Why did BTC underperform Ai and gold so thoroughly?

The fundamental reason is that in a K-shaped economy, you either bet on the explosive future productivity of Ai with the highest risk-reward, or hedge with gold for safety.

The narrative positioning is unclear—some say it's digital gold, others say it's a risk asset, and so on. Both sides have some truth, but also some falsehood. The positioning isn't clear, which can also mean there's not enough consensus, or that it's simply too expensive.

No one can clearly explain the specific reasons, or wait for a big expert to come along and debate it after the price rises.

The logic behind BTC at 120,000 and 70,000 is different. Certainty is what drives it up, and it can just as well drive it down.

Now, we need to wait for new factors to emerge and be reconsidered—like the US legislative discussions reaching a conclusion. It's still uncertain whether that's a positive or negative development.