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Arthur Hayes Named CEO of Flop Labs, Teases Q4 Airdrop
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Arthur Hayes Named CEO of Flop Labs, Teases Q4 Airdrop

BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes announced he is taking over as CEO of Flop Labs, updating his social media profile to reflect the new title. Flop Labs is building a network designed to let AI agents pay for computing and other services using its native token.

Tristan R.
By Tristan R.

Senior Author · August 19, 2026

2 min
Key takeaways
BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes announced he is taking over as CEO of Flop Labs, updating his social media profile to reflect the new title.
Flop Labs is building a network designed to let AI agents pay for computing and other services using its native token.
Massive Airdrop Planned for Late 2026 In a Tuesday post, Hayes said he was "coming out of retirement" to lead the company.

BitMEX co-founder Arthur Hayes announced he is taking over as CEO of Flop Labs, updating his social media profile to reflect the new title. Flop Labs is building a network designed to let AI agents pay for computing and other services using its native token.

Massive Airdrop Planned for Late 2026

In a Tuesday post, Hayes said he was “coming out of retirement” to lead the company. He revealed plans for a large token airdrop in the fourth quarter of 2026, ahead of the network’s planned genesis block launch in early 2027, with more details expected later.

What Flop Labs Does

Flop describes itself as a proof-of-useful-inference protocol, where AI agents spend the FLOP token to access inference and decentralized memory services. It remains unclear whether Hayes’ new role will affect his existing position as chief investment officer at Maelstrom Fund.

Hayes co-founded BitMEX in 2014 and stepped down as CEO in October 2020. Separately, BitMEX announced in July 2026 that it will shut down its exchange operations on September 23.


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Disclaimer

This content is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, investment, or legal advice. Cryptocurrency trading involves risk and may result in financial loss.

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About the author

Tristan R.
Tristan R.

8+ years covering crypto markets, macro, and geopolitics. Previously at Decrypt and CoinDesk. Focused on the intersection of digital assets and traditional finance.