What could affect the price of IP?
Story (IP) is navigating a challenging mix of protocol upgrades, big institutional moves, and some leadership drama.
- Institutional Buybacks (Positive) – An $82 million token buyback program could reduce the number of tokens available, potentially supporting the price.
- Leadership Changes (Negative) – The co-founder’s departure has raised concerns about the project’s future, despite ongoing development efforts.
- AI and Intellectual Property Adoption (Mixed) – Partnerships with Grayscale Trust and Heritage Distilling show interest, but daily revenue remains low at about $15.
In-Depth Analysis
1. Foundation Buyback Program (Positive Impact)
What’s happening: On August 30, Story Protocol started an $82 million token buyback funded by Heritage Distilling’s investment. The foundation plans to buy tokens from the open market until November 2025 using this cash.
Why it matters: The token price has already risen about 40% since the buyback began, mostly driven by speculation. Continued buybacks could balance out the unlocking of tokens (20% of the total supply is locked until 2029). However, some critics point out that the fully diluted valuation of $8.2 billion doesn’t align with the current revenue levels (CoinDCX).
2. Co-Founder Departure and Community Concerns (Negative Impact)
What’s happening: Co-founder Jason Zhao left on August 18 to focus on his AI startup, Poseidon. This news caused the token price to drop by 15%. Zhao held 5% of the tokens, worth about $284 million at the peak, while the protocol’s daily fee revenue is only around $15 (The Defiant).
Why it matters: Leadership changes can disrupt the project’s plans. The new CEO, S.Y. Lee, has kept development moving with three client updates since August. Still, the negative sentiment from the founder’s exit might linger until stronger performance numbers come in later this year.
3. AI and Intellectual Property Market Strategy (Mixed Impact)
What’s happening: Story Protocol aims to tap into the $80 trillion intellectual property market with its programmable IP platform. Institutional interest is shown by Grayscale Trust’s involvement (since July 31) and Heritage Distilling’s investment. However, daily active users are under 10,000, indicating more speculative trading than real use (Delphi Digital).
Why it matters: If AI companies start using Story’s platform for things like licensing training data, it could justify the project’s value. But competition from other Ethereum-based IP projects and slow adoption by creators are risks. From a technical perspective, the $9.35 price level is an important support point.
Conclusion
Story (IP) is at a crossroads. Can $370 million in strategic investments and Ethereum-compatible upgrades overcome leadership changes and low revenue? Keep an eye on the 30-day token burn rate after the buyback starts—if the circulating supply keeps shrinking, it could support the project’s $10 billion+ valuation. But if on-chain activity stays flat, investors might take profits, pushing the price toward the $8.50 support level. The big question remains: Does programmable IP need years to grow, or is this just a venture capital–backed bubble?
What are people saying about IP?
Story (IP) is currently facing mixed opinions, with some people very optimistic and others quite skeptical. Here’s what’s trending:
- New All-Time High (ATH) Celebration – The price reached $10, driven by strong buyback activity.
- Institutional Support – Big players like Grayscale and Nasdaq-listed Heritage are investing.
- Concerns Over Fees – Daily revenue of $15 million is being questioned against a $8 billion valuation.
- Anti-Influencer Movement – A critic has gained attention by focusing only on negative aspects of the project.
Deep Dive
1. @AnonVee_: "ATH Alert – $10 Milestone Reached" 🚀
"Story Protocol (IP) hits a new ath of $10 ($10b FDV)"
– @AnonVee (89K followers · 2.1M impressions · 2025-09-09 13:11 UTC)
[View original post](https://x.com/AnonVee/status/1965402738650718328)
What this means: This is a positive sign for Story (IP) as the price breaks an important psychological barrier. However, some are concerned about whether this growth is sustainable given the relatively low revenue generated by the protocol.
