OpenAI unveils AI research agent
MetaMask simplifies gas payments
OpenAI launches deep research AI agent to upgrade ChatGPT
OpenAI, a major US tech company specializing in artificial intelligence (AI), has launched a ‘deep research’ feature for its ChatGPT users. The main aim of the company behind launching this AI agent is to support its users by providing the answers to complex research in ten minutes, which a human would take many hours to do.
This AI feature is developed to handle complex and difficult queries by providing proper and reliable answers to them. The AI feature is powered by a version of the upcoming OpenAI O3 model.
This tool is built for the use of professionals who are in fields such as finance, science, policy, and engineering, and Crypto and for professional researchers who do thorough, precise, and reliable research.
It also aims to benefit individuals by analyzing proper research for making a careful decision about purchasing cars, appliances, or furniture.
As per the official blog, the tool is trained on real-world tasks with the use of a browser and Python tool and by using the same learning methods that were used for training the company’s OpenAI o1 model.
Currently, the company is also looking to expand the tool’s capabilities, as its outputs are limited to text; it plans to add images, data visualizations, and other analytical elements to its outputs.
OpenAI highlighted that its deep research process may take five to 30 minutes; additionally, its users will receive a notification once the task is completed.
The new model has shown excellent results on a number of public evaluations focused on real-world problems, including Humanity’s Last Exam. While other models struggle below 10%, Deep Research has a score of 26.6%
OpenAI’s deep research is made for its users who need extensive research across multiple websites and sources, which is more than a simple summary.
The company has announced that the feature will be available to ChatGPT Pro users, stating that its pro users will be able to make up to 100 queries per month.
It further added that “more options for its Plus and its Team users are expected soon. To get access to its deep research, the user simply needs to select the option in the composer and enter their query. The tool can process inputs such as files and spreadsheets, which are useful for those seeking answers from a combination of data.”
However, currently, this feature is only available as a web experience, but still, the combination of mobile and desktop apps is expected later this month.
Bitcoin drops to 3-week low as Trump tariffs rattle markets
Cryptocurrency prices slid on Monday, with bitcoin at a three-week low, as the risk of a trade war spooked investors and caused a selloff across financial markets.
Bitcoin , the world’s biggest cryptocurrency, hit a three-week low of $91,441.89 overnight and stood at $95,730.35 at 0941 GMT, down 6.2% on the day. Smaller cryptocurrency ether has lost nearly 25% in value since Friday, marking its biggest three-day loss since November 2022. It last fetched $2,592.14.
Over the weekend, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed 25% tariffs on Mexican and most Canadian imports, and 10% on goods from China, starting on Tuesday.
Canada and Mexico, the top two U.S. trading partners, immediately vowed retaliatory measures, and China said it would challenge Trump’s levies at the World Trade Organization.
Almost a quarter of the 100 largest cryptocurrencies have lost 20% or more in value over the last 24 hours, according to CoinGecko data.
Trump’s own cryptocurrency $TRUMP slid below $20, according to CoinGecko. Launched shortly before Trump’s inauguration, the cryptocurrency had initially surged, reaching highs above $73 on Jan. 19.
Cryptocurrencies trade around the clock, including at weekends, and have lately been sensitive to markets’ broader sentiment. Investors worry that tariffs can hurt growth and company earnings as well as be inflationary.
“Crypto is really the only way to express risk over the weekend, and on news like this crypto resorts to a risk proxy,” said Chris Weston, head of research at Pepperstone.
Bitcoin has fallen less sharply than ether partly because some buyers consider it a “risk-off asset” like gold, and partly because it is easier to sell ether quickly at times of market stress, according to Joseph Edwards, head of research at Enigma Securities.
“What we’ve been seeing isn’t so much that ether is being uniquely hard-hit (most of the market is down similarly or worse) but rather that bitcoin is holding up uniquely well,” Edwards said.
DISAPPOINTMENT
There is added downward pressure on crypto after a strong rally in the wake of Trump’s election, as some investors have felt disappointed at the lack of immediate moves to boost crypto or loosen regulations since he took office.
Bitcoin touched a record high of $107,071.86 on Jan. 20, when Trump was sworn in as the 47th U.S. President and is up 40% since the election in early November in the hopes of crypto-friendly regulations from the Trump administration.
