Key Highlights
- The BitMEX co-founder will lead Flop Labs, which is building the Flop Network and its native FLOP token.
- The token is designed to help AI agents pay for computing power, services and transactions without relying on humans for every step.
- Hayes says the project will use a 100% fair launch, with a large airdrop planned for Q4 2026 and the genesis block targeted for Q1 2027.
Arthur Hayes, the co-founder of BitMEX, is returning to an active role in crypto after announcing on August 18 that he will lead Flop Labs, a new venture building the Flop Network and its native FLOP token.
The project is focused on creating a currency for AI agents that can make payments and complete transactions.
“I’m coming out of retirement to lead @flop_labs.” Hayes announced in a Tuesday post on X. He described FLOP as “food for your AI agent” and said the project would have “No presale, No VCs, 100% fair launch.”
He also said more details would come later, while revealing that a large airdrop is expected in the fourth quarter of 2026. The genesis block is planned for the first quarter of 2027.
The idea behind the project
According to the announcement, The idea behind Flop Labs is built around a simple question: what happens when AI agents start doing business on their own?
Today, AI tools can already perform tasks for people, but many still depend on humans to make payments, approve deals or decide what happens next. Flop Labs wants to build a network where AI agents can handle more of these activities themselves.
The Flop Network is being designed as the system that supports this activity. FLOP would be its native currency, giving AI agents a way to pay for computing power, negotiate services and settle transactions with other AI agents.
In simple terms, the project wants FLOP to become money that AI agents can use when they need to buy something or pay another agent.
FLOP launch comes without VCs
Hayes has also put a strong focus on how the token will be launched. He said there will be no presale and no venture capital allocation. Instead, the project is calling it a 100% fair launch. Information supplied about the project says eligibility for the planned airdrop is currently linked to following the Flop Labs account.
However, many details about FLOP are still unknown. Flop Labs has not yet disclosed its technical specifications or tokenomics. This means there is currently limited information about how the network will work in practice, how the token supply will be structured or how the planned airdrop will be carried out.
The announcement also marks a change for Hayes, who has spent recent years as chief investment officer of Maelstrom and as a well-known voice in the crypto market. Before that, he helped build BitMEX into a major crypto derivatives platform.
Hayes returns After recent criticism
Meanwhile, this return comes after a period in which his own recent crypto trading activity caught a lot of attention in the crypto space.
In June, crypto investigator ZachXBT publicly questioned Hayes over his sale of Worldcoin (WLD), accusing him of giving followers exit liquidity after promoting the token.
The WLD sale followed Hayes’ exits from HYPE, NEAR and ZEC. Hayes had previously promoted several of the tokens before selling his positions. After selling WLD, he wrote that the chart was “going in the wrong direction” and added, “Dumped $WLD. I’m out.”
ZachXBT pointed to the quick exits as a reason for his criticism. Hayes had not publicly responded to the accusation.
Now, Hayes is putting his attention on AI and crypto through Flop Labs. The project’s next major dates are the planned Q4 2026 airdrop and Q1 2027 genesis block, while the wider details of the FLOP network are still to come.
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