What happened
Investors in layer-1 blockchain project Aptos (APT 4.76%) are seeing big gains in today's session. Over the past 24 hours, Aptos' APT token has surged 12.4% as of 3 p.m. ET.
This move follows an announced partnership between Aptos Labs and Microsoft (MSFT -1.73%) aimed at developing blockchain-based AI tools. With artificial intelligence all the rage, and blockchain technology still viewed by many as a potentially disruptive force in more traditional technology and finance settings, this deal has raised plenty of eyebrows today.
So what
The fundamental building blocks of most of the cryptocurrency sector is blockchain technology. Distributed ledgers, run by a decentralized web of computers, aim to provide the foundation for a range of new applications to be built free of government interference and regulation. That's the idea, anyhow, and governments around the world are taking direct aim at this view.
That said, Aptos' layer-1 blockchain technology derived from the scrapped Diem project at Facebook, now Meta Platforms (META -0.59%), is getting another vote of confidence via this partnership. Aptos aims to use Microsoft's infrastructure to create and deploy
new offerings that combine AI and blockchain technology, including a new chatbot called Aptos Assistant, which will answer user questions about the Aptos ecosystem and provide resources to developers who are building smart contracts and decentralized apps.
Now what
The ability for AI-based applications to be combined with blockchain technology isn't new, and there are other projects out there looking to solve similar problems. However, the team behind Aptos is well regarded as one of the best in the crypto sector. Accordingly, this collaboration with Microsoft appears to be one with some legs if some big breakthroughs are able to be shown in the months to come.
Given the speed of innovation in the crypto sector, this partnership makes a lot of sense for Microsoft, as the company looks to widen its moat in the AI space following its previous major investments in the sector (notably that of OpenAI).
I think this partnership will ultimately be a "show me" story, though today's impressive move in Aptos makes sense. If significant advancements can be made in the form of AI-driven applications built on top of the blockchain, Aptos could see some big-time investor interest as a unique way to play the momentum and bullish sentiment around this space.