Trump – who once labelled crypto a scam – embraced digital assets during his campaign, promising to make the United States the “crypto capital of the planet.”
Days after becoming president, Trump ordered the creation of a cryptocurrency working group tasked with proposing new digital asset regulations and exploring the creation of a national cryptocurrency stockpile.
Paul Howard, senior director at crypto market-maker Wincent, said that some of Trump’s moves have fallen short of what people bullish on crypto were expecting, with some having hoped that the government would announce plans to buy bitcoin.
Still, Howard said, “the organic growth we anticipate over the coming years in part due to the friendlier U.S. administration will likely outweigh the short term volatility and macro economic (tariff) news the next few weeks.”
FOX Business Confirms More XRP ETF Filings Next Week as Market Heats Up
Amid multiple XRP ETF filings, FOX Business journalist Eleanor Terrett has issued an insider hint on the possibility of more activities around XRP ETFs next week.
Terrett made the disclosure in a tweet on Thursday, reacting to news that billion-dollar asset manager Grayscale is now pursuing an XRP ETF.
Latest Update on XRP ETF
Yesterday, Grayscale, in collaboration with NYSE, submitted a crucial registration statement for an XRP ETF. The filing informs the SEC of the decision to convert Grayscale’s already thriving XRP Trust into an ETF, thereby opening up even more access to XRP amid growing institutional interest.
For context, the Grayscale XRP Trust re-launched five months ago and has since attracted over $16 million in assets under management. According to the latest filing with the SEC, the trust ranks among the most prominent XRP funds worldwide.
The firm aims to grow the fund by converting it from a trust to an exchange-traded fund with the NYSE.
More Filing Activities for XRP ETFs
As the news of this filing stirs excitement in the XRP community, FOX correspondent Terrett has disclosed that more filings are in the works and could surface as early as next week.
“Look out for more filing activity by issuers with XRP ETF applications next week,”
Reacting to these ongoing developments, members of the XRP community view them as further signs of major demand for XRP in traditional financial markets.
In a tweet, Vet, co-founder of XRPCafe, stressed that XRP ETF filings wouldn’t happen without demand. “Clients are asking for it,” he said, emphasizing how investors increasingly seek exposure to XRP.
With Grayscale’s filing, the number of asset managers that have officially communicated their intent to offer an XRP ETF is now eight. These include Bitwise, CoinShares, and WisdomTree, among others.
Will BlackRock File an XRP ETF?
Meanwhile, the filing that many in the XRP community are most eager to see is one from BlackRock, the financial behemoth with $10 trillion in assets under management. BlackRock already has ETF products for Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Its Bitcoin spot ETF has been highly successful, attracting over $40 billion in inflows in just one year. It even ranked among the top three best-performing ETFs of 2024 globally.
Given this success, the XRP Army is eagerly hoping for a similar position for XRP, anticipating a BlackRock ETF.
However, the firm has clarified that its current two ETFs still have low adoption among clients. Essentially, it is focusing its energy on expanding its Bitcoin and Ethereum ETFs rather than pursuing a new product with XRP.
Nonetheless, with the latest teaser of more XRP ETFs surfacing next week, the XRP Army finds reasons to believe BlackRock could be part of the equation.
MetaMask Introduces a Feature Allowing Users to Pay Gas Fees with Tokens
MetaMask has introduced a new feature that allows people to use a selection of tokens to pay gas fees when using MetaMask Swap for smart transactions.
Dubbed Gas Station, the innovation addresses a common issue faced by Ethereum users: transactions failing due to insufficient gas fees.
Details of the New Update
The crypto wallet provider announced the functionality in a February 4 post on X, stating that it will help users avoid transaction failures due to a lack of ETH for gas fees.
Such payments are required for processing transactions on the Ethereum network and must traditionally be settled in ETH. This often leaves users stranded if they do not have enough of the cryptocurrency in their wallet, forcing them to purchase it from an exchange before proceeding with their transaction.
“Being blocked by insufficient gas will no longer be a problem when swapping, thanks to MetaMask’s new Gas Station feature,” the company stated in an accompanying blog post.
