Crypto analyst expects Hyperliquid and AI tokens to spearhead the next wave of altcoin gains.

Hyperliquid’s recent surge, along with renewed strength in AI-focused crypto tokens, is signaling a broader rebound in risk appetite across the altcoin market, according to analyst Michael van de Poppe.

Van de Poppe said Hyperliquid has emerged as one of the strongest performers in the current cycle, with traders rotating back into higher-risk assets. The platform’s HYPE token recently set a new all-time high after the launch of two HYPE exchange-traded funds in the United States.

He also pointed to increasing participation from European traders, who have gravitated toward Hyperliquid due to limited access to perpetual futures trading on regulated venues. He added that the protocol’s expansion into tokenized equities, commodities, and pre-IPO assets is strengthening the broader real-world asset tokenization trend in crypto.

Van de Poppe suggested that if momentum holds, HYPE could advance toward $100 or higher. He shared these comments during an appearance on CoinDesk’s Markets Outlook with Jennifer Sanasie.

Despite his near-term optimism on Hyperliquid, van de Poppe said he holds stronger long-term conviction in Solana. He noted that liquidity is increasingly concentrating in a small group of protocols with strong user growth and revenue performance.

He argued that Hyperliquid is currently benefiting from this liquidity concentration, but warned that competition is likely to intensify over time. In contrast, he described Solana as evolving from a retail-heavy “degen” ecosystem into a more institutional-grade blockchain network, making it a more compelling long-term infrastructure play.

On AI-linked crypto assets, van de Poppe said the sector remains undervalued compared to traditional AI companies. He highlighted NEAR and Bittensor as key infrastructure plays positioned to benefit from accelerating AI adoption in the crypto ecosystem.

He added that while AI equities have become overheated, AI tokens continue to lag despite ongoing ecosystem expansion. He noted that NEAR’s projected revenue growth—from around $10 million in 2025 to as much as $100 million this year—could justify a higher valuation.

For Bittensor, he said continued subnet expansion and ecosystem growth could support valuations in the $1,000 to $2,000 range if adoption trends continue.

On privacy, van de Poppe said it remains a key long-term narrative in crypto, but fully anonymous systems face growing regulatory resistance. He noted that both institutional and retail participants are demanding more transactional privacy, while regulators are unlikely to support fully untraceable networks.

He added that European funds already face restrictions around privacy-focused assets and pointed instead to zero-knowledge proofs and permissioned privacy systems as more realistic pathways for institutional adoption.

From a macroeconomic perspective, van de Poppe said bond yields and central bank policy remain the primary short-term drivers for crypto markets. He highlighted Japanese government bond yields as a particularly important signal for global risk sentiment.

He added that falling yields could support both equities and crypto, while persistent inflation would act as a headwind. He also cautioned that he does not expect aggressive rate cuts from the U.S. Federal Reserve in the near term, warning that renewed tightening could weigh on digital assets and broader risk markets.