Tokens on the Solana blockchain that claimed to track the private-market valuations of artificial-intelligence companies Anthropic and OpenAI dropped sharply this week. The sudden sell-off followed warnings from both companies that the structures used to back the tokens may be invalid.
What the tokens claimed to do
The tokens were designed to give traders exposure to the estimated valuations of Anthropic and OpenAI, two of the most closely watched private AI firms. By linking token prices to the companies' theoretical worth, the offerings aimed to bring private-company investing to decentralized finance. But the legal footing of those links was always uncertain.
The warnings that triggered the drop
This week, Anthropic and OpenAI each publicly stated that the arrangements used to create the tokens might not hold up. The companies did not elaborate on specific legal challenges, but the statements were enough to spook holders. Trading data shows a sharp decline in token prices shortly after the warnings appeared online.
Why the structure matters
Tokenized versions of private-company stakes rely on some form of custodial or contractual agreement. If the underlying company does not recognize the token, the token's value rests on little more than speculation. The warnings from Anthropic and OpenAI effectively told the market that the supposed backing was questionable.
Solana, the blockchain where these tokens trade, processes thousands of transactions per second and hosts a growing number of tokenized assets. But the platform's speed does not solve the fundamental problem of whether the issuer actually controls the asset being represented.
What happens now
Holders of the affected tokens are left with assets that may have no legal claim on the companies they supposedly track. No regulator has stepped in yet, and neither Anthropic nor OpenAI has said whether it plans to take further action. The episode leaves a clear question unanswered: if the companies behind the valuations say the token structure is flawed, what — if anything — backs the remaining value?