The new functionality eliminates this issue by allowing clients to utilize select tokens to pay gas fees when using MetaMask Swap. Supported cryptocurrencies include USDT, USDC, DAI, ETH, wETH, wBTC, wstETH, and wSOL. Additionally, the new system ensures that network charges are already factored into the quoted price, providing a smoother experience.
The update is currently available on the MetaMask extension for the Ethereum mainnet, with a mobile release expected soon. It also maintains the wallet provider’s existing functionality of sourcing the best exchange rates from multiple liquidity providers, ensuring users receive competitive pricing.
Ethereum’s Gas Limit Increase
The introduction of the Gas Station feature comes at a pivotal moment for the Ethereum network, which is also undergoing an update of its own. Validators recently approved an increase in the blockchain’s gas limit, raising it from 30 million to a planned maximum of 36 million units. According to on-chain data, the average gas limit has already reached 35.6 million units as of February 5.
This marks the first adjustment since Ethereum’s transition to proof-of-stake (PoS) and the most notable change since 2021 when the network doubled the limit from 15 million to 30 million. The increase is designed to enhance scalability, ease congestion, and support the growing demands of decentralized finance (DeFi) applications.
Gas limits determine how much computational work can be handled in each block, directly impacting the number of transactions that can be processed. When demand exceeds capacity, fees rise as users compete for space.
By expanding the cap, Ethereum aims to improve efficiency, allowing more transactions to be processed per block and reducing overall congestion.
SEC Approves NYSE Request to Trade Bitwise Dual Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF
Investors can now gain exposure to another ETF holding Bitcoin and Ethereum, thanks to the SEC approval of the NYSE Arca filing.
On Thursday, the U.S. SEC assented to NYSE’s filing to list and trade shares of Bitwise’s Ethereum and Bitcoin exchange-traded fund (ETF).
According to a statement, the securities watchdog issued its approval on an accelerated basis. The SEC emphasized that it finds NYSE Arca’s “proposal consistent with the Exchange Act and rules applicable to a national securities exchange.”
SEC Approval
For context, NYSE officially filed to list and trade shares of Bitwise’s spot Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF on November 26, 2024. Afterward, the filing was published in the Federal Register on December 16, 2024, with an amended filing submitted on January 21, 2025.
The investment product aims to expose investors to Bitwise’s Bitcoin and Ethereum based on their market cap weightings. Following its review, the SEC found that NYSE Arca’s filing is similar to previous spot Bitcoin ETF and spot Ethereum ETP proposals approved in the past.
“NYSE Arca’s amended filing is similar to filings for other spot bitcoin and spot ether ETPs approved by the Commission. Accordingly, the Commission finds good cause to approve the Proposal on an accelerated basis,” an excerpt from the SEC notice read.
The development comes over a month after the U.S. SEC approved similar products from Hashdex and Franklin Templeton. As previously reported, the Hashdex ETF will trade on the Nasdaq, while investors can trade Franklin’s fund on Cboe BZX.
Bloomberg ETF Analyst Reacts, Says Litecoin ETFs Are Next
In a tweet, Eric Balchunas, a senior ETF analyst at Bloomberg, disclosed his earlier expectations about the SEC approving the Bitwise dual Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF.
However, Balchunas pointed out that the approval was faster, with the SEC issuing this decision in 45 days compared to the expected wait time of 240 days. Notably, Balchunas hopes that the speed of the approval indicates that the current SEC leadership will be faster.
Furthermore, he emphasized that ETF filings relating to Litecoin are the next in line for consideration.
Crypto ETF Applications Soar
Recall that the previous administration hesitated to approve spot ETFs of Bitcoin and Ethereum. However, the ultimate approval came after a court order mandated the SEC to reconsider its stance on Grayscale’s decision to convert its Bitcoin Trust (GBTC) to a spot ETF.
In January 2024, the SEC approved multiple spot Bitcoin ETFs. A few months later, it also approved several applications for spot Ethereum ETF.
Following Donald Trump’s re-election, several asset management companies filed multiple crypto-related applications, including the recently approved NYSE Arca filing. These companies hope to take advantage of Trump’s pro-crypto support to introduce more crypto ETFs.
Interestingly, other prospective issuers are also filing for ETFs that track the prices of altcoins like XRP, Solana, Dogecoin, and Litecoin. The odds of the potential approval of these applications have soared tremendously due to the inception of a pro-crypto administration led by Trump.
