It appears TAO, the native token underpinning the AI-focused blockchain Bittensor, has ignited some real tension on X, pitting Digital Currency Group founder Barry Silbert against the staunch loyalists of bitcoin (BTC), the original and largest cryptocurrency by market cap.

Adding fuel to the fire, author and dedicated bitcoin advocate Parker Lewis didn’t pull any punches, calling Silbert and Raoul Pal, the voice behind The Journey Man podcast, a group of “affinity scammers” for promoting TAO during a recent episode.

Silbert was quick to fire back, commenting: “calling $TAO a scam is such a lazy attack. do better”

Notably, Grayscale Investments, one of Digital Currency Group’s subsidiaries, manages a Bittensor Trust, which currently oversees around $8 million in assets. They also operate a significant spot bitcoin exchange-traded fund (GBTC) holding a massive $16.6 billion under management, alongside a bitcoin mini trust ETF.

So, What Exactly is TAO?

The friction really escalated when Silbert drew parallels between Bittensor and the venerable Bitcoin blockchain.

On the podcast, he remarked: “It’s just like bitcoin, there was a white paper that turned into code then launched and it has the same token economics.”

While it’s true there are a couple of points where TAO resembles BTC – like its hard cap of 21 million tokens and the inclusion of block reward halving events – the projects stand miles apart when you look at their core philosophy and intended function.

Bittensor is built as a decentralized network that cleverly integrates blockchain technology with machine learning. Its vision is to become a peer-to-peer AI marketplace, a place where users can freely share and even monetize their AI models.

Bitcoin, on the other hand, emerged from the Libertarian cypherpunk movement, designed primarily as a direct peer-to-peer electronic cash system bypassing traditional government currencies. In recent years, it’s also solidified its position as a store of value, frequently appearing on company balance sheets as a hedge against rising inflation.

Introduced just two years ago, the TAO token has lived through some truly extreme volatility. It surged past $700 not once, but twice in 2024, only to plummet back down to roughly $200 on both occasions. It’s currently trading closer to $339.

Bitcoin, in contrast, has seen a remarkable climb from $22,000 since the start of 2023, even hitting highs near $109,000 back in January. While it certainly has its ups and downs, these movements aren’t nearly as dramatic as the sharp crashes often seen across the altcoin market. Bitcoin is currently priced around $90,000, boasting a sprawling market cap of about $1.8 trillion. In comparison, TAO’s market cap sits at around $2.98 billion, according to data from CoinMarketCap.