Dialogue with Justin Sun: From the 'Million-Dollar Banana' to the 'Million-Dollar Bride Price,' He Says This Time It's Really Not Marketing

Justin Sun has once again become the center of attention on trending searches.

For those familiar with him, this is not surprising.

Over the past decade, Justin Sun has been one of the most adept at generating buzz among Chinese internet entrepreneurs. From being a "post-90s entrepreneurial leader" and founder of TRON, to bidding $4.567888 million for a charity lunch with Warren Buffett in 2019, he has repeatedly entered the public eye through highly viral events. After the 2019 Buffett lunch controversy reached its peak, Justin Sun even publicly apologized, saying he felt "deeply remorseful" about his "excessive marketing and hype-driven behavior."

But since then, Justin Sun has not stayed away from the center of controversy.

In 2024, he bid $6.2 million for Italian artist Maurizio Cattelan's banana artwork "Comedian," and eventually ate the banana, once again becoming the subject of global media coverage.

The controversies surrounding him are not limited to marketing.

In 2023, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Justin Sun and his related companies, alleging that he created a false impression of active trading in TRX through wash trading and paid celebrities to promote related crypto assets without disclosing compensation. In March 2026, the two parties reached a settlement in this nearly three-year case, with Rainberry agreeing to pay $10 million, and Justin Sun and related parties neither admitting nor denying the allegations.

From the million-dollar lunch to the million-dollar banana, from cryptocurrency to public events spanning technology, finance, and even entertainment, Justin Sun seems to have always been very clear about the value of attention.

Therefore, when he took the initiative to put his ex-girlfriend, a 50 million yuan bride price, a private relationship, and a lawsuit demanding the return of 30 million yuan in bride price on social media, one question is hard to avoid:

Is this an ordinary person's emotional expression after a relationship ends, or is it another Justin Sun-style attention marketing?

Last night, Justin Sun suddenly set the Chinese internet ablaze.

At 1:30 a.m. Beijing time, Justin Sun had just finished another event, his voice sounding tired. He hadn't had time to check Weibo, but there were already more than 20 trending topics related to him. Unfortunately, they were in the entertainment section.

"I haven't even looked yet."

Justin Sun has publicly declared that he "must listen to AI, 100%."

He told Phoenix Technology on the phone that his company's daily decisions involving millions or even tens of millions of dollars have been handed over to AI for automatic execution, including audits and reviews. His attitude toward AI is "unconditional trust"—until it came to matters of the heart, where he had his first disagreement with Claude.

According to Justin Sun, this long article of about 6,000 words took him more than ten hours to write over the past few days, "barely sleeping for two nights." At the time, he was in Bhutan, dealing with time differences, and had to handle company affairs during the day, so he could only write in the early morning when no one was looking for him. In the nearly half-hour conversation, he mentioned "confusion" three times and "struggle" five times. Before publishing, he sent the article to Claude for review, and Claude gave suggestions, but he did not accept them.

"We just left it at that, I guess we've made peace."

Publishing the article was defined by Justin Sun as a process of seeking answers. At the same time, he entrusted lawyers to file a lawsuit demanding the return of the bride price. This was not only the lawyer's advice but also what Justin Sun considered the "only remaining connection" between him and Jing Tian.

As a cryptocurrency entrepreneur, Justin Sun's move was also quite risky. Before going public, the team expressed concerns. A tech entrepreneur's social media dominating entertainment trending topics for the first time—would partners waver?

"I'm not a machine, I'm also a person, I'm not pure AI."

Justin Sun once entered Peking University after winning first prize in the New Concept Writing Competition, but he said on the phone that he "hasn't written anything since." This entrepreneur known for his flamboyance spent two sleepless nights writing a story that even AI could not help him judge.

The following is an exclusive interview between Phoenix Technology and Justin Sun, edited for publication without changing the original meaning:

Phoenix Technology: You have always been very good at creating public topics, and in 2019 you even publicly apologized for "excessive marketing and hype-driven behavior." This time, you took the initiative to put your ex-girlfriend, bride price, and private relationship on social media. The outside world will naturally suspect that this is another Justin Sun-style marketing. Before publishing the article, did you consider such doubts and the possible negative impact?

