Invest ideasNews
21 Feb 2026, 03:00
Why Bitcoin Could Be Headed For Another Drop: Research Firm Cites Three Key Risks
Bitcoin (BTC) is currently holding below the key $70,000 level. Still, a new report from data and research firm Ecoinometrics suggests that the market may not be building a base for recovery. Instead, the firm argues that the cryptocurrency remains vulnerable to another downward move, driven by three overlapping forces: weakening equity momentum, structural changes in Bitcoin’s volatility profile, and a Federal Reserve (Fed) that is steady but not supportive. Structural Headwinds For Bitcoin According to the report, Bitcoin no longer trades in isolation. It has become increasingly linked to equity markets, capital flows, and broader macroeconomic conditions. At the moment, that linkage is not working in its favor. Bitcoin is already showing signs of weakness, equity markets are losing steam, and the Federal Reserve is maintaining a neutral stance that offers little additional liquidity support. Together, those factors keep downside risks elevated. Related Reading: ‘Sell Bitcoin Now,’ Peter Schiff Warns, Predicts $20,000 Target On Breakdown While Bitcoin has attempted to stabilize in recent weeks, Ecoinometrics cautions that this does not resemble a clear bottoming pattern. Rather, it looks more like a pause within an ongoing bear phase. Structural headwinds are already in place, as highlighted by the firm, including continued outflows from Bitcoin exchange-traded funds (ETFs) and a broader “risk-off” environment in financial markets. The report noted that Bitcoin is trading below its long-term trend, with its 200-day moving average (currently above $100,000) turning downward and rallies repeatedly failing beneath that level — a classic sign of a bearish structure. By contrast, the Nasdaq 100 has stalled for roughly three months, but its 200-day moving average is still rising. That suggests equities are slowing but have not yet entered a confirmed structural downturn. The distinction is important. When Bitcoin weakens on its own, declines can unfold gradually. However, history shows that when equities roll over decisively, Bitcoin tends to fall sharply alongside them. Lower Volatility, Higher Correlation Beyond price action, the firm highlights a deeper structural shift in Bitcoin’s behavior: a marked compression in volatility. In prior cycles, 12-month realized volatility surged dramatically during both bull markets and subsequent crashes. This time, even after a full bear-bull-bear sequence since 2022, volatility has not returned to those previous extremes. In fact, peak volatility in the current cycle has been materially lower. This change reflects who is driving demand. ETF flows now play a dominant role in shaping trends. These flows are typically larger, steadier, and more systematic than the retail-driven surges that characterized earlier cycles. Bitcoin, in other words, has become embedded within institutional portfolios, often sitting alongside technology and growth stocks. That shift brings advantages, including lower volatility and more predictable flow patterns. It may also strengthen Bitcoin’s long-term durability. However, it comes with a trade-off: deeper sensitivity to equity market drawdowns. Ecoinometrics asserts that as BTC becomes more integrated into the broader risk-on complex, it behaves more like a component of that system rather than a detached speculative asset. Downside Risks Grow On the policy front, Ecoinometrics suggests the Fed’s posture remains largely unchanged: inflation has improved but is not fully contained, and the labor market remains resilient. Related Reading: House Democrats Urge Treasury Probe Into Trump Family’s Crypto Venture As a result, rate cuts are not urgent, and rate hikes are not imminent. The communications index sits well below the tightening peak seen in 2022 and far above the crisis-level dovishness of 2020, placing current policy in the middle ground. For Bitcoin, that steady stance removes the risk of a sudden policy shock, but it does not provide a tailwind. The firm said in a fragile market, stability may be preferable to tightening, yet it offers little support if risk assets begin to slide. Featured image from OpenArt, chart from TradingView.com
21 Feb 2026, 02:35
OpenAI resets spending plan, cuts its 2030 compute spending target to $600 billion
OpenAI has told investors it now plans to spend about $600 billion on total compute by 2030. That replaces the earlier $1.4 trillion infrastructure figure that CEO Sam Altman had discussed months ago. The new number comes with a clearer timeline. US media alleges that the lower target follows concern that expansion plans were too aggressive compared with expected revenue. OpenAI is now projecting more than $280 billion in total revenue by 2030, with consumer and enterprise segments contributing almost equally. Reportedly , the revised spending plan ties directly to that revenue outlook. OpenAI resets spending plan As Cryptopolitan reported during the second half of last year, OpenAI announced many multibillion-dollar infrastructure agreements after partnering with major chipmakers and cloud providers to expand supercomputing capacity. Meanwhile, Nvidia has confirmed that it is in talks to invest up to $30 billion in OpenAI as part of a funding round. That round could value OpenAI at a $730 billion pre-money valuation. The potential $30 billion investment is separate from the $100 billion infrastructure agreement announced in September between Nvidia and OpenAI. A person familiar with the matter said the $30 billion is not tied to deployment milestones. The September framework was different. It outlined Nvidia investing over several years as new