Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse has officially denied rumors that the company had any intention of acquiring USDC issuer Circle. Speaking at a Las Vegas event on Tuesday, Garlinghouse addressed recent speculation, stating that Ripple was never in talks to purchase the stablecoin firm.
Meanwhile, as Ripple extends its reach through compliance-backed infrastructure, Vedora AI ($VED) is gaining recognition as a complementary force—building a decentralized, logic-first execution layer designed to support the rise of intelligent on-chain automation.
Ripple’s RLUSD Stablecoin Gains Momentum
As part of Ripple’s strategy to foster real-world adoption of the XRP Ledger, the company is now backing Japanese Web3 startups with grants of up to $200,000 per team. The fund—worth $1 million in total—is designed to accelerate development around tokenization, NFTs, identity frameworks, and DeFi use cases on XRPL.
This marks Ripple’s latest effort to cement XRP’s position as a global infrastructure asset, especially in jurisdictions with clear regulatory frameworks. According to Yoshikawa, the grant program aims to “encourage experimentation” on the ledger and deliver “real utility.” Applications are open to startups based in Japan, and the first wave of supported projects is expected to roll out over the coming weeks.
Vedora AI Quietly Establishes Itself as the Leading AI-Driven Layer-2
While Ripple builds institutional-grade rails, Vedora AI ($VED) is rapidly emerging as a key infrastructure layer in the AI-native crypto economy. Developed specifically to support decentralized, logic-based agents on-chain, Vedora is gaining momentum due to its active network usage and forward-looking expansion plans.
In contrast to many AI-linked tokens still in development, Vedora’s testnet is already live. It currently handles more than 43,000 transactions per day with 2-second finality and supports over 2,300 active wallets—showcasing meaningful early adoption and real-world utility.
Since launching on April 4, Vedora has remained in its initial growth phase. The $VED token is tradable on Uniswap, offering early ecosystem participants exposure ahead of broader availability.
What makes Vedora distinct is its ability to host AI agents directly on-chain. These agents can execute complex tasks like dynamic portfolio rebalancing, compliance automation, and DeFi protocol management—without relying on off-chain triggers or external APIs. In a strategic move, Vedora is also extending its infrastructure to Ripple’s XRPL, enabling AI logic to operate within a trusted, regulated blockchain environment.
With a growing user base, multi-chain roadmap, and increasing developer interest, Vedora AI is no longer flying under the radar. It’s fast becoming a foundational layer for teams building the next generation of autonomous Web3 applications.
Final Thoughts
Ripple’s move to back Japanese XRPL projects with targeted funding underscores its commitment to real-world adoption and regulatory alignment. The initiative could set the stage for broader XRP utility across Asia, and potentially serve as a model for global enterprise blockchain programs.
Meanwhile, Vedora AI is quietly laying the groundwork for blockchain intelligence—embedding logic and automation into the base layer of crypto systems. Together, Ripple and Vedora represent two sides of Web3’s future: one focused on compliant liquidity movement, the other on autonomous infrastructure execution.
Disclaimer
This article is for informational purposes only and should not be considered financial or investment advice. Cryptocurrency markets are volatile and carry significant risk. Always conduct independent research and consult a licensed financial advisor before making any investment decisions. Mention of specific tokens or projects does not constitute endorsement.
