Hodler’s Digest, June 9-15 – Cointelegraph Magazine

This week's main news

Elon Musk to block Apple devices from integrating OpenAI with the operating system

Elon Musk has threatened to block Apple devices in his companies if Apple deeply integrates OpenAI's ChatGPT into its operating systems. He sees such integration as a significant security threat. The issue comes as Apple says an upcoming software update will include new AI features, specifically allowing Siri to use ChatGPT to answer user queries. Musk criticized Apple for potentially compromising user privacy and not developing their own AI solutions.

Wall Street should be held accountable for Bitcoin mining emissions – Greenpeace

Greenpeace has been actively campaigning to change Bitcoin's proof-of-work-agreement model to a more environmentally friendly proof-of-stake model. Their campaign, “Change the Code, Not the Climate,” argues that Bitcoin's current energy consumption, fueled mostly by non-renewable sources, contributes significantly to environmental degradation. The campaign has drawn attention from prominent figures in the crypto space urging a shift to energy-efficient blockchain operations.

Terraform to pay $4.47B to settle SEC civil suit

Terraform Labs has agreed to pay about $4.47 billion to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as part of a settlement with the securities regulator. The agency, however, must line up behind secured creditors to receive payment if any. In January, when the company filed for bankruptcy, Terraform had $430.1 million in assets and $450.9 million in liabilities. He received court approval on June 13.

Roaring Kitty buys another 4M GME shares, birthing conspiracy theory

Keith Gill, also known as “Roaring Kitty,” has significantly increased his investment in GameStop ( GME ), buying an additional 4 million shares. The latest acquisition brings his total holdings to more than 9 million shares. As of June 14, it is estimated at $262 million. In the business community, Gill's increased holdings have sparked discussions about joining the board of directors of GameStop, now its fourth-largest shareholder. Some traders are speculating that his potential board membership could push the stock price to $200. In another headline, Citron Research, one of GameStop's most prominent short sellers, is not short on GME stock, citing “market irrationality” and “cult-like” shareholder behavior.

In May, institutional investments led by Ethereum – KuCoin reached $1B

KuCoin Research reports that the crypto sector received more than $1 billion in investments in May, down slightly from April, but up 10.61% from May last year. Total investment announced in May was $1.02 billion across 156 transactions. For Ethereum, EVM-compatible chains and layer-2 network projects were generally popular among institutional investors, while non-EVM chains such as Bitcoin, Solana, Fantom, and Ton were ranked among the 15 networks most favored by investors during the month.

Winners and losers

At the end of the week, Bitcoin (BTC) at $66,483, Ether (ETH) at $3,464 and XRP at $0.47. According to CoinMarketCap, the total market cap is $2.42 trillion.

Among the largest 100 cryptocurrencies, the top three altcoin gainers for the week were Monero (XMR) at 6.46%, Toncoin (TON) at 4.90% and Oasis (ROSE) at 3.78%.

The top three altcoin losers of the week were Wormhole (W) at -35.63%, FLOKI (FLOKI) at -32.97% and Arweave (AR) at -29.82%.

Be sure to read Cointelegraph's market analysis for more information on crypto prices.

The most memorable quotes

“If Apple integrates OpenAI at the operating system level, Apple devices will be blocked at my companies. This is an unacceptable security breach.”

Elon Musk, investor and entrepreneur

“It's all about investing in technology that complements traditional financial interventions. He has less faith in Big Tech companies like Google, Amazon and Microsoft.

Tether CEO Paolo Arduino

“We want blockchain to be everywhere. […] And DePIN can actually make that happen.

Marcus Levin, Chief Operating Officer of XY Labs

“You know Dogwifhat, you laughed the first time you saw him. Now he's worth $3 billion.”

Galaxy Digital CEO Michael Novogratz

“Blockchain is an open book to anyone who wants to read it. We're still early in this story, so there's plenty of room for anyone with new ideas they want to bring to fruition.

Benjamin Minku, CEO of MultiversX

“I think we'll see superhuman intelligence in a few years.

Ben Goertzel, founder and CEO of SingularityNET

Forecast of the week

Traders: Bitcoin Price Needs ‘Fresh All-Time High' to Stop Pump-and-Dumping Cycle

Bitcoin (BTC) bears have been selling on every rally over the past few months, and analysts believe that BTC will help break the cycle with a “fresh all-time high” liquidity surge.

“Market needs a big boost in liquidity,” wrote pseudonymous crypto trader Diane CryptoTrades in a June 13 post on the X social media network.

Trader sentiment appears to have been informed by Bitcoin's “whipsaw” price action as it consolidated within a wide range between $66,500 and $72,000.

Full-swing bleeding and “selling at every pump has been the theme for the past two months,” the trader explained, adding that one of the best ways to stop this cycle is “always a new all-time high for #Bitcoin.” He said.

BTC traded at $67,474, down 10% from $73,808 reached on March 11, according to data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and Binance.

FUD of the week

Crypto Hacks Rise to $19 Billion in 13 Years: Crystal Intelligence

The cryptocurrency industry has experienced 785 reported hacks and exploits in the past 13 years. In the 13 years since June 19, 2011, nearly $19 billion in digital assets were stolen, the first known crypto hack, according to a Crystal Intelligence report shared with Cointelegraph. The largest single crypto theft case was the 2019 PlusToken scam, when attackers made off with $2.9 billion worth of Bitcoin and Ether.

OKX Investigates Multi-Million Account Thefts After SIM Swap Attacks

OKX and its security partner SlowMist are investigating a multi-million dollar theft involving two user accounts following SIM swap attacks. The SMS attack allowed unauthorized API key generation, leading to asset theft. While the details of the stolen money have not been released, it is reported to be in the millions. The incidents exposed weaknesses in the two-factor authentication system that was used to whitelist e-mail addresses.

Solana cracks assertive sandwich attacks.

The Solana Foundation has removed from its delegation program a group of operators proven to be involved in sandwich attacks on merchants. Tim Garcia, head of Solana's authenticator communications, took to Discord to announce the removal of authenticators, saying that “engaging as a private member in sandwich attack transactions or harming Solana users will not be tolerated by the proxy program.”

The best magazine sections of the week

‘Bitcoin Layer 2' sidechains aren't really L2s: there's a better way.

Most Bitcoin Layer 2s are not Layer 2 solutions at all. But Lightning is a network, and zero can be a knowledge-based package.

SocialFi Boosts Gaming Revenue, Axie Infinity Creator Wants To Eliminate Discord: Web3 Gamer

Web3 games won't need Discord in the future, what Pokemon GO taught us about big spenders, and more.

$1 million bet chatGPT won't lead to AGI, Apple's smart use of AI, AI millionaires on the rise: AI Eye

French scientist offers $1 million ARC prize to debunk AGI hype, new study finds LLMs aren't that smart, including Apple Intelligence

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Editorial staff

Cointelegraph magazine writers and reporters contributed to this article.