supercomputing facilities came online. At the time, it was said that Nvidia’s first $10 billion would be deployed once the first gigawatt facility was completed. The possible $30 billion investment does not follow that same structure. However, the person said Nvidia could still participate in future rounds that align with the September framework. OpenAI reported $13.1 billion in revenue for 2025. That exceeded its $10 billion target. The company burned $8 billion during the year, below its earlier $9 billion spending target. These numbers were shared by sources familiar with internal figures. Nvidia faces earnings spotlight OpenAI started in 2015 as a nonprofit research lab. It became mainstream after launching ChatGPT in 2022. ChatGPT now serves more than 900 million weekly active users, up from 800 million in October, according to people with knowledge of the data. The coding tool Codex has passed 1.5 million weekly active users. Codex competes with Anthropic’s Claude Code, which has gained adoption over the past year. Nvidia is set to release quarterly earnings on Wednesday. Investors are watching closely as concerns grow about returns on artificial intelligence spending. Nvidia is currently the largest company in the world by market capitalization. Its stock surged after ChatGPT launched in late 2022. So far in 2026, shares of Nvidia and other Magnificent Seven companies have stalled. Markets are also watching upcoming earnings from Salesforce and Intuit. Software stocks have fallen this year. Investors worry that artificial intelligence will disrupt traditional business models. In November, Nvidia stated in its quarterly report that there was “no assurance that we will enter into definitive agreements with respect to the OpenAI opportunity or other potential investments.” Sam Altman responded to speculation on X, writing that OpenAI loves working with Nvidia and that he does not “get where all this insanity is coming from.” Earlier this month, Jensen Huang told Jim Cramer there was “no question” Nvidia would invest in OpenAI’s next funding round. Claim your free seat in an exclusive crypto trading community - limited to 1,000 members.
20 Feb 2026, 21:02
Expert Says This 9-Year Pattern Could Send XRP to $70. Here’s why
XRP has been forming a long-term technical structure that suggests significant upward potential. Crypto analyst CryptoBull (@CryptoBull2020) recently shared a chart showing XRP forming a clear technical structure that could drive its price significantly higher. The chart spans 9 years, covering price action from 2017 to 2026. Initially described as a rising wedge, CryptoBull clarified that the structure is an ascending triangle, a pattern widely recognized for its bullish potential. The chart shows XRP consistently making higher lows while facing strong resistance at higher levels. This setup indicates a compression within a defined range. As the lower trend line rises, buying pressure increases, setting the stage for a potential breakout . CryptoBull emphasized that this formation could guide XRP toward substantially higher levels if the pattern completes successfully. This is the chart that will take #XRP to $70: a 9 year rising wedge. Are you ready? pic.twitter.com/3736LVXrTx — CryptoBull (@CryptoBull2020) February 18, 2026 Long-Term Support Strengthens The ascending triangle is anchored by a long-term upward trend that began in 2017. Each yearly low has trended higher, providing a consistent support line that buyers respect. The trend line has held through several market cycles, including the 2018 correction and the extended consolidation from 2020 to 2024. This repeated pattern of higher lows suggests strong accumulation over time and a growing base of long-term holders. CryptoBull’s chart shows the price testing the upper boundary multiple times. The most recent attempt was XRP’s climb to an all-time high in July 2025. Such repeated tests of resistance strengthen the likelihood of a decisive breakout once market conditions align. Analysts often view this as a bullish signal, highlighting the potential for accelerated price growth after extended consolidation. Potential Breakout Targets The ascending triangle points to a breakout target near $70 if XRP sustains momentum and closes above the resistance line. While the exact timing of a breakout cannot be predicted, the structure indicates a clear path toward significant gains. The combination of rising support and horizontal resistance provides traders with a framework for evaluating risk and opportunity. We are on X, follow us to connect with us :- @TimesTabloid1 — TimesTabloid (@TimesTabloid1) June 15, 2025 Short-term movements may remain volatile , but the long-term trend favors buyers. XRP’s consistently higher lows suggest that support levels will continue to hold unless disrupted by unforeseen events. The combination of years of support, repeated resistance tests, and the ascending triangle pattern provides a framework for confidently forecasting higher targets. This technical perspective reinforces confidence in XRP’s ability to deliver meaningful gains for holders who closely track long-term structures. Disclaimer : This content is meant to inform and should not be considered financial advice. The views expressed in this article may include the author’s personal opinions and do not represent Times Tabloid’s opinion. Readers are advised to conduct thorough research before making any investment decisions. Any action taken by the reader is strictly at their own risk. Times Tabloid is not responsible for any financial losses. Follow us on X , Facebook , Telegram , and Google News The post Expert Says This 9-Year Pattern Could Send XRP to $70. Here’s why appeared first on Times Tabloid .
20 Feb 2026, 20:00
China shipped 13,000 humanoid robots in 2025, but most were bought by the government as showpieces
China’s humanoid robots were the talk of the internet after this year’s Spring Festival Gala, where dozens of them kicked, flipped, and danced their way through a four-hour state television broadcast watched by hundreds of millions of people. A year ago, the picture looked quite different. At the 2025 gala, earlier robot models wobbled through a folk dance with handkerchiefs. Around the same time, a widely covered robot marathon ended in stumbles, crashes, and mechanical failures in front of the cameras. Skepticism was common. This year’s performance changed the tone. The robots moved with coordination and speed, and the public took notice. Unitree, whose robots featured heavily at the gala, told local media shortly after the show that it expects to ship between 10,000 and 20,000 units in 2026. The broader numbers back up China’s lead. More than 14,500 humanoid robots were delivered worldwide last year, up from roughly 3,000 in 2024, according to company reports and estimates from Omdia, a research firm. Agibot and Unitree alone accounted for more than 10,000 of those. Tesla shipped 150 of its Optimus robots over the same period. Price is part of why China is pulling ahead Unitree advertises its G1 humanoid at a base price of $13,500. Government backing and a deep domestic supply chain keep costs down. Much of that supply chain sits in the Yangtze River Delta, a stretch of industrial territory running from Shanghai through Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. In the Wujin district of Changzhou alone, local suppliers claim they can provide around 90% of the parts needed to build a humanoid robot. Several of them already supply components for Tesla’s Optimus. But selling robots and actually finding work for them are two different things. Industry insiders say the Chinese government was the largest single buyer of humanoid robots last year and will likely hold that position through this year and next. Local governments around the country have poured money into the sector, setting up testing centers and buying units to meet political targets around technology development. Shanghai runs a facility that can deploy up to 100 humanoids at once, letting companies collect data from real-world tasks. The catch is that real work is rarely what these robots are doing. Agibots have become a fixture at government functions in Shanghai. A rental company called Botshare, which launched in December, charges retailers as little as 2,200 yuan a month to station a humanoid at the entrance of their store, mostly to greet customers as they arrive. An Agibot costs more than 100,000 yuan to buy outright, around $14,500. Wang Zhongyuan, a researcher at the Beijing Academy of Artificial Intelligence, said in a speech last year that public enthusiasm will not last if mass production runs ahead of actual demand. Robots that are everywhere but useful nowhere, he warned, will cause the bubble to burst. Right now, only a small share of deployed humanoids are doing anything close to real labor. Those that do end up in factories tend to carry boxes and work at about 30 to 40% of the speed of a human doing the same job. Tesla, BMW, and Mercedes are building the market themselves Automakers in the United States, Germany, and China are approaching the problem from a different angle. Rather than waiting for consumers or governments to create demand, they are putting robots to work inside their own factories first, using production lines that already run around the clock and generate the kind of repetitive tasks that robots are best suited for. Mercedes-Benz is running tests with a humanoid called Apollo at its plant in Hungary, working alongside U.S. startup Apptronik. BMW finished an 11-month trial at its Spartanburg plant in South Carolina late last year, where a robot from Figure AI worked in the body assembly process. Tesla is moving faster than most. The company announced it will stop making the Model S sedan and Model X SUV in the second quarter of this year. The production lines at its Fremont, California plant that built those vehicles will be converted into a mass-production base for Optimus. As reported by Cryptopolitan previously, XPeng plans to start producing its own humanoid , called AIRON, this year with an initial run of 1,000 units, then scale to 1 million by 2030. Li Auto, which dropped its humanoid project two years ago, said last month it is starting again and has already reorganized its team around the effort. Hyundai’s Atlas robot is scheduled to begin working at its Metaplant America facility in 2028. The group is targeting 30,000 units produced per year once it reaches full scale. The case for carmakers entering robotics is not complicated. They already run large, complex factories. They can absorb robots as internal customers before selling them to anyone else. And with thin margins squeezing the traditional auto business, a market that Morgan Stanley projected could hit $5 trillion by 2050, larger than the global car industry today. China’s gala robots made for a stunning television moment. The harder part, turning that moment into a sustainable industry, is still being worked out. If you're reading this, you’re already ahead. Stay there with our newsletter .
20 Feb 2026, 19:06
Specialized AI detects 92% of real-world DeFi exploits
New research claims specialized AI dramatically outperforms general-purpose models at detecting exploited DeFi vulnerabilities.
20 Feb 2026, 18:03
X challenges €120M EU DSA fine in landmark free speech case
Elon Musk’s X is challenging the $140 million fine imposed on the platform under the Digital Services Act by the European Union. The legal challenge targets the European Commission’s concentrated power, claiming that it doesn’t allow for “meaningful checks and balances.” The case, titled X v. the European Commission, is of interest to other tech giants like Meta, TikTok, and Google. The DSA governs “Very Large Online Platforms” (VLOPs), so the court’s decision will set a precedent for them. What fine is X fighting in court? The social media platform X (formerly Twitter) has officially filed a legal challenge against the European Union. It is the first company to legally contest a fine imposed under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The appeal was filed at the General Court of the European Union in Luxembourg and seeks to overturn a €120 million fine issued by the European Commission in December 2025. X and its owner, Elon Musk, argue that the European Commission has shown prosecutorial bias. According to the legal filing, X claims the Commission ignored basic due process. Under the DSA, the European Commission has the power to write the rules, investigate potential breaches, and then decide the punishment. X argues that this concentration of power leaves no room for “meaningful checks and balances.” The Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) International also argues that the EU is using the DSA as a “censorship law” to target platforms that support broad free speech. In December 2025, the Commission ruled that X had failed to meet transparency and procedural obligations. X denied these claims and instead suggested that the Commission was punishing the platform for refusing to implement content moderation. X has been involved in a number of scandals regarding its “free speech” policy. A government minister in Spain has publicly discussed the possibility of a countrywide ban on X if the platform does not comply with local “hate speech” regulations. Multiple investigations are ongoing regarding X’s role in distributing what authorities call illegal content in the United Kingdom. How does Article 40 change online research and privacy? Roughly €40 million of X’s €120 million fine is tied to Article 40 of the DSA. This article requires platforms to give independent researchers access to data in order to allow experts to study how platforms might contribute to systemic risks, such as those affecting elections or public security. The Commission’s investigation found that X created several barriers for researchers, including directing them to a “Pro” API tier that cost $5,000 per month, rather than providing free access. The company rejected researchers who were not based in the EU, even though the law does not require researchers to live within the Union. X’s terms of service also prohibited researchers from using automated tools to gather publicly available data. The Commission has now clarified that publicly accessible data must be provided to qualified researchers without undue delay and at no cost. This includes allowing researchers to scrape data, provided they are capable of following data security rules. The Commission also rejected X’s narrow definition of systemic risk. The company had argued that research must be directly and exclusively about risks within the EU. The Commission ruled that studying global trends, such as election interference in other countries, is relevant to understanding risks within the Union. X must submit a new plan by mid-April 2026 detailing how X will remove the barriers affecting researchers. The U.S. House Judiciary Committee recently released a 160-page report criticizing the EU’s actions. They claim that the DSA is being used to pressure American companies into changing their global moderation rules to fit European standards. Alongside the current case, X is under further investigation for allegedly failing to combat false information. This separate investigation could lead to additional fines of up to 6% of the company’s global annual turnover. Sharpen your strategy with mentorship + daily ideas - 30 days free access to our trading program