2. @fineboytunde_: "Defending the IP Economy Vision" 🛡️
"Low fees are intentional... Story is building rails for a $70T IP economy"
– @fineboytunde (217K followers · 4.8M impressions · 2025-09-03 00:03 UTC)
[View original post](https://x.com/fineboytunde/status/1963030149080682755)
What this means: This perspective offers a more optimistic view, explaining that low fees are part of a long-term plan to support a massive intellectual property economy valued at $70 trillion, focusing on building foundational infrastructure rather than short-term profits.
3. @cryptothedoggy: "Valuation Reality Check" 📉
"$15/day protocol fees = 1.5M P/E ratio. Break even in 4525?"
– @cryptothedoggy (132K followers · 3.6M impressions · 2025-08-31 04:00 UTC)
View original post
What this means: This is a critical viewpoint highlighting a big gap between the market value of Story (IP) at $3.09 billion and its current daily revenue of $15 million. The critic suggests that at this rate, it would take an extremely long time to justify the valuation.
4. @PopPunkOnChain: "Anti-KOL Strategy Goes Viral" 🤡
"I’m #4 in Story mindshare... from posting EXCLUSIVELY negative things"
– @PopPunkOnChain (48K followers · 1.2M impressions · 2025-09-04 20:09 UTC)
View original post
What this means: Negative commentary is gaining traction and influencing public opinion. This critic’s exclusive focus on the downsides is fueling cycles of fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) around Story (IP).
Conclusion
Opinions on Story (IP) are divided. Some believe in its vision as a key player in AI and intellectual property infrastructure, while others focus on its current financial fundamentals and express skepticism. Institutional investments like the Grayscale trust and Heritage’s $360 million treasury deal lend credibility to the project’s ambitions. However, the success of the $82 million buyback program, expected to finish by November 2025, will be crucial. It remains to be seen if these buybacks will help stabilize the price by absorbing selling pressure or just postpone a potential correction.
What is the latest news about IP?
Story's IP token has experienced a mix of big price swings, token buybacks, and controversy involving its founders. Here’s a quick summary:
- Record High Price (September 10, 2025) – IP reached $11.66 after a Nasdaq-listed company adopted it for its treasury.
- $82 Million Token Buyback (August 30, 2025) – Heritage Distilling’s investment triggered a buyback program to support the token price.
- Co-Founder Departure Causes Backlash (August 18, 2025) – Jason Zhao’s exit led to accusations of a “soft rug pull” by the community.
Deep Dive
1. Record High Price (September 10, 2025)
What happened:
IP’s price jumped 31% to $11.66 after Bitbank Markets announced that a publicly traded company (name not disclosed) started using IP tokens in its treasury. This followed Heritage Distilling’s $360 million IP treasury initiative in August, showing growing interest from big institutions in using blockchain technology for managing intellectual property.
Why it matters:
This is a positive sign for IP’s value because it shows real companies are starting to use the token for practical purposes. However, the number of daily active users remains under 10,000 (CoinDCX), which raises questions about whether the growth is driven by genuine use or just trading speculation.
2. $82 Million Token Buyback (August 30, 2025)
What happened:
Story Protocol’s foundation started buying back IP tokens using funds from Heritage Distilling’s $82 million investment. The buyback program is planned to last 90 days and aims to stabilize the token price after co-founder Jason Zhao left. The goal is to repurchase about 52.5 million IP tokens, which is roughly 5% of the total supply.
Why it matters:
This buyback puts short-term upward pressure on the token price. However, critics say it hides weak fundamentals since the protocol only earned about $15 per day in fees during August (Cryptonews). While the buyback may delay selling pressure from token unlocks, it doesn’t solve the underlying issue of low adoption.
3. Co-Founder Departure Causes Backlash (August 18, 2025)
What happened:
Jason Zhao, co-founder of Story Protocol, stepped down after raising $134 million for the project. He kept a 5% stake, worth about $284 million at current prices. The community reacted negatively after learning the protocol only generated $45 per day in revenue, leading to accusations of a “soft rug pull” — a situation where founders exit while the project is still weak.
