As the blockchain ecosystem rapidly deepens with projects intersecting artificial intelligence and big data, the competition based on developer activity is increasingly intense. Recent data shared by Santiment reveals that technical production within the sector is concentrated on a limited number of infrastructure-focused networks. The ranking crafted from filtered GitHub data provides critical insights into which projects are actively being developed behind the scenes. These metrics, evaluated independently of price movements, are also closely monitored by investors seeking to measure long-term potential.
Infrastructure-Focused Projects Lead the Developer Race
According to Santiment’s data, among blockchain projects themed around artificial intelligence and big data, Filecoin leads by a significant margin. Positioned in the realm of decentralized storage and data accessibility, the network boasts a developer activity score of 348.03, placing it ahead of its competitors. This score indicates regular and sustainable technical production within the Filecoin ecosystem. While trading at approximately $1.50, Filecoin saw a daily increase of 3.44%, with its market capitalization around $1.1 billion.
In second place, Chainlink stands strong in the data flow and oracle infrastructure domain with a development score of 211.03. As a project providing reliable data to decentralized systems, Chainlink trades at about $13.12, with its market capitalization reaching $9.28 billion. Its consistent development performance solidifies Chainlink as a cornerstone of the Web3 infrastructure.
Ranked third is Internet Computer (ICP), with a score of 200.03, trading around $3 and holding a market capitalization of $1.7 billion. The data indicates a balanced developer activity among the top three projects, although Filecoin holds a distinct advantage.
Consistent Growth Continues in Middle and Lower Rankings
NEAR Protocol follows in the list with a development score of 70.23. NEAR is positioned in the middle segment with a price of approximately $1.63 and a market capitalization of $2.17 billion. Lower down the list, projects like Oasis Network and Livepeer emerge. Despite a development score of 32.5, Livepeer stands out with a price performance rise of 15.7%, reaching $3.02.
Santiment’s top 10 list includes other projects such as Bittensor, The Graph, Injective, and Recall. This tableau demonstrates that the AI and big data-themed blockchain domain is not confined to a few major players, but a broader ecosystem is actively being developed. Moreover, a recent report highlights increased institutional interest in blockchain projects focused on AI integration as we approach 2026, with network data infrastructure being among the prioritized investment areas.
Developer activity remains a crucial indicator of projects’ actual strength, extending beyond short-term price fluctuations. Santiment data clearly illustrates how infrastructure projects like Filecoin and Chainlink guide the sector technically, while middle and lower segment projects develop quietly yet steadily. The heightened interest in AI and big data-focused blockchain solutions suggests that competition in this area may intensify even more in the coming period.
