Why did the price of ICP fall?

Internet Computer (ICP) dropped 0.7% in the last 24 hours to $3.13, underperforming the overall crypto market, which was mostly flat with a 0.45% gain. Here’s a quick look at why:

1. Bearish Technical Signals – ICP is showing a downward price pattern, with indicators suggesting sellers are in control.
2. Altcoin Market Weakness – Bitcoin is gaining dominance, pulling investment away from altcoins like ICP.
3. Low Demand and Selling Pressure – Short-term holders are facing losses, and trading interest is declining.

Deep Dive

1. Technical Breakdown (Bearish Impact)

ICP’s price is moving within a downward channel. Key technical indicators like the Relative Strength Index (RSI) and Moving Average Convergence Divergence (MACD) show weak momentum. The price is struggling to rise above $4.05, an important resistance level based on Fibonacci retracement—a tool traders use to predict price movements.

The 30-day simple moving average (SMA) at $3.80 and the 200-day exponential moving average (EMA) at $5.25 act as resistance points where selling pressure tends to increase. If ICP falls below the $3.11 pivot point, it could quickly drop further toward $2.56.

What to watch: Whether ICP can break above $3.80 or falls below the $3.00 support level, which is a key psychological barrier.

2. Altcoin Market Struggles (Bearish Impact)

Bitcoin’s market share rose to 59.07%, indicating investors are moving money from altcoins like ICP into Bitcoin. The Altcoin Season Index, which measures how altcoins are performing relative to Bitcoin, remains low at 25, signaling a “Bitcoin Season.” ICP’s trading volume also dropped by nearly 22% to $48.4 million, showing less market activity.

This shift means ICP is affected by a broader trend where investors prefer Bitcoin during uncertain times, as reflected by the Fear & Greed Index at 34, which indicates cautious market sentiment.

3. On-Chain & Sentiment Pressures (Mixed Impact)

Data shows that short-term holders of ICP are experiencing significant unrealized losses, with the MVRV Long/Short Difference at 39.06%. Despite this, development activity on the Internet Computer remains strong, ranking highly according to Santiment, a blockchain analytics platform. However, recent security concerns, such as fake wallet extensions reported in July 2025, have raised caution among investors.

This creates a mixed picture: strong technical development but weak investor confidence, with retail traders selling off their holdings despite positive long-term prospects like AI and DePIN partnerships.

Conclusion

ICP’s recent price drop is due to a combination of technical weakness, challenges in the altcoin market, and mixed investor sentiment. While the project’s focus on AI and decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN) offers promising long-term growth, short-term risks remain high due to low liquidity and Bitcoin’s growing dominance.

Key point to watch: Will ICP hold the $3.00 support level, or will Bitcoin’s momentum lead to further declines in altcoins like ICP?

What could affect the price of ICP?

ICP’s price is currently caught between promising technical upgrades and challenging market conditions.

1. AI and DeFi Integration – The adoption of Caffeine AI could increase demand for ICP.
2. Network Scalability – Storage improvements enhance the potential for decentralized apps (dApps).
3. Bearish Market Sentiment – Weakness in altcoins may slow down ICP’s recovery.

In-Depth Look

1. AI-Powered Development (Positive Outlook)

What’s happening:
DFINITY’s Caffeine platform allows developers to create AI-powered dApps on the Internet Computer (ICP) without needing to write code. Real-world examples include healthcare apps that comply with privacy laws like HIPAA. There are already over 280,000 smart contracts running, and AI-driven apps could make ICP more useful.

Why it matters:
More developers working on ICP means more activity and use of the network, which burns ICP tokens and could increase its value. ICP leads in GitHub commits among AI and data projects, showing strong developer interest. If Caffeine’s beta launch attracts users, ICP could see a rally similar to Solana’s 2023 AI-driven price surge (+464%). For more details, see Binance News.

2. Network Scalability Upgrades (Mixed Impact)

What’s happening:
In August, ICP doubled its storage capacity to 2 terabytes, which helps support data-heavy dApps. However, some community members are concerned about network congestion during popular app launches, as discussed on the DFINITY Forum.

Why it matters:
The network’s improved speed (19,566 transactions per second) makes ICP more attractive for decentralized finance (DeFi) and Web3 projects. But if the cost to use the network rises too much, developers might hesitate to build on ICP. The system’s 47-subnet design needs to handle growth smoothly to avoid problems like Ethereum’s high gas fees in 2021.

3. Bitcoin’s Market Dominance and Altcoin Weakness (Negative Outlook)

What’s happening:
Bitcoin controls about 59% of the crypto market, and current market sentiment shows fear (Crypto Market Fear & Greed Index at 34). ICP’s price movement is closely tied to Bitcoin’s, with a 30-day correlation of 0.82, meaning it’s vulnerable to Bitcoin’s ups and downs.

Why it matters:
Even though ICP’s Chain Fusion technology allows Bitcoin-based DeFi (with ckBTC supply up 37% in Q3), altcoins like ICP need Bitcoin to remain stable for their prices to improve. If ICP falls below the $2.98 support level, it could drop further to $2.06, based on technical analysis (CCN).

Conclusion

ICP’s future looks promising thanks to AI integration and Bitcoin DeFi features, but short-term challenges remain. Market pressures and resistance near $4.05 could slow progress. Keep an eye on how quickly ckBTC and DeFi adoption grow, as well as user activity on Caffeine in the coming months. The key question: can ICP break free from Bitcoin’s market influence?

What are people saying about ICP?

The Internet Computer (ICP) community is divided between excitement over technological progress and concerns about its falling price. Here’s what’s trending:

1. Criticism grows over DFINITY’s leadership as ICP’s price drops 50% so far this year.
2. Cross-chain swaps with Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana are creating optimism.
3. Tokenized Bitcoin (ckBTC) usage hits record levels, increasing decentralized finance (DeFi) activity.

Deep Dive

1. @BradHuston: “DFINITY’s leadership is failing ICP” – Bearish

“Internet Computer is down 50% YTD. $ICP would be $3 had @caffeineai not slowed its grind lower. It’s not the tech. It’s @dfinity and they’ve circled the wagons.”
– @BradHuston (15.2K followers · 82K impressions · 2025-09-12 20:37 UTC)
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What this means: Negative sentiment comes from concerns about how DFINITY is managing the project. Traders are worried that despite strong technology, leadership issues are holding ICP back.

2. @dfinity: “Native cross-chain swaps go live” – Bullish

“Smart contracts on ICP can interact with Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana natively. Cross-chain swaps like SOL ↔ BTC are possible.”
– @dfinity (1.1M followers · 2.4M impressions · 2025-08-20 12:00 UTC)
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What this means: This is positive news for ICP’s ability to connect with other major blockchains. It strengthens ICP’s role as a bridge for decentralized finance, allowing users to swap assets across different networks easily.

3. @santimentfeed: “ckBTC supply at ATH” – Neutral

“Tokenized Bitcoin supply on ICP reaches all-time highs. ckBTC enables cheap, fast transactions within ICP’s ecosystem.”
– @santimentfeed (482K followers · 1.1M impressions · 2025-05-21 19:41 UTC)
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What this means: The growing supply of ckBTC shows increasing use of Bitcoin within ICP’s network, which is good for DeFi growth. However, this hasn’t yet led to a price recovery for ICP.

Conclusion

The outlook for ICP is mixed: many are worried about the price drop and leadership, while others are optimistic about new technology and Bitcoin integration. Keep an eye on ckBTC’s supply growth (currently 349 BTC) as a sign of expanding DeFi activity. The key question is whether ICP’s strong technology can overcome its current price challenges.

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What is the latest news about ICP?

Internet Computer (ICP) is facing some short-term price challenges but is making important progress in AI and decentralized finance (DeFi). Here’s a quick summary of the latest updates:

1. Price Challenges Despite a Bounce Back (October 21, 2025) – ICP’s price is struggling with bearish signals even after recovering 36% from its lowest point.
2. Major Upgrade Released (September 4, 2025) – New AI features and Bitcoin DeFi tools launched on the network.
3. Partnership with Fetch.ai (August 2, 2025) – A hackathon brought AI agents to ICP’s decentralized cloud platform.

In-Depth Look

1. Price Challenges Despite a Bounce Back (October 21, 2025)

Summary:
ICP’s price has been under pressure, with more sellers than buyers, despite a recent rebound from its lowest price ever. Technical indicators like the Relative Strength Index (RSI) at 40.46 and the MACD at -0.043 suggest that the downward trend is still strong. Additionally, open interest (a measure of active trading positions) dropped by nearly 9%, indicating more traders are betting on the price falling. If buying interest doesn’t pick up, ICP could test support at $2.06 again.

What this means:
In the short term, this is a bearish sign, meaning the price could continue to struggle. However, if market sentiment improves, ICP could aim for a higher target around $5.31, which is a key technical level based on Fibonacci retracement. (Source: CCN)

2. Major Upgrade Released (September 4, 2025)

Summary:
In August, ICP rolled out several important updates. These include launching large language models (LLMs) directly on the blockchain, doubling storage capacity to 2 terabytes per subnet, and introducing the Bitcoin DeFi Hub, which allows users to swap Bitcoin and ICP tokens without needing a trusted middleman. They also improved user experience with Internet Identity 2.0, making passkeys easier to find and use.

What this means:
These upgrades are positive for ICP’s long-term growth. They strengthen ICP’s position as a leader in decentralized AI and cross-chain DeFi applications. The increased storage and Bitcoin integration could attract more developers, although it may take time for these features to gain widespread adoption. (Source: ICPSquad)

3. Partnership with Fetch.ai (August 2, 2025)

Summary:
ICP teamed up with Fetch.ai to host the NextGen Agents Hackathon, a competition encouraging developers to create AI-powered applications that run directly on ICP’s decentralized cloud. Winners receive part of a $300,000 prize pool and mentorship to help build their projects.

What this means:
This partnership is a positive step for ICP’s AI ecosystem but faces competition from other established platforms. The success of this initiative depends on how well ICP can attract developers to build on its unique blockchain infrastructure. (Source: CoinMarketCap)

Conclusion

ICP is currently balancing short-term price challenges with ambitious upgrades in AI and DeFi technology. Its future will depend on whether the growing AI integration and new features can overcome the current bearish market trends, especially as we move into the last quarter of the year.

What is expected in the development of ICP?

Internet Computer (ICP) is making progress with these key updates:

1. Dogecoin Integration (October 2025) – Adding Dogecoin to Chain Fusion for easy cross-chain decentralized finance (DeFi) use.
2. Signer Standards Adoption (October 2025) – Creating common protocols for wallets and apps to improve security and ease of use.
3. Enterprise-Grade Ledgers (In Progress) – Building tools for businesses to manage digital assets in a compliant way.

Deep Dive

1. Dogecoin Integration (October 2025)

Overview: The Meridian update in Chain Fusion will connect Dogecoin (DOGE) with ICP, allowing decentralized apps on ICP to handle DOGE transactions directly. This follows earlier support for Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Solana, removing the need for complicated bridges.

What this means: This is positive news for ICP because it opens the door to Dogecoin’s large user base, potentially increasing trading activity and practical uses. However, delays in testing or adoption could slow down these benefits in the short term.

2. Signer Standards Adoption (October 2025)

Overview: The Synchrotron update aims to standardize how wallets and apps sign transactions, making the process more secure and easier to use across ICP’s network.

What this means: This could encourage more people to use ICP by simplifying their experience. While this is generally good, the impact depends on how quickly developers adopt these new standards.

3. Enterprise-Grade Ledgers (In Progress)

Overview: The Nexus project is focused on creating ledgers that meet regulatory requirements, helping businesses manage tokenized real-world assets and participate in institutional DeFi.

What this means: This is a promising long-term development because it could bring more stable demand for ICP through business use. However, challenges include navigating regulations and competing with established platforms like Ethereum and Binance Smart Chain.

Conclusion

ICP’s roadmap highlights growth through cross-chain support (Dogecoin), better developer tools (signer standards), and business-focused solutions. These steps could boost ICP’s usefulness and adoption, but success will depend on how well the technology works and market interest. How will ICP balance keeping its network decentralized while meeting the needs of businesses as it grows?

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What updates are there in the ICP code base?

Recent updates to the Internet Computer (ICP) code focus on expanding storage, integrating AI, and enabling cross-chain decentralized finance (DeFi).

1. Subnet Storage Doubled (Aug 20, 2025) – Each subnet now supports 2 terabytes (TiB) of storage, allowing bigger decentralized apps (dApps).
2. On-Chain AI Integration (Sep 4, 2025) – AI models can run directly on ICP with minimal coding.
3. Leading Developer Activity (Jun 18, 2025) – ICP topped GitHub commits among major cryptocurrencies.

Deep Dive

1. Subnet Storage Doubled (Aug 20, 2025)

What happened: ICP doubled the storage capacity of each subnet to 2 TiB. This upgrade involved a new storage system, better checkpointing (saving progress), and improved data verification methods.
Why it matters: This means developers can build larger, more data-heavy apps—like decentralized social networks or advanced DeFi platforms—without slowing down the network or losing decentralization. (Source)

2. On-Chain LLM Integration (Sep 4, 2025)

What happened: Large Language Models (LLMs), a type of AI, can now run directly on ICP. Developers can create AI-powered smart contracts—like chatbots or data analysis tools—using simple commands on platforms such as Caffeine. ICP supports models with up to 1 billion parameters and confirms transactions in under a second.
Why it matters: This positions ICP as a leader in decentralized AI, encouraging developers to build smarter, self-improving dApps. (Source)

3. Leading Developer Activity (Jun 18, 2025)

What happened: ICP had the highest number of code updates on GitHub among major cryptocurrencies, with about 558 commits per month, according to Santiment. These updates included protocol improvements, app optimizations, and work on Chain Fusion, which connects ICP with Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Why it matters: Strong developer activity shows ongoing confidence in ICP’s technology, even if the price hasn’t yet reflected this progress. It’s a positive sign for the network’s future growth. (Source)

Conclusion

ICP’s recent code updates focus on making the network more scalable, AI-friendly, and interoperable with other blockchains—key goals in its 2025 roadmap. While developer engagement is high, market response has been slow. The question remains: will faster AI integration spark renewed interest and value for ICP?