A commentary by Tencent Research Institute senior expert Yan Deli argues that artificial intelligence is advancing through a set of unresolved paradoxes rather than along a clean, linear path. The piece identifies five of them: forecasting, quantifying AI’s effect on jobs, the productivity puzzle, the mismatch between data’s strategic importance and its balance-sheet value, and the tendency to label each new wave of technology as the start of a new industrial revolution. The article revisits well-known AI forecasts from figures including Marvin Minsky, Geoffrey Hinton and Demis Hassabis, noting how predictions have repeatedly proved either premature or impossible to verify in real time. It also compares labor-market studies from institutions such as the OECD, IMF, World Economic Forum, World Bank, Goldman Sachs, McKinsey and Pew, saying their estimates vary so widely that they are hard to compare directly. Yan also points to weak productivity readings in the European Union after the launch of ChatGPT, contrasting them with stronger but still historically average U.S. figures, and argues that data remains difficult to price or monetize despite its central role in AI systems. The final section questions the repeated use of “the Fourth Industrial Revolution” to describe technologies ranging from microelectronics and the internet to blockchain, quantum computing and AI.

A Commodity Futures Trading Commission roundtable in Washington, D.C. turned combative on Thursday as CME Group Chairman Terry Duffy and Kalshi co-founder Luana Lopes Lara openly sparred over manipulation risks, market credibility, and how prediction markets should be regulated. Duffy said he was deeply concerned about event contracts and argued that some are vulnerable to manipulation, while also mocking certain Kalshi offerings. Lara pushed back by asking whether CME itself had ever faced manipulation issues and argued that risk is not unique to prediction markets. DraftKings CEO Jason Robins later urged participants to stop taking shots at each other’s business models. The exchange came as prediction markets remain at the center of a growing regulatory fight in the U.S., with federal regulators and state authorities split over whether contracts tied to sports, elections, and other real-world events should be treated as federally regulated derivatives or as gambling products under state law. The CFTC has already proposed restrictions on some event contracts and has taken legal action as states challenge its authority, while Kalshi continues to face court setbacks in several jurisdictions.

A public dispute broke out at a Commodity Futures Trading Commission roundtable in Washington as CME Group Chairman Terry Duffy challenged the regulatory footing of prediction markets and Kalshi co-founder Luana Lopes Lara pushed back. Duffy questioned whether prediction market platforms face the same scrutiny as established exchanges and said some contracts could be subject to manipulation. He also mocked several Kalshi offerings, including a contract tied to Nathan's hot dog eating contest, saying CME Group was not a "carnival barker." Lara replied that traditional markets and exchanges also carry risks and said regulators should be responsible for identifying and addressing them. DraftKings CEO Jason Robins later urged participants to stop attacking one another's business models. The exchange came as U.S. federal regulators and state authorities remain in conflict over who has jurisdiction over prediction markets, including whether contracts tied to sports, elections and other real-world events should be treated as federally regulated derivatives or gambling products governed by state law.

A new analysis from Bitcoin Magazine argues that the Coldcard hardware wallet incident exposed a core misconception in Bitcoin software: publicly readable code is not the same thing as open-source software. The article says users lost more than $100 million in bitcoin, over 1,500 BTC, after a critical entropy flaw in Coldcard firmware went unnoticed for roughly five years. That flaw, it argues, showed how software safety depends less on source visibility alone and more on who has the legal and economic incentive to review code closely. The piece draws a sharp distinction between Free and Open Source Software standards and “source-available” licensing. It notes that Coldcard firmware was released under MIT terms plus the Commons Clause, which removes the right to sell the software commercially. Because of that restriction, the article says the software does not meet the Open Source Initiative standard. It contrasts that model with Bitcoin Core, whose MIT-licensed code, public review process, contributor structure, nonprofit funding base, and long-running public discussions are presented as a large-scale example of open-source development working as intended. The article also says AI is changing the security equation on both sides. It cites the volunteer Bitcoin Red Team, backed by OpenSats, which used frontier AI models to scan hundreds of Bitcoin repositories and reported thousands of findings, including dozens rated critical or high severity. At the same time, it argues that AI-generated code is adding strain to maintainers and weakening the old security advantage once associated with closed-source software.

XRP was trading near $1.29 after climbing roughly 30% from last weekend’s close below $1, marking its strongest week in months and its best weekly run since the post-election surge seen in late 2024. The move began after the token fell to $0.9862 last week, the same area it occupied before that earlier rally sent it toward a record near $3.65. Most of this week’s advance came on Wednesday and Thursday, with a 10.40% jump on Wednesday alone and a push toward $1.32 the next day. Decrypt said Bitcoin helped ignite the move after rising above $72,000 on Thursday, its highest level since the June flash crash. That jump followed a U.S. Treasury announcement that long-bond buybacks would be doubled to at least $4 billion per operation starting September 9, a development that was followed by $3 billion in short liquidations over 24 hours. Still, XRP outperformed what its usual correlation with Bitcoin would imply. Its daily RSI climbed to 79.2, while ADX stayed above 29, pointing to strong trend conditions. At the same time, XRP ETF inflows fell from $5.81 million to $2.35 million, futures open interest dropped 11.31% from the rally-day level, and the token remained about 17.5% below its 200-day trend.

Arbitrum said Robinhood Chain has committed $1 million in funding to support early-stage startup teams building through the Arbitrum Open House program. The update came from an Arbitrum post, with the source link pointing to the project’s post on X. The announced funding is earmarked for teams in the early stages of development participating in the Open House initiative.

A Milk Road interview recorded on Aug. 19 and aired on Aug. 20 captured a sharp mismatch between a veteran investor’s short-term market call and Bitcoin’s actual move. Rob, founder and host of Digital Asset News, said he still viewed the area around Bitcoin’s 200-week moving average as a historically attractive accumulation zone and argued that disciplined dollar-cost averaging matters more than trying to call an exact bottom. He had laid out a cautious case that, under a four-year cycle framework, Bitcoin could bottom around October and potentially revisit $55,000, $50,000, or even $45,000. Instead, the day after recording, BTC jumped about 10%, briefly moved above $70,000, hit its highest level since early June, and helped trigger the largest short liquidation wave since 2021, with more than $1 billion in short positions wiped out in a single hour. Across the discussion, Rob also detailed his risk-based DCA system, his staggered profit-taking rules, his skepticism toward the CLARITY Act and a White House crypto meeting, his concerns about self-custody after issues involving major wallet brands, his preference for four major altcoin networks, and his view that AI agent payments could become a major narrative in the next cycle.

World Liberty Financial, the Trump family’s crypto project, said Mack McCain has taken on a broader set of responsibilities across the organization and its affiliated entities. McCain, who had already been serving as the company’s general counsel, was elevated to chief legal officer and chief administrative officer of World Liberty Financial and all related entities. He will also serve as chief trust officer of World Liberty Trust Co., N.A., which is being formed. According to the announcement, McCain has more than a decade of experience working across financial services, technology, and regulation. His prior roles include chief of staff to Robinhood’s chief legal, compliance and corporate affairs officer, associate general counsel for regulatory affairs at Robinhood, general counsel at Arta Finance, and senior legal positions at Charles Schwab and Scottrade. WLFI said McCain will oversee legal strategy, corporate management, and governance across the wider World Liberty ecosystem. In his trust role, he will lead the development and operation of the trust and fiduciary governance framework for World Liberty Trust Company under the supervision of the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. The company also said the OCC granted conditional preliminary approval to WLFI’s national trust charter application on Aug. 14.