Kraken-Backed SPAC: Crypto More Resilient Than SaaS as AI Reshapes Software

Kraken-backed SPAC says crypto is more resilient than SaaS as AI reshapes software Don't count crypto out. Even as the market endures a prolonged downturn, a Kraken-backed blank-check company believes digital assets are better positioned to survive — and even benefit — from the wave of disruption that artificial intelligence is bringing to traditional software firms. Ravi Tanuku, CEO of KRAKacquisition Corp. (NASDAQ: KRAKU), told reporters the crypto sector remains a “sound investment” and is less exposed to the existential threat AI poses to software-as-a-service (SaaS) companies. KRAK is a Nasdaq-listed SPAC sponsored by U.S. exchange Kraken alongside venture backers Natural Capital and Tribe Capital; it raised $345 million in an IPO this January and is hunting for crypto-native acquisition targets valued between $2 billion and $10 billion. Context matters: Kraken’s parent Payward delayed its own long-awaited IPO this month amid a crypto market slide — the CoinDesk 20 Index is pacing toward its sixth straight monthly decline. Tanuku declined to comment on Kraken’s IPO timetable, but used the moment to draw a sharper contrast between crypto and legacy SaaS businesses. SaaS firms, he argued, face a unique challenge as AI systems become capable of writing code and automating high-skilled work. “If you were a SaaS company and you wanted to go public and you didn't go public, you have a bigger problem now, which is whether or not you have an answer for AI,” Tanuku said. “That's not like crypto or bitcoin going from 70k to 80k. It’s a more existential, longer-term question that is much harder to shake.” That doesn’t mean every dollar not flowing into AI will automatically pour into crypto, Tanuku cautioned. But he said digital assets are among the strongest secular stories left in the market after AI. “AI is the best story. Nobody's going to deny that,” he added, while pointing to stablecoins and payments as “the next best story after AI.” KRAKacquisition’s deal focus and the AI crossover Tanuku expects the SPAC to pursue deals with crypto-native firms — and is particularly interested in areas where crypto and AI intersect. He highlighted the buzz around AI agentic commerce and floated a pragmatic use case for blockchain: tokenized financing of expensive AI infrastructure. “I'm curious if somebody doesn't start to float tokens to figure out how to finance some of this infrastructure, because the build-out is so expensive,” Tanuku said, suggesting token models could offer yield and returns to investors while funding compute-heavy AI projects. Bottom line: KRAKacquisition is positioning itself to back sizable crypto businesses that can withstand — or even leverage — the AI revolution. For investors watching where capital will flow next, Tanuku’s view is that digital assets deserve a seat at the table even as AI dominates the headlines. Read more AI-generated news on: undefined/news