Altcoin trading remained selective on Friday, although a handful of tokens made strong advances amid a cautious backdrop. The Fear and Greed Index hovers around 21, suggesting that risk appetite remains low despite new activity in sectors related to AI, storage and infrastructure.
Filecoin, the Artificial Superintelligence Alliance’s FET and Near Protocol each rose strongly, providing a narrow but telling view of where investors are focusing during an uncertain phase of the cycle.
Filecoin expands rally on ecosystem and AI connections
Filecoin rose about 69% in 24 hours to around $2.34, pushing its market cap above $1.66 billion. The move follows a series of ecosystem upgrades and growing expectations ahead of developer events later this month.
The network recently introduced a reduction in gas prices of around 50%, which coincided with an increase in new transactions and overall usage.
The chain’s positioning in decentralized storage is increasingly linked to discussions around AI and DePIN. The combination of lower costs and real-world data workloads has helped traders view Filecoin as a platform that could anchor the growth of decentralized computing.
Market data also shows larger order books and growing open interest, an early indication that trading participation is expanding beyond short-term speculation.
FET benefits from renewed AI momentum
Artificial Superintelligence Alliance FET is trading near $0.32 after rising 49% in 24 hours. The token, which connects decentralized AI computing and automation services, continues to act as a liquid expression of enthusiasm for AI within crypto.
FET Price (Source: CoinMarketCap)
The alliance’s integration of multiple machine learning projects under a single token remains a key attraction for traders seeking exposure to AI without relying on stock markets.
The current flow resembles previous cycles of AI enthusiasm, but now aligns more closely with infrastructure-backed narratives such as Filecoin’s. The common theme of data, compute, and protocol-level utilities has kept both assets at the top of watchlists heading into the weekend.
Near Protocol tracks Onchain activity
Near Protocol rose about 26% to $2.5, continuing a steady rise that began earlier in the week. On-chain data shows consistent user activity and growth in wallet counts, while recent reports have highlighted higher transaction throughput and continued integration of application layer projects.
Merchants have grouped NEAR alongside other large tier-one chains that demonstrate concrete network demand even during times of low sentiment. Its inclusion in conversations around AI-enabled infrastructure has added to speculative interest, helping to maintain liquidity in key trading pairs.
Altcoin season in fear
The Altcoin Season Index remains around 26, well below levels associated with broad participation. Despite this, targeted rallies of tokens such as Filecoin, FET, and Near suggest that capital is selectively turning to networks with real economic use cases and active development.
The coming weeks of November will test whether enthusiasm for decentralized computing and AI-related assets can extend beyond a few executives or remain confined to isolated bursts of business momentum.
If current liquidity holds while volatility eases over the weekend, these sectors could continue to attract attention even as most of the market remains risk-averse.
The article Filecoin, FET and NEAR Lead Select Altcoin Season Gains as Market Fear Persists appeared first on Cryptonews.
