Arthur Hayes shared one of his most bullish cryptocurrency outlooks to date in two recent interviews, one with Michael van de Poppe on the New Era Finance Podcast and another with Bankless.
The former CEO of BitMEX addressed a question that many crypto investors had. Why hasn’t Bitcoin made a big move despite increasing institutional adoption and strong long-term fundamentals?
“The reason Bitcoin is not performing well is because AI has taken away all the money. There is no more cash left to chase cryptocurrencies.”
Hayes said one of the main reasons Bitcoin and the broader crypto market are struggling is that investors are pouring money into AI-related opportunities.
“The bursting of the AI bubble will… dwarf subprime.” @CryptoHayes believes that the next status of cryptocurrencies will not come from an AI victory.
That’s because AI-driven misallocation of capital disrupted the system, forcing a new wave of money printing and driving investors back into cryptocurrencies. https://t.co/F43OXEKcmg pic.twitter.com/HkYIxKa2RG
— Bankless (@Bankless) June 18, 2026
In his view, AI has become a major investment theme in recent years, attracting money that might otherwise have gone into cryptocurrencies. As a result, Bitcoin is facing competition for attention from AI stocks, infrastructure projects, and more.“Subprime will be dwarfed by the bursting of the AI bubble.”
One of Hayes’ most powerful statements was his warning that the AI boom could eventually turn into a massive bubble.
He argues that while huge amounts of money have been allocated to AI over the past six to seven years, at some point investors may realize that many of these projects are not producing returns commensurate with the money invested. If that happens, the impact could be bigger than the 2008 subprime mortgage crisis.
“The first reaction would be: Just scrape together some fiat currency.”
Hayes believes that if an AI-driven financial shock hits the system, governments and central banks will respond as they have in past crises, by injecting new liquidity into the economy.
He said monetary authorities were likely to print more money to stabilize banks and markets. This wave of liquidity is what he’s been waiting for, and he calls it a “big print” trade.
“That capital flows straight into cryptocurrencies.”
Hayes expects that as investors lose confidence in AI investments, new capital will look for new sources.
His thesis is that cryptocurrencies could be one of the biggest beneficiaries of that change, especially if investors see digital assets as a better opportunity than struggling AI projects.
“Bitcoin 1 million”
According to Hayes, the end result of this chain reaction is a dramatic increase in the price of Bitcoin.
Although the timeline remains uncertain, the bursting of the AI bubble and subsequent aggressive money printing could eventually push Bitcoin to the $1 million level, which is currently one of the most bullish long-term predictions on Wall Street and the crypto market, he said.
