What happened? About 1,000 crypto jobs moved to AI after ChatGPT’s debut, but crypto later replenished hiring from other industries.
From November 2022 to September 2025 roughly 1,000 people left crypto for AI startups while about the same number joined crypto from other sectors. The report tracked roughly 12,000 total moves into or out of crypto, showing a very fluid job market. Over time hiring recovered as talent flowed in from tech, finance, consulting and education.
Who does this affect? Engineers and other crypto professionals, AI startups, and traditional finance firms are all impacted by the talent shifts.
Technical talent has been lured to AI projects, but crypto is now bringing in people with fintech, compliance and product backgrounds. That shift means teams are broadening beyond just developers to include compliance, infrastructure and product specialists. Major institutions and cloud/hardware providers also shape hiring and strategic priorities across both industries.
Why does this matter? The talent shuffle affects market structure, centralization risks in AI, and crypto’s role in payments and financial infrastructure.
Crypto’s market cap has climbed above $4 trillion and institutional adoption is accelerating, which boosts demand for a wider range of roles and services. Stablecoins processed about $9 trillion in the past year, signaling real payments traction and potential competition with Visa and PayPal. If blockchains enable autonomous AI agents to transact and access data without intermediaries, they could counter AI centralization and reshape where future market value accrues.