CZ says crypto will be the "native currency for AI" as BNB Standard, the biggest public BNB holder, rings Nasdaq's opening bell

BNB Standard, the Nasdaq-listed company that holds BNB, rang the exchange's opening bell on Monday, and Changpeng Zhao, the former Binance chief executive known as CZ, used the briefing afterwards to pitch crypto as money for artificial intelligence, The Block reported.

Zhao said AI could use bitcoin, existing stablecoins or tokens that AI companies launch later, and that he wants BNB Chain to become a major network for that activity. He also said he discussed tokens tied to computing resources on Monday but gave no specifics.

The company was called CEA Industries until it adopted the name BNB Standard on September 29, according to crypto.news. Alex Odagiu became chief executive on October 19 after serving as interim president since June. He told the briefing the company plans to run its own validator and build an operating business on BNB Chain, and that it is not a payments company for now. It still trades as BNC.

The Block reported that the shares were about $5.36 on Monday, down nearly 17% this year. The open question is whether the AI pitch turns into activity on the chain.