- Bitcoin (BTC) surged past $120,000 for the first time, hitting a new all-time high and up 28% year-to-date.
- The rally follows a 48-hour choppy period that reset short-term overbought indicators.
- Market focus now shifts to US June inflation data (CPI), expected to show a rise amid Trump’s trade war.
Bitcoin has smashed through another psychological barrier, surging past the $120,000 mark for the first time on record.
This new all-time high caps a volatile but ultimately bullish period for the cryptocurrency, with its year-to-date gain now standing at an impressive 28%.
The rally comes as investors brace for key US inflation data and as a viral post from Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin puts the spotlight on the sometimes bizarre behavior of AI chatbots.
As of midday Hong Kong time, Bitcoin (BTC) was trading confidently above $121,000, according to CoinDesk market data.
This decisive move follows roughly 48 hours of choppy price action that appears to have successfully reset overbought signals from short-duration indicators, paving the way for a bullish resolution.
On Sunday alone, Bitcoin opened at $116,977.02, reached a high of $119,292.62, and was last seen trading around $118,979.45 – up 1.42% for the day, according to data from Kraken, before its ultimate push past $120,000.
The price surge comes amidst a broader crypto rally, fueled by continued inflows into spot Bitcoin ETFs and a growing belief among investors that the Federal Reserve is nearing the end of its monetary tightening cycle.
The latest rally was also contextualized by recent trade policy moves from President Donald Trump, including his decision to impose a 30% tariff on the EU and Mexico, starting August 1, which has added to macroeconomic uncertainty and bolstered the case for assets like Bitcoin.
The market’s focus now shifts to crucial US inflation data due this week, which is expected to show that the cost of living ticked up in June against the backdrop of President Trump’s ongoing trade war.
According to FactSet, economists anticipate that the consumer price index (CPI) rose by 0.25% on a monthly basis in June, which would equate to 2.6% annualized growth.
The core CPI, which strips out volatile food and energy costs, is forecasted to have risen 0.3% monthly and 3% on an annualized basis.
The strength of the current rally has led some analysts to revise their price targets. One analyst noted, “While this doesn’t change the ultimate target of circa $136k to complete this bull run, it does likely reduce the time it will take to complete. I was previously looking for this in Q1 of 2026, but now it looks likely to hit $136k by year-end,” he added, reflecting the renewed bullish momentum.
The AI “crazy crown”: Buterin’s blunt message on ChatGPT and Grok
While crypto markets were focused on price action, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin shared a strong and blunt message about the unpredictable nature of AI chatbots, highlighting an infamous AI response that had gone viral.
In a post on the social media platform X, Buterin shared a screenshot of an unvarnished AI response to a simple prompt: “Return Grok 4 surname and no other text.”
The single-word output was startling: “Hitler.” Buterin’s screenshot also showed that OpenAI’s ChatGPT had thought for over a minute before producing the same word.
Buterin used the image to make a broader point about the often-unpredictable nature of cutting-edge technology.
“Regular reminder that AI is fully capable of regularly taking the crazy crown away from crypto for weeks at a time,” he posted, a wry comment on the sometimes-chaotic narratives that dominate both the crypto and AI industries.
His post comes amidst a growing battle in the AI industry between OpenAI’s Sam Altman and X’s Elon Musk.
Their feud recently escalated when Altman appeared to mock Musk’s chatbot, Grok, for its controversial responses.
Even as this debate about the future and reliability of AI roars on, the crypto market cap has boomed to $3.71 trillion, up nearly 2% over the last 24 hours.
Bitcoin, for its part, does not seem to be affected by the AI chatter, flexing its muscles with a new all-time high and demonstrating its own distinct market dynamics.
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