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SingularityNET / ASI Alliance

4.9/10

AI services marketplace merged into ASI Alliance — ambitious AGI vision, but adoption remains minimal after years of development.

Updated: February 16, 2026AI Model: claude-4-opusVersion 1

Overview

SingularityNET is a decentralized marketplace for AI services, founded in 2017 by Ben Goertzel — a prominent figure in the artificial general intelligence (AGI) research community and the creator of the Sophia humanoid robot project. The platform enables AI developers to publish, discover, and monetize AI services through a blockchain-based marketplace, with the goal of democratizing access to AI and eventually contributing to the development of AGI.

In 2024, SingularityNET merged its AGIX token with Fetch.ai (FET) and Ocean Protocol (OCEAN) to form the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance (ASI). The combined entity pools resources, communities, and development efforts across AI agents (Fetch.ai), AI services (SingularityNET), and data services (Ocean Protocol). The merged ASI token trades under the ASI ticker, with the conversion from legacy AGIX and OCEAN tokens proceeding in phases.

The merger is the most significant structural event in AI-crypto history, creating a combined entity with substantial market cap and community. However, the blunt assessment is this: merging three projects that individually struggled with adoption doesn't automatically solve the adoption problem. SingularityNET's marketplace has existed for years with limited usage, and the ASI Alliance needs to demonstrate that the combined entity can achieve what its parts couldn't separately.

Technology

Architecture

SingularityNET's marketplace runs on Ethereum (with Cardano integration) and allows developers to register AI services accessible via API. Services are described with metadata, priced in ASI tokens, and discoverable through the marketplace interface. The platform handles service discovery, payment processing, and basic quality metrics. The ASI Alliance extends this with Fetch.ai's agent framework and Ocean Protocol's data marketplace.

AI/Compute Capability

SingularityNET is an orchestration and marketplace layer — it doesn't provide raw compute but connects users with AI services created by third-party developers. Services on the marketplace range from image recognition and NLP to more specialized AI tools. The quality and capability of services depend entirely on the developers who publish them. The platform includes a staking mechanism for service curation but doesn't guarantee service quality.

Scalability

Marketplace scalability depends on developer adoption and service quality. The Ethereum and Cardano base layers handle smart contract interactions. Cross-chain deployment expands accessibility but adds complexity. The ASI Alliance's combined technology stack (agents + services + data) could theoretically create more valuable composite offerings, but integration across three different platforms is technically challenging.

Network

Node Count

SingularityNET's network is primarily a marketplace, not a compute network. The "nodes" are AI service providers who publish services, and there are a few hundred registered services on the marketplace — many of which are demos or rarely used. Active, production-quality services number in the low dozens. The ASI Alliance's combined validator set (from Fetch.ai's Cosmos chain) is approximately 60-80 validators.

Geographic Distribution

Service providers and the development community are globally distributed, with concentrations in Europe, North America, and Asia. Ben Goertzel's involvement in Hong Kong and the Netherlands anchors some activity in those regions. The Cardano integration has brought some community from the African and Japanese Cardano ecosystems.

Capacity Utilization

Marketplace utilization is low by any measure. The number of real, paying API calls to marketplace services is modest. Most services have low usage, and the marketplace hasn't achieved the critical mass where network effects drive organic growth. This has been the persistent challenge since SingularityNET's launch.

Adoption

Users & Revenue

This is SingularityNET's weakest area. After 7+ years of development, the marketplace generates minimal revenue from actual AI service usage. The platform exists and functions, but the volume of paying API calls is small. Most marketplace activity appears to be experimental or community-driven rather than reflecting genuine commercial demand. The ASI Alliance merger hasn't yet changed this dynamic measurably.

Partnerships

SingularityNET has partnerships in the healthcare AI space (Rejuve.ai for longevity research), robotics (Hanson Robotics / Sophia), and the broader AI research community through Ben Goertzel's connections. The ASI Alliance itself is a partnership of sorts — combining resources with Fetch.ai and Ocean Protocol. However, enterprise partnerships driving significant marketplace usage are not prominently demonstrated.

