Nasdaq-listed OceanPal Inc. has successfully raised $120 million through a private investment in public equity (PIPE) deal. This capital infusion is earmarked for the launch of SovereignAI, a new subsidiary dedicated to the commercialization of the NEAR Protocol and the development of AI infrastructure.
As detailed in a press announcement on Tuesday, SovereignAI will implement a crypto treasury strategy. A key component of this strategy involves plans to acquire up to 10% of the NEAR Protocol's native token supply, NEAR (NEAR). This initiative, undertaken in partnership with the NEAR Foundation, positions OceanPal as a public entity offering exposure to the NEAR Protocol's native token.
OceanPal stated that its partnership with the NEAR Foundation is founded upon a shared vision for achieving "universal AI sovereignty."
The NEAR Protocol, which was launched in 2020, functions as a layer-1 blockchain designed to support AI applications. Its architecture enables AI agents to interact, manage assets, and operate securely across various networks, according to information available on the project's official website.
This announcement coincides with a significant leadership transition at OceanPal. The company has appointed Sal Ternullo, a former executive at State Street, as its co-CEO. David Schwed, who previously held positions at BNY Mellon, Galaxy, and Robinhood, has been named as the new chief operating officer.
Furthermore, Illia Polosukhin, co-founder and CEO of the NEAR Foundation, will be joining the SovereignAI advisory board. He will be part of a distinguished group of advisors that includes Richard Muirhead of Fabric Ventures and Lukasz Kaiser of OpenAI, among other notable figures.
The Growing Integration of AI Agents in the Crypto Space
AI agents, defined as autonomous systems capable of perceiving, making decisions, and acting without direct human intervention, are increasingly converging with the cryptocurrency ecosystem. These agents leverage blockchain networks for asset management, action verification, and to operate as self-governing economic participants.
In September, John D’Agostino, head of institutional strategy at Coinbase, highlighted the necessity of cryptocurrency for AI agents to function effectively within financial markets during an appearance on CNBC's Squawk Box.
During the same month, Cloudflare, a global provider of cloud infrastructure services, revealed its intention to introduce a new stablecoin named NET Dollar. This stablecoin is intended to facilitate instant transactions that are triggered by AI agents.
Recent data from Dune Analytics indicates a substantial surge in transaction activity for Coinbase's AI-ready payments protocol. This protocol, launched in May, allows autonomous agents to send and receive stablecoins online, and it has experienced a transaction volume increase exceeding 10,000% over the past month.
These figures follow statements made by two Coinbase developers in August, who predicted that AI agents are "about to become Ethereum’s biggest power users."
