Pettensor (TAO) He is currently facing his most important crisis to date. In an astonishing 12-hour window, TAO price crashes by 27%Almost effective erasure $900 million in total market capitalization.
The sales resulted from the sudden departure of Covenant Amnesty Internationalone of the network’s most prominent contributors. This was not a quiet exit. The team accompanied their withdrawal with harsh criticism of the protocol’s governance, accusing the leadership of maintaining a “decentralized theatre” while exercising absolute control.
Has TAO price crashed?
As of April 10, 2026, Bittensor ($TAO) price is $263which represents a 24-hour decrease of approximately 19%. This volatility has led to more than… $9M of long TAO positions are being liquidatedwhere the market reacted to reports that Covenant AI offloaded 37,000 TAO tokens, worth more than $10 million.
What is Bittensor and who is Covenant AI for?
Ask, my dear It is a decentralized machine learning protocol that allows various “subnetworks” to compete and provide AI services in exchange for TAO rewards. Covenant Amnesty International The developer has been behind some of the most successful subnets, including Subnet 3 (Templar), which has recently made headlines for training large-scale AI models on decentralized infrastructure.
Why did the Covenant AI abandon ship?
When the unrest began Sam Darefounder of Covenant AI, issued an open letter announcing the immediate divestment of their three subnets: Templar, Basilica, and Grail. The decision comes after months of disagreements behind the scenes over how to manage the network.
According to the statement, Amnesty International claims:
- Central control: Bittensor’s founder, Jacob Steeves (known as “Const”), is said to have unilateral power over emissions schedules.
- Economic sabotage: The team claims that their emissions (bounties) were stopped as a punitive measure during a private conflict.
- Market manipulation: Allegations have emerged that the core team used its large holdings of tokens to exert downward pressure on the market during negotiations.
Market impact and liquidation
The departure of such a pivotal player created a vacuum of trust. According to data from CoinMarketCapTAO fell from a weekly high near $337 to a local low of $263. This sharp move surprised many leveraged traders.
- Total Clearance: ~$9.2 million (first place).
- Loss of market value: ~$880 million in 12 hours.
- Subnet performance: Related subnet tokens collapsed by over 55% following the news.
Should you sell TAO coin?
While the broader AI cryptocurrency sector has been bullish throughout early 2026, Bittensor’s internal governance issues have created a “decoupling” effect. While competitors trade on benefit and growth, TAO currently trades on… Reputation risk.
Investors are now questioning the “Triple Multi-Sig” governance structure that Bittensor has long championed. If one of the largest subnetwork operators can be forced out through administrative pressure, the “decentralized” label becomes difficult to defend.
| metric | Value (before breakdown) | value (current) | It changes |
|---|---|---|---|
| tau price | $337 | $263 | -21.9% |
| Market value | ~$3.1 billion | ~ $2.2 billion | – $900 million |
| Long qualifiers | nothing | 9 million dollars | It’s rising |
The road ahead for Bittensor depends on two factors:
- Founder’s response: Whether Bittensor is able to provide transparent evidence refuting the centralization allegations.
- Subnet Relay: Whether other developers follow in Covenant AI’s footsteps or continue to fill the gap left by the Templar subnet.
