Bittensor (TAO) Price Surges 11% Ahead of Historic First Token Halving on December 14

Halving fever hits the AI crypto sector.

Bittensor's TAO token just ripped an 11% rally, with the network's first-ever token halving locked in for December 14. This isn't just a routine calendar event—it's a fundamental rewrite of its emission schedule.

The Supply Shock Catalyst

Halvings are crypto's ultimate scarcity play. They slash the rate of new token creation, tightening supply. For TAO, this means the daily mint for miners gets cut in half. Basic economics suggests that if demand holds steady against a shrinking new supply, price pressure builds. The recent double-digit surge hints the market is already front-running that thesis.

Beyond the Hype Cycle

Sure, traders love a good narrative pump. But Bittensor's value proposition digs deeper than most halving plays. It's building a decentralized marketplace for machine intelligence, where AI models compete and collaborate. The halving could force a Darwinian shakeout among network miners, theoretically pushing them towards more efficient, higher-value operations to maintain rewards—potentially strengthening the entire ecosystem's output.

A Calculated Gamble

Let's be real: the crypto playbook loves a good halving story. It's a classic 'sell the news' risk once the event passes. But for protocols with real utility, it can be a forcing function for maturity. The coming days will test whether the market sees TAO's halving as a mere speculative catalyst or a genuine step towards a leaner, more robust AI network. Either way, it's putting decentralized machine learning squarely back on the radar—proving that in crypto, even artificial intelligence isn't immune to a good old-fashioned supply crunch.

TLDR

• Bittensor will undergo its first token halving on December 14, 2025, cutting daily TAO issuance from 7,200 to 3,600 tokens
• The network has 129 active subnets offering AI services like compute, data storage, AI agents, and deepfake detection, with a combined market cap near $3 billion
• TAO follows a Bitcoin-style supply model with a fixed cap of 21 million tokens to create scarcity
• Institutional investors including Yuma Asset Management and Stillcore Capital have launched funds investing in top Bittensor subnets
• Three public companies have established TAO treasuries, with TAO Synergies holding approximately $12 million worth of tokens

Bittensor will experience its first token halving event on December 14, 2025. The decentralized AI network launched in 2021 and has reached the end of its inaugural four-year cycle.

The halving will reduce daily TAO token issuance from 7,200 to 3,600. This represents a 50% cut in new tokens entering circulation.

Bittensor operates as an open-source machine-learning network. The platform uses specialized subnets that create marketplaces for AI services.

$TAO HALVING COULD PUSH PRICE UP, SAYS GRAYSCALE

Grayscale analyst expects Bittensor’s first halving to tighten supply and boost the value of TAO.

He notes Bitcoin’s past halving cycles boosted $BTC value and $TAO could follow a similar reaction. pic.twitter.com/SXjoczl0Ko

— Coin Bureau (@coinbureau) December 8, 2025

The network currently has 129 active subnets. These subnets provide various AI services including compute, data storage, AI agents, and deepfake detection.

TAO follows a supply schedule similar to Bitcoin. The token has a fixed supply cap of 21 million tokens total.

Growing Subnet Ecosystem

The combined market cap of Bittensor subnets has reached approximately $3 billion according to Taostats. CoinGecko lists over 100 subnets with a combined market cap exceeding $850 million.

I am not expecting $TAO to MOVE on the halving event

Over time, increased scarcity will matter.. as it has for #Bitcoin every four years

But.. I don't see it being an important catalyst to price in the short term

That said.. it is a major moment in the #Bittensor journey

Such… pic.twitter.com/i3rIcrG3V5

— ＤＲＥＡＤ ＢＯＮＧＯ (@DreadBong0) December 7, 2025

The largest subnets include Chutes, which provides serverless compute for AI models. Ridges is another major subnet focused on crowdsourcing AI agent development.

Grayscale Research describes the subnets as operating like startups building specialized products. Each subnet functions independently while contributing to the broader network.

In February 2025, Bittensor launched dynamic TAO (dTAO). This mechanism made individual subnets directly investible by users and institutions.

Institutional Investment Growth

Multiple institutional investors have entered the Bittensor ecosystem. Yuma Asset Management and Stillcore Capital have both launched funds investing in top Bittensor subnets.

Three public companies have established dedicated TAO treasuries. TAO Synergies currently holds about $12 million worth of TAO tokens.

Inference Labs recently closed a $6.3 million funding round. The capital will support Subnet 2, a marketplace for inference verification.

xTao began trading on the TSX Venture Exchange in July 2025. The infrastructure developer builds tools and services for the Bittensor ecosystem.

Grayscale Research analyst William Ogden Moore called the halving “a key milestone in the network’s maturation.” Moore noted that Bitcoin’s four previous halvings have strengthened network security and market value despite reduced rewards.

The halving event marks the completion of Bittensor’s first four-year cycle since its 2021 launch.