Here is why hunting trends can be an expensive error: x spaces with VCS

Restructuring of commercial models in traditional organizations, AI is also increasingly adopted in web3, with new integrations announced every day. Is it a lasting trend that will offer value and opportunities for the years to come, or just another media threw?

Cointelegraph accelerator Recently organized a round table on X spaces, bringing together the venture capital to find an answer. Nikola Santoni, associated with Lemniscap; Ivan Li, founding partner of Commander3 Ventures and Michael Zajko, co-founder of Lattice, share information on the current state of cryptographic investments, key trends and factors that will shape the landscape in 2025.

🔥 has missed our web3 & Crypto Ama? Here is the TL | DR:
✅ Top Vertical Industry for 2025
✅ The most promising startups to monitor
✅ The biggest obstacles to mass adoption

🎙️ Catch the summary of our x spaces with @ comma3vc,, @Lemniscap & @Mikezajko

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Getting ahead of the trend is the key

Nikola Santoni began by emphasizing the importance of assessing future demand rather than chasing current trends. “Obviously, the intersection of crypto and AI, with AI agentsA greatly accelerated, which is impossible to ignore. But what stands out is the speed with which the stories and the duration of attention change, from retail investors to the media to institutional investors. This is what we must be aware during the investment. »»

In light on Lemniscap’s approach, Santoni said that the company focuses on identifying natural market demand and teams with product development potential. “We tend to strengthen the conviction very early. A key consideration is whether the product you have originally imagined is logical in the long term, “he said.

In agreement on the point, Michael Zajko said: “To succeed, you have to invest before something becomes a hot trend, not after.” He noted that venture capital investments generally have a calendar of 5 to 7 years and have underlined some examples as DEFI in summerWhere to invest at the top would have meant missing previous opportunities like Uniswap and Aave.

“We are investing in something that may not be available for several years. This trend took place year after year with Defi, NFTS, Gaming and now Decentralized physical infrastructure networks. We have been great backdrop supports, and there are many exciting projects, “said Zajko, continuing:” But the market and launching of tokens for a very high quality project is much longer because they use real world infrastructure. Some of the deppine tokens are arriving on the market this year, and there will be a lot of exciting opportunities in this space. »»

Ivan Li echoes the same feeling, saying: “It is risky to chase all the chains. If you are a merchant on the free market, you can hunt these short -term narrative changes because there is a lot of liquidity. But in primary investments, there is no liquidity, it is therefore a very risky game. Long deadlines – three years at TGE and another year for locking and acquisition – only add to risk. The key is to invest before a project takes off. »»

Li said that comma3 companies do not see a brilliant future for Blockchains based on EVM And keep the emphasis on elsewhere. “I suggest that everyone is more closely examining blockchains based on travel like Su. If you compare SU to EVM, it’s like Tesla today in Ferrari 30 years ago. Our comma3 venture portfolio currently covers approximately 85 to 90% of the total value locked throughout the SUC ecosystem. »»

The more complex AI arrives

Zajko has mentioned that excitement around AI is largely due to its rapid development within Web2, but most of the projects related to AI in Crypto today adopt a simplistic approach. “It’s a good way to speculate, and frankly, there is always a very strong product market in the crypto for everything you can speculate,” he said.

“What comes out is that the developers adopt a more cautious approach. I think they look at what really works and offers long -term value rather than just launching a token for retail speculation. Many of these projects will not come out right away, but I expect to see more advanced AI agents this year that do things that are not content to tweet, “added Zajko.

According to the co-founder, the AI ​​can be divided into two main areas: “AI of the company includes decentralized calculation projects such as Io.net and Render Network. Then you have the most retail projects that are still in development. And there are a number of more platform projects that have not launched tokens on the business side, such as Ritual or Sente. So I expected to see a re -emergence of this category. They go out in the second half of the year, and their tokens should bring new energy to a decentralized AI. »»

Young generation will stimulate the adoption of cryptography

Li highlighted the duplicating nature of regulation, saying: “Without a clear legal framework, there will be problems with LMA, taxes and even the ability to take innovative risks in an appropriate structure, which represents a huge risk for founders and investors. On the other hand, the regulations also open the door to institutional capital, even from conservative sources such as pension funds. »»

For Li, regulations are also a question of global competition: “It is a kind of game theory between countries. If the United States regulates crypto and collect taxes, but the rules are too restrictive, people will move and innovate elsewhere. We could have problems with the departure of entrepreneurs, and that is something to consider.”

Zajko sees positive changes in the industry, in particular with a more friendly approach to the new American administration: “With the new administration and the new members of the SEC, and with application actions Like those against Opensea and Coinbase be abandonedThe teams are starting to return to the tactics and the strategies they have always wanted to use, those that are really beneficial for space – like tokens sales, which made crypto. And the teams return to them and sell to the participants in the retail trade at attractive entry prices. “”

He underlined the growing institutional adoption of Bitcoin, saying: “You already see government reserves and public vouchers offered to deposit in Bitcoin. People who make these decisions at the moment tend to come from an older generation. He is not as long as they should be digital transition work. From their roles, the result seems inevitable.”

“It’s just a question of when, not so,” concluded Zajko.