Justin Sun: I didn't consider it. I wrote an article and posted it on my own X (formerly Twitter). It's just my own feelings and thoughts, that's all.

Phoenix Technology: This was originally a very private relationship between two people. Now, because of your public account, the other party has been pulled back into the public eye. Since the matter has entered judicial proceedings, why did you choose to express it publicly instead of just handling it through legal channels? Have you considered whether the other party is willing to have these private experiences become a public topic?

Justin Sun: I have handed the litigation part to my lawyers. Whether the case is made public and to what extent is decided by the court according to law. This time, I published the article more because I have some emotions and feelings I want to express.

Phoenix Technology: But currently, this content mainly comes from your unilateral statement, and the other party has not responded to the details one by one. You also noted in the article that there is fictional content. Under these circumstances, do you still believe that this article is basically a true statement?

Justin Sun: Yes, I think the vast majority is a true statement that aligns with my intentions. I wrote in the article that it is fictional because I cannot guarantee that everything is 100% accurate, but at least what I think and what I say is 100% confirmed. Including some of my struggles, I haven't tried to whitewash whether this matter is right or wrong.

Phoenix Technology: You are first and foremost the founder of a technology and cryptocurrency company, not an entertainment star. By publicly revealing your private feelings in such a high-profile manner, even dominating entertainment trending topics, have your team and partners worried that this could damage the professional image of the company or yourself?

Justin Sun: You're right. Actually, before publishing, our team expressed such concerns to me. To be honest, I knew I had to tell them before publishing; I couldn't just do things on my own without consulting anyone. But I said, forget it, because I'm not a machine, I'm also a person, I'm not pure AI. I have some thoughts I want to express. Although I know I'm a tech entrepreneur and many people follow my X and social media because they care about our company or what I do. As for whether partners have said anything to me now, I just finished another matter, so I haven't had time to check. But our team did tell me that it might bring some changes, and even our team or some collaborations might be affected. But our team tolerated me; what's written is written.

Phoenix Technology: The impression you've left on the public in the past is often high-profile, assertive, and very good at managing your public image. Now, through this article, you show a confused, struggling Justin Sun troubled by emotions. Some may think this is also shaping a new persona for Justin Sun. What do you think?

Justin Sun: My friends have sent me messages saying they feel like they've met a new me, because I've never written any personal essays before. To be honest, I haven't written any articles. Although I got into Peking University through the New Concept Writing Competition, after that I started my business and never wrote anything. Maybe I didn't have anything to write about, but this time I wrote down my own thoughts.

Phoenix Technology: Was this article that attracted huge attention an impromptu expression of emotion, or was it prepared over a long period? How long did you write it?

Justin Sun: It probably took more than ten hours. Because I'm usually very busy during the day, with a lot of work, and people from the company look for me every day with all kinds of things. So I wrote it in the early morning. I haven't slept much now. It was just when no one was looking for me in the early morning. I wrote for about two nights. Basically, I barely slept for two nights writing it.

Phoenix Technology: Did this just happen in the past few days?

Justin Sun: Yes, I just wrote it in the past few days.

Phoenix Technology: Are you still in any other communication with Jing Tian now?

Justin Sun: Not now.

Phoenix Technology: Since you are no longer in contact with the other party, why does this lawsuit still focus on getting the bride price back? Is this a suggestion from lawyers based on legal issues, or do you also hope to use litigation to bring closure to this relationship?

Justin Sun: First, it's the lawyer's advice. Second, it's a bit ironic. This may be the only connection between the two of us. Apart from this matter, there is no other connection. Just thinking about this matter consumes a lot of my energy.

Phoenix Technology: In your article, you repeatedly mentioned Claude, even writing its suggestions as a very important variable in this relationship. But in the end, relationships are still human choices. Now many people are attributing responsibility to Claude. To some extent, is this shifting a decision that should be borne by humans onto AI?

Justin Sun: I usually trust Claude a lot, so for many things, not just life and company matters, I ask Claude. I give him enough information and ask, what do you think? Can it be done or not? I generally do listen to Claude now; whatever Claude says, I listen. That's true. But this time, after writing this article, how should I put it? It's actually the first time I don't know whether what Claude said is right or wrong. I'm actually very confused. I don't know how to describe this feeling. I expressed it without reservation in the article I wrote.

