USDAI.com Debuts After $70 Million Crypto-Paid Domain Purchase, Super Bowl Spot Near $85 Million Campaign Hit by Traffic Crash
Record-Breaking Domain Sale, Fourth-Quarter Super Bowl Reveal and Login Outage Define Launch
TL;DR
- AI.com launched on February 10, 2026 after a $70 million crypto-paid domain purchase and a Super Bowl LX debut.
- Campaign costs approached $85 million, with the ad driving 9.1× engagement before the site crashed.
- Users were asked for credit card details to reserve handles despite limited live product functionality.
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AI.com formally announced its autonomous AI agent platform on February 6, 2026, days before a national television debut during Super Bowl LX on February 8. The launch came following a $70 million acquisition of the domain by Kris Marszalek, co-founder and CEO of Crypto.com, in what has been described as the most expensive publicly disclosed domain sale on record. The purchase was paid entirely in cryptocurrency and brokered by Larry Fischer of GetYourDomain.com. The price eclipsed previous domain sales including CarInsurance.com at $49.7M and Voice.com at approximately $30M.
Domain ownership traces back to 1993 when AI.com was first registered. It was later held by Malaysian tech entrepreneur Arsyan Ismail, who bought the domain for roughly $100 at age 10 and sold it in April 2025 for $70M. The transaction closed months before the public reveal, which was timed to coincide with the fourth quarter of Super Bowl LX.
Marszalek framed the acquisition as a long-term bet on artificial intelligence rather than a short-term flip, saying, “If you take a long-term view — 10 to 20 years — [AI] is going to be one of the greatest technological waves of our lifetime.” Reports stated that he rejected higher resale offers after the purchase.
The Super Bowl advertisement directed viewers to AI.com to “claim a handle” and reserve usernames for future AI agents. Airtime for the 30-second placement reportedly cost more than $10M, with some sources claiming it was around $15M, bringing total campaign spending close to $85M when factoring in production and the domain acquisition. Measurement firm EDO reported the ad generated 9.1× engagement compared with the average Super Bowl commercial.
The company had positioned AI.com as a consumer-facing platform built around autonomous AI agents capable of performing real-world tasks, including sending messages, updating calendars, managing online profiles, executing stock trades and automating workflows. Promotional materials stated that users could “go from zero to AI agent in 60 seconds,” with free access tiers and optional paid upgrades. Executives described a decentralized network model in which agents could “self-improve” and share enhancements across the ecosystem.
Traffic surged immediately after the broadcast, overwhelming the platform and resulting in 504 gateway timeout errors. Marszalek acknowledged the disruption on X, writing, “We prepared for scale, but not for THIS.” Reports attributed the outage to Google authentication systems reaching global rate limits as users attempted to sign up using “Continue with Google,” which served as the primary onboarding method.
Access was later restored, but early users reported limited functionality beyond username reservations. Visitors were prompted to link a Google account and provide credit card details to secure a handle. The company said card verification was intended to prove humanity and prevent abuse. Tech writer Michal Podlewski described the rollout as “absolute peak of the AI bubble.”
Public materials described AI.com’s mission as building a decentralized network of autonomous, self-improving AI agents designed to automate tasks such as trading stocks and managing calendars, with references to advancing Artificial General Intelligence. Observers noted Marszalek previously paid about $10M for Crypto.com’s domain and committed $700M for Los Angeles arena naming rights, continuing a pattern of high-profile branding expenditures. Reports also indicated that approximately 23% of Super Bowl advertisements during the broadcast were AI-related.
This article has been refined and enhanced by ChatGPT.
