve.

• Our Crypto AI newsletter, Weekly AI Edge, gets even better

• Bold, opinionated thought pieces, because 2025 will be a picker’s market.

• < Redacted > 👀

Happy New Year, and wishing you a holiday season filled with love and joy! It’s going to be a fun 2025 ahead. Strap in, and we’ll ride the gigantic wave together.

Yours sincerely,

Teng Yan