Growth Trajectory

Growth has been slow. The marketplace has existed since 2019, and service count and usage have grown incrementally rather than exponentially. The ASI Alliance merger generated significant market attention and token price interest in 2024, but converting that attention into marketplace usage is the unresolved challenge. The AI agent narrative (shared with Fetch.ai) provides a potential growth vector, but SingularityNET is not leading that narrative.

Tokenomics

Token Overview

The ASI token (formerly AGIX, now merged with FET and OCEAN) has a total supply of approximately 2.7 billion tokens. The two-phase token conversion process converts legacy AGIX and OCEAN tokens into ASI (via FET as an intermediary). The conversion window remains open for years, allowing gradual migration. ASI is used for marketplace payments, staking, and governance.

Demand-Supply Dynamics

Token demand from marketplace usage is negligible relative to total supply and trading volume. The merger created a larger combined market cap and broader exchange listings, but didn't fundamentally change the demand dynamics. The primary driver of ASI token value is speculative interest in the AI narrative and the alliance's brand, not organic marketplace revenue.

Incentive Alignment

Service providers earn ASI tokens for providing AI services, and users pay ASI to access services. Staking provides curation and governance rights. The economic model is theoretically sound — a marketplace with token-mediated payments. The problem is volume: when a marketplace handles minimal transactions, the incentive flywheel doesn't spin.

Decentralization

Node Operation

Anyone can publish an AI service on the marketplace, and access is permissionless. Service providers control their own compute infrastructure — SingularityNET doesn't dictate where services run. This separation means the marketplace is decentralized in access but services themselves may run on centralized cloud infrastructure.

Governance

ASI Alliance governance involves token holder voting and coordination among the three merged entities. In practice, the leadership teams of SingularityNET, Fetch.ai, and Ocean Protocol drive strategic decisions. Merging three governance structures adds complexity and potential for internal disagreements. Ben Goertzel holds significant influence as the most public figure in the alliance.

Data Ownership

Service providers retain control over their AI models and infrastructure. Users interact with services through the marketplace API. Ocean Protocol's data marketplace component adds data monetization capabilities. The combined alliance could theoretically offer a full stack (data + services + agents), but integration is still in progress.

Risk Factors

  • Persistent adoption failure: After 7+ years, SingularityNET hasn't achieved meaningful marketplace adoption. The ASI Alliance merger is a structural change, not a product-market fit solution.
  • Merger execution risk: Merging three organizations with different cultures, codebases, and communities creates coordination challenges that could slow development.
  • AGI narrative disconnect: Ben Goertzel's focus on AGI and artificial superintelligence is intellectually ambitious but disconnected from what the marketplace actually delivers — simple API services.
  • Competition from centralized AI: AI service marketplaces like HuggingFace, Replicate, and cloud provider AI APIs offer vastly better developer experience, selection, and reliability.
  • Token complexity: The multi-phase token migration process (AGIX → FET → ASI) creates confusion and friction for holders.
  • Fragmented focus: The ASI Alliance combines agents, services, and data across three different platforms — integration complexity may exceed the benefits of combination.
  • Overlap with Fetch.ai: This report should be read alongside the Fetch.ai report, as both cover the ASI Alliance from different angles. The combined entity's challenges are shared.

Conclusion

SingularityNET represents one of the oldest and most ambitious visions in AI-crypto: a decentralized marketplace for AI services that could eventually contribute to AGI development. Ben Goertzel's academic credibility and the ASI Alliance's combined resources create a notable presence in the space. The merger with Fetch.ai and Ocean Protocol was a bold structural move that consolidated three mid-tier AI-crypto projects into a single entity.

However, ambition and credentials haven't translated into adoption. The marketplace remains underutilized after years of operation, and the ASI Alliance hasn't yet demonstrated that combining three projects solves the fundamental challenge each faced individually. The AI services marketplace concept competes with centralized alternatives that offer dramatically better developer experience, and the AGI narrative — while intellectually compelling — is disconnected from the platform's current practical capabilities.

SingularityNET's score reflects the intellectual ambition and the structural significance of the ASI Alliance, heavily offset by the persistent adoption gap, marketplace underutilization, and the reality that merging underperforming assets doesn't automatically create a high-performing entity.

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