In a detailed analysis, China's DeepSeek AI has projected highly optimistic price targets for leading cryptocurrencies by the end of 2026, presenting a bullish long-term outlook even as the market endures a significant correction in February 2026.
Bitcoin (BTC) is forecast to potentially scale up to $250,000. The AI's analysis suggests this growth will be driven by its role as a hedge against inflation and a strategic reserve asset for large institutions. This projection comes despite Bitcoin's recent sharp decline from its October 2025 peak above $126,000 to a current trading range of $65,000-$70,000, representing a drop of more than 45%.
Solana (SOL) is positioned for substantial growth, with a price target exceeding $500. DeepSeek highlights Solana's robust ecosystem, growth in Total Value Locked (TVL), and increasing developer activity as key drivers. The success of its ETFs and a fundamental role in traditional financial infrastructure, particularly in asset tokenization, are cited as catalysts. This is against a backdrop where SOL has fallen from its all-time high of $294 to approximately $68-$90, with the network aiming to address past reliability issues through the upcoming Firedancer upgrade.
XRP has the potential to reach up to $10, according to the AI. This growth is expected to be backed by Ripple's legal victories, which have provided more regulatory clarity, and the token's leadership in the institutional cross-border payments sector through RippleNet. XRP currently trades around $1.35, with Ripple expanding partnerships with financial institutions and launching a stablecoin initiative.
The overall crypto market has entered a harsh correction phase, losing nearly $2 trillion in value since its peak, with altcoins suffering steeper losses of 20-30% in a single week. Retail investors are selling rapidly, and ETFs are recording outflows. However, DeepSeek's analysis posits that clearer regulation in the United States and the continuity of the bull market could lead major assets to these historic records, suggesting an unprecedented expansion phase for the crypto ecosystem if institutional catalysts are maintained.
The report also mentions Ethereum (ETH), trading between $1,700 and $2,800, and its upcoming Pectra upgrade which aims to push network throughput toward 10,000+ transactions per second, and BNB, which shows resilience trading between $670 and $860, supported by quarterly token burns and revenue from the Binance ecosystem.