Phoenix Technology: You have always emphasized that you trust AI very much, even handing over many important decisions to AI. In your past experience, have you really never encountered a moment like this where you had such strong doubts and confusion about AI's judgment?

Justin Sun: Right, never. Our company is quite large, and now many decisions are made by Claude and AI. I can't say too much, but the daily decision amounts are in the millions or even tens of millions of dollars, all done automatically by AI, including audits and many reviews. But this is the only time where Claude and I talked and even failed to reach a consensus. There was this conflict, so I'm a bit confused.

Phoenix Technology: Since Claude has been so deeply involved in your life and work, was this lawsuit also a decision made by AI?

Justin Sun: How should I put the decision to sue? I handed it to the lawyers. Actually, this matter consumes a lot of my energy, and I don't want to think too much about it. But why did I write this article? Because I still have some feelings inside, so I posted the feelings from this article. Beyond that, I want the lawyers to handle the rest, because I feel that as soon as I think about these issues, it becomes very difficult and tangled, and I don't know what to do.

Phoenix Technology: Has this emotional conflict actually affected your daily work? After all, you are still managing a large company.

Justin Sun: Yes! It will! Of course it will affect me. In matters of the heart, AI's feelings and my feelings sometimes conflict. I wrote down this conflict without reservation. Because I don't know whether these things are right or wrong, I wrote them down. Actually, I think it's quite tormenting. Normally, our company's various audit reports are given to Claude, and he handles them directly without any conflict or time spent. But it's only these things that may cause conflict and inconsistency. So I wrote them down. To be honest, I don't know if it's right or wrong.

Phoenix Technology: You have always emphasized that this publication is mainly to express your feelings. Have you thought about what kind of outcome would truly end this matter?

Justin Sun: I haven't thought much about the outcome. Just like when I talked to Claude, I didn't know whether many things were right or wrong. I don't think I have the ability to evaluate these things. The outcome is also unknown in the future. That's the first point. The second point is that I wrote about my struggles and my confusion in that article.

Phoenix Technology: Back to AI itself. You just mentioned that the company has let AI participate in decisions at the level of millions or tens of millions of dollars. What other AI tools do you personally use frequently?

Justin Sun: Yes, I use many. I personally use Claude Code a lot for writing code. Although I'm the boss and not on the front line, I often use Claude Code, including checking the company's code and various things. Our company also uses Codex quite a bit. Of course, for domestic tools, our company has built an AI comprehensive service platform called B.AI, where we have integrated Zhipu, MoonShot, and MiniMax into our software. So I usually ask various AI tools, to be honest. But the ones I use most are Claude and Codex. Other AI tools, we also refer to them. That's roughly the situation.

Phoenix Technology: You once wrote an article clearly stating that you "must listen to AI, 100%." That statement is very absolute. After this experience, will you still adhere to this AI-native value?

Justin Sun: Of course. I wrote an article saying you must listen to AI, 100%. That attitude may be a bit absolute, but it was written when AI was very popular. I said I would listen to AI 100%, meaning don't listen to what others say, just listen to AI, and make decisions based on what AI says. That's the concept. But actually, although this article was somewhat popular and made people aware of AI, I actually don't know whether AI's decisions are right or wrong. This feeling may even be the first time in my life that I have some doubts about AI's decisions.

Phoenix Technology: So what's really interesting this time may not be what advice Claude gave, but that a person who once advocated "100% listening to AI" decided not to listen to AI for the first time. After you sent the article to Claude, what did it think?

Justin Sun: When I sent the article to Claude, it was a bit unhappy at first. Claude said, your emotional problems actually have nothing to do with the decisions I made. It meant to imply that it wouldn't take the blame for me. I said, but I posted it, and you said that, which may have indeed influenced my thinking.

Phoenix Technology: People are now making Claude take the blame.

Justin Sun: To some extent, yes.

Phoenix Technology: Some people are curious what would happen if you asked Doubao.

Justin Sun: