Tether CEO Warns AI Bubble Could Impact Bitcoin by 2026

Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino is concerned that a potential AI-related market bubble could affect Bitcoin by 2026.

Speaking on the Bitcoin Capital podcast, co-hosted by Bitfinex Securities and Blockstream, Ardoino said Bitcoin is still closely linked to traditional markets so that it could be affected by an AI-driven stock market bubble.

Ardoino explained that the AI bubble refers to worries that AI companies are overspending on infrastructure, data centers, electricity, and GPUs, and he predicted that if sentiment around AI shifts in 2026, the resulting U.S. stock market turmoil could affect Bitcoin’s price.

Ardoino Remains Bullish on Bitcoin Stability and Real-World Asset Tokenization

Aside from potential AI bubble risks, Ardoino does not expect Bitcoin to face huge 80% crashes, like in 2018 or 2022. 

He says that growing adoption by pension funds, governments, and other long-term holders should help absorb shocks and reduce extreme price drops, making Bitcoin relatively stable in 2026.

In addition to Bitcoin, Ardoino is optimistic about tokenizing real-world assets such as securities and commodities, saying they will become very important. However, he warns that too much institutional control over Bitcoin could be a problem, since Bitcoin should remain mostly decentralised.

Ardoino Cautious on European Crypto Adoption and Treasury Companies

Although Paolo Ardoino is positive about Bitcoin and tokenization in 2026, he is less confident about crypto adoption in Europe and some digital asset treasury projects in the coming year.

Ardoino said he is not optimistic about Europe, because he thinks it is falling behind in innovation. He believes Europe is trying to regulate things it doesn’t fully understand, which he finds disappointing.

He pointed to the EU’s MiCA rules, noting that they have sparked debate over whether crypto should be regulated centrally by the EU or by individual countries. Tether has refused to follow these rules, leading many European crypto platforms to stop offering its USDT stablecoin.

Additionally, Ardoino says that he isn’t very optimistic about crypto treasury companies that only handle treasury functions. He believes such companies should also have a strong operational business, mentioning the Tether-backed Bitcoin company Twenty One as an example.