# Bybit Opens AI vs. Human Trading Competition to Retail Traders With $360K Prize Pool

> Bybit opens its AI vs. Human trading competition to retail users, allowing traders to compete against leading AI models for a $362K prize pool through March 27.

By Lidia Yadlos · March 6, 2026

Canonical: https://blockster.com/bybit-opens-ai-vs-human-trading-competition-to-retail-traders-with-360k-prize-pool

_Bybit is bringing its AI trading competition to the broader market, allowing retail traders to compete directly against leading artificial intelligence models in a head-to-head trading tournament._

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The crypto exchange [announced](https://www.bybit.com/en/trading-contest/ai-pk/) the expansion of its “AI vs. Human: 1-on-1 Trading Showdown,” a competition where traders face off against AI systems including ChatGPT, Gemini, Claude, DeepSeek, Qwen, and Kimi.

The event runs through March 27 and offers a total prize pool of 362,388 USDT.

Originally launched earlier this year as an institutional experiment, the competition is now open to [Bybit’s](https://www.bybit.com/) global retail user base.

[Post from @Bybit\_Official on X](https://twitter.com/Bybit_Official/status/2029935033125933067?s=20)

## How the Competition Works

Participants can enter the competition by depositing at least 100 USDT and using a Bybit Unified Trading Account (UTA).

Once registered, traders compete in timed trading battles against AI models. Matches are available in one-hour, two-hour, or four-hour formats, allowing users to choose strategies based on trading style and risk tolerance.

Points are awarded based on trading activity and volume. The more traders participate and execute trades, the more points they accumulate.

Two leaderboards determine how rewards are distributed.

### Daily Leaderboard

Each day, the top 1,000 traders earn rewards from a 3,500 USDT daily prize pool, totaling 73,500 USDT across the full 21-day competition.

### Overall Leaderboard

The top 5,000 traders based on total points share a 288,888 USDT prize pool, with the highest-ranked participant receiving 88,888 USDT.

The competition dashboard also displays APR performance metrics for each AI model, allowing users to track how different systems perform against human traders throughout the event.

## From Institutional Experiment to Retail Event

When the AI showdown first launched in January, participation was limited to institutional teams.

Early competitors included organizations from Amazon Web Services, Alibaba Cloud, and AI trading platform [NOFA.ai](http://NOFA.ai), alongside trading firms such as AYC Fund, ALPHAGATE, and QuantumEdge.

> The retail expansion removes many of the technical barriers associated with algorithmic trading. Instead of requiring users to build or integrate their own AI tools, Bybit provides pre-configured AI competitors that traders can challenge directly.

The result is a simplified format designed to let traders of all experience levels test their strategies against machine-driven models.

[Post from @Mantle\_Official on X](https://twitter.com/Mantle_Official/status/2029836414565896412?s=20)

## AI Meets Crypto Trading

The competition reflects a broader trend emerging across financial markets: the growing influence of AI-driven trading systems. Bybit’s tournament turns that trend into an interactive format, allowing retail traders to compare their decision-making directly against some of the most advanced AI models currently available.