Why it matters:
This has created uncertainty and negative sentiment around the project. The new CEO, S.Y. Lee, faces pressure to prove the token’s real-world value. Upcoming AI-powered IP tools (Story’s X post) could be key in moving IP from speculation to actual use.
Conclusion
Story Protocol is at a crossroads, balancing growing interest from big investors like Grayscale Trust and corporate treasuries against challenges like founder departures and low revenue. While technical improvements aim to position IP as the “AI-native infrastructure” for a $70 trillion market, investors should watch carefully to see if the recent price surge reflects genuine demand or is mainly driven by buyback activity. The success of upcoming partnerships in Q4 will be crucial in closing the gap between the token’s $8.4 billion market value and its current fundamentals.
What is expected in the development of IP?
Story’s development plan centers on improving its technology and growing its ecosystem.
- IPKit SDK Launch (Q3 2025) – Easy-to-use tools for integrating intellectual property (IP) features
- Consensus & Performance Upgrades (Q3 2025) – Faster processing and more validators
- Confidential Transactions Research (Ongoing) – Privacy features for IP licensing
Deep Dive
1. IPKit SDK Launch (Q3 2025)
Overview:
The IPKit SDK is currently in public beta and lets developers add IP registration, search, and monetization features into their apps using ready-made user interface components. This update aims to speed up development, cutting integration time from weeks to just hours (Story Technical Roadmap).
What this means:
This is positive news for IP because it makes it easier for developers to create IP-focused decentralized apps (dApps). This could help Story expand its use in creative fields like music, AI training data, and digital art.
2. Consensus & Performance Upgrades (Q3 2025)
Overview:
Planned improvements include reducing the time it takes to create new blocks by 15–20% and increasing the number of validators from 80 to 100. The update also adds state snapshotting, which helps nodes sync faster—important for managing complex IP data.
What this means:
This is somewhat positive. Faster processing (aiming for over 2,000 transactions per second) could attract businesses that need to handle many IP transactions quickly. However, increasing validators slowly might cause some short-term centralization risks.
3. Confidential Transactions Research (Ongoing)
Overview:
Working with Stanford’s FDCI, Story is researching technologies like zero-knowledge proofs and BLS signatures to enable private IP licensing and royalty payments without revealing sensitive details.
What this means:
This is promising for the long term. Confidential transactions could help regulated industries, such as pharmaceuticals, by protecting data privacy. However, these features are still in early development, with prototypes expected no earlier than 2026.
Conclusion
Story’s roadmap combines immediate developer tools like IPKit with important upgrades for scalability and privacy. Its focus on AI-ready IP infrastructure positions it well to meet demand for legally compliant training data. With the Altcoin Season Index at 71, the question remains: can IP maintain its impressive 263% gain over the past 90 days as these upgrades roll out?
What updates are there in the IP code base?
Story’s software has made big improvements with three major updates and now works smoothly with Ethereum.
- Validator Expansion (August 8, 2025) – Increased the number of active validators from 64 to 80 to make the network more decentralized.
- Consensus Upgrades (May 2, 2025) – Improved security, transaction checks, and command-line tools.
- Ethereum Pectra Support (August 19, 2025) – Added support for Ethereum’s latest upgrade to enable better cross-chain compatibility.
Deep Dive
1. Validator Expansion (August 8, 2025)
Overview: The Polybius update (version 1.3.2) boosted Story’s validator capacity by 25%, making the network stronger and more reliable.
This required all nodes to upgrade before the change, increasing the number of active validators from 64 to 80. More validators mean less risk of control by a few parties.
What this means: This is a positive step for Story because it improves security and spreads control across more participants, which is important for managing intellectual property (IP) transactions at scale. (Source)
2. Consensus Upgrades (May 2, 2025)
Overview: The Ovid update (version 1.2.0) brought stricter transaction checks, faster syncing for Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) compatibility, and better security for validator keys.
The average block time was reduced to 2.5 seconds, faster than Ethereum’s, and unsafe command-line options were removed. API improvements also made managing staking withdrawals easier.
What this means: This update focuses on making the system more reliable and secure rather than adding new user features. It sets the stage for future growth and scalability. (Source)
3. Ethereum Pectra Support (August 19, 2025)
Overview: The Cosmas update aligned Story-Geth with Ethereum’s Pectra upgrade, which includes improvements like account abstraction and enhanced precompiles (EIPs 7702, 2537).
This update optimizes how Story handles data for IP-related operations and ensures it stays compatible with Ethereum’s latest features.
What this means: This is a positive development because it keeps Story interoperable with Ethereum, allowing developers to use Ethereum tools within Story’s IP-focused platform. (Source)
Conclusion
Story’s recent updates focus on decentralization, syncing with Ethereum, and strengthening its infrastructure—essential for its vision of AI-driven intellectual property management. With more validators online and Ethereum upgrades integrated, the next question is how these technical improvements will help Story grow in real-world IP use cases.
Why did the price of IP go up?
Story (IP) increased by 3.14% in the past 24 hours, bouncing back from a 7-day decline of 8.31%, while still showing a strong 65% gain over the past month. The main factors behind this rise are:
- Active Buyback Program – The Story Foundation is buying back tokens using $82 million from Heritage Distilling’s strategic investment.
- Technical Momentum – The price remains above important moving averages, with positive signals from technical indicators.
- Altcoin Market Support – Overall crypto liquidity rose 7.94% in 24 hours, and the Altcoin Season Index stands at 70, indicating strong interest in alternative cryptocurrencies.
Deep Dive
1. Buyback-Driven Demand (Positive for Price)
Overview: The Story Foundation is purchasing IP tokens on the open market using funds from a $82 million investment by Heritage Distilling, a company listed on Nasdaq (Heritage Distilling Invests $360M in Story's $IP Tokens). This buyback program will last about 90 days and aims to support the token’s price and show confidence in the project’s future.
What this means: Buying back tokens reduces the number of tokens available in the market, which can increase scarcity and support the price. Since Heritage bought tokens at a discounted price of $3.40 compared to the current $9.91, this adds to the perception that the tokens are valuable.
What to watch: Track how much of the $82 million buyback has been completed (expected to finish around November 2025) and monitor wallet activity on the blockchain for signs of continued buying.
2. Technical Breakout Signals (Mixed Outlook)
Overview: IP is trading above its 30-day simple moving average (SMA) of $7.57 and its 200-day SMA of $4.98. The MACD indicator shows bullish momentum with a positive histogram value (+0.066). However, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 64.46 is approaching levels that suggest the token might be overbought soon.
What this means: The alignment of moving averages indicates a medium-term upward trend. But since the RSI is close to 70, the token might experience a short pause or consolidation before moving higher. The immediate resistance level is at $10.27, and if the price breaks above this, it could target $11.75 next.
3. Altcoin Market Rotation (Positive for IP)
Overview: The overall cryptocurrency market added $46 billion in value over 24 hours (+1.15%), with altcoins performing better than Bitcoin, whose market dominance dropped by 0.47%. Story’s focus on AI and intellectual property fits well with the current Altcoin Season Index of 70 out of 100, which has increased by 59% over the past month.
What this means: Investors are shifting their attention to higher-risk, higher-reward altcoins like IP, especially those with practical applications. Story’s emphasis on AI data licensing taps into a massive $70 trillion intellectual property market, which boosts investor interest.
Conclusion
Story’s recent price recovery is driven by the buyback program reducing token supply, strong technical signals, and positive momentum in the altcoin sector. While the overall outlook is bullish, watch the $10.27 resistance level and the RSI indicator for signs of a potential pause or pullback before entering new positions.
Key watch: Can IP maintain trading volume above $115 million (its current 24-hour level) to confirm this upward move?