DCG-backed Yuma rolls out "Total Market" fund for one-stop Bittensor exposure

Yuma, an investment firm backed by Digital Currency Group, has launched the Yuma Total Market Fund, a single-vehicle product aimed at giving institutional investors broad exposure to the Bittensor decentralized AI ecosystem. The firm said the fund is built to track both Bittensor's native TAO token and a basket of AI-focused subnets, allowing investors to access the ecosystem without holding TAO directly or selecting individual subnet tokens. In a Thursday announcement, Yuma added that the vehicle launched with seed capital from an undisclosed anchor investor. The debut lands as asset managers step up efforts to offer regulated products linked to decentralized AI networks, reflecting rising institutional interest in blockchain-based alternatives to centralized AI providers. Key points - The strategy combines TAO holdings with exposure to a basket of AI subnets under one mandate. - Yuma is positioning the fund as a simpler on-ramp for institutions that want Bittensor exposure without building a subnet portfolio. - Yuma cited more than $900 million in combined value across Bittensor's 128 subnets, while Taostats data places the combined subnet value closer to $300 million. - Institutional positioning toward decentralized AI is shifting, including changes in Grayscale's Decentralized AI Fund allocations. - Momentum around regulated wrappers continues, with filings and conversion efforts designed to bring TAO exposure into ETF formats. A consolidated approach to Bittensor exposure Yuma said the Yuma Total Market Fund is intended to capture the ecosystem's "total market" by pairing TAO exposure with a diversified subnet basket. Bittensor supports AI infrastructure and application development through specialized subnets spanning areas such as compute, marketplaces, and identity. Sizing the subnet economy Yuma pointed to the scale of Bittensor's subnet economy, saying its 128 subnets represent more than $900 million in combined value. Network tracker Taostats, though, shows a combined subnet value closer to $300 million. For investors, the gap matters because it can influence how the fund's subnet basket is constructed and weighted, and how diversified exposure may behave as demand for specific subnet services, network activity, or token economics change. Institutional interest in TAO keeps shifting The launch comes amid a broader institutional push toward decentralized AI exposure, particularly via TAO. Earlier this year, Grayscale raised TAO's weight in its Grayscale Decentralized AI Fund to 43% during the fund's April quarterly rebalance. The allocation has since reportedly declined to about 20%. During subsequent rebalancing, Near Protocol's NEAR moved into the top spot at roughly 44%, highlighting how institutional allocations to the theme are being adjusted as relative performance, risk, and market interest evolve. TAO's expanding institutional profile has also been reflected in its market capitalization, cited at nearly $2.4 billion by CoinMarketCap. ETF pipeline remains active Yuma's fund launch also aligns with a broader push to package TAO exposure in exchange-traded formats. In April, Bitwise filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission for a TAO Strategy ETF. Separately, Grayscale filed an amended registration statement seeking to convert its existing Bittensor Trust into a spot TAO exchange-traded fund that, if approved, would list on NYSE Arca. The filing is available via the SEC's public EDGAR database. While Yuma's product is a fund rather than an ETF, the direction is similar: make TAO and decentralized AI exposure easier for institutions to allocate to, benchmark, and trade than direct token-by-token positioning. Decentralized AI back in focus after access restrictions Renewed attention on decentralized AI has been fueled by concerns about relying on a single model provider. Debate intensified after the US Commerce Department suspended public access to Anthropic's Fable 5 and Mythos 5 models, citing national security and export control issues. Grayscale head of research Zach Pandl said the restrictions underscored risks tied to centralized control of AI systems, and argued that demand for decentralized alternatives such as Bittensor and TAO could rise as investors look beyond centralized providers. The situation later eased. The Commerce Department restored access to Mythos 5 on Friday, and Axios reported Saturday that the Trump administration is expected to allow Anthropic to resume public access to Fable 5 as soon as next week. Even with access restored, the episode highlights operational and policy risks that can elevate "provider diversity" as an investment theme—a core rationale for products that bundle exposure across decentralized ecosystems instead of depending on one company's model availability. Investors will be watching how Yuma builds and rebalances its subnet basket over time, and how quickly institutional allocations rotate between TAO-centric exposure and broader subnet diversification. With multiple TAO ETF-related filings in motion and policy headlines continuing to shape the narrative, the next signal will be how regulators and asset managers respond as demand for decentralized AI wrappers grows.