Forget crypto — Gensler says AI is the ‘transformative technology of our times’

SEC Chair Gary Gensler advises the press and public to focus on the transformative powers of artificial intelligence, not crypto

article-image

SEC Chair Gary Gensler | Source: Third Way Think Tank "Gary Gensler" (CC license)

share

Despite being a long way from a total win, the SEC appears happy with the outcome of the Ripple case so far.

That’s according to agency Chair Gary Gensler, who earlier today addressed last week’s market-driving ruling during an appearance at the National Press Club.

“This is a recent decision just a handful of days ago,” Gensler said during the speech. “We’re pleased from that decision recognizing the importance of protecting investors on the institutional investors…and while disappointed on what they said about retail investors, we’re still looking at it and assessing that opinion.”

Gensler’s remarks come days after US District Judge Analisa Torres handed down a partial summary judgment in the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple. In a partial win for the agency, the court ruled that while Ripple’s institutional sales of XRP constitute an unregistered securities offering, programmatic sales via exchanges do not. 

The judge did not address several other issues in the case, and it’s not the final verdict. Torres wrote in her ruling that the court will schedule a trial to deal with the issues not answered in the summary judgment. That said, it’s possible Ripple and the SEC reach a settlement and avoid a trial. Legal experts say the SEC may also seek an appeal of last week’s decision. 

Read more: Exchanges rush to relist XRP, but an SEC appeal is possible

Gensler’s remarks largely echo what the SEC said last week. In a statement released after Torres’ ruling hit the docket, the agency told Blockworks it was “pleased” that the court found that “XRP tokens were offered and sold by Ripple as investment contracts in violation of the securities laws in certain circumstances.”

Gensler’s talk Monday was focused on the rise of artificial intelligence and securities regulation, but attendees were eager to shift the conversation to crypto during the question-and-answer portion of the appearance — a trend Gensler said confounded him. 

“I was so honored to go up to MIT in 2018 and get involved at the intersection of finance and technology, and I was honored to do that with these remarkable scientists and technologists and students and staff at MIT,” Gensler said, referring to the course he taught on blockchain tech at the university

“In 2018, and in 2023, I found it fascinating this focus on digital currencies and crypto by the press, with all respect, and even the retail investing public in contrast to artificial intelligence,” he added. “I for one I’ve already stated here clearly I think artificial intelligence is the transformative technology of our times.”


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Upcoming Events

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

recent research

morpho 2 graphic.png

Research

Utilizing a ‘DeFi Mullet’ approach, Coinbase’s Bitcoin-backed loans integration with Morpho demonstrates a powerful blueprint for CEXs to monetize dormant assets by expanding adoption of wrapped products (cbBTC, USDC) while also supporting native and/or preferred DeFi ecosystems (Base) which can further lead to downstream growth in onchain liquidity and increased utilization of the related assets.

article-image

The firm behind Helium announced that it reached a settlement with the SEC

article-image

SKALE’s Jack O’Holleran said that certain metrics are becoming more important to gauging the success of a project

article-image

Mary Gooneratne, co-founder of Solana DeFi startup Loopscale, wants to give blockchain borrow-lend a facelift

article-image

BlackRock, Fidelity and others had their spot ETH EFTs approved, and we may see more crypto products come to market

article-image

Inflation reached a five-month low in March, but 10% blanket levy may impact prices

article-image

The administration announced a pause on reciprocal tariffs, but the bond market shows signs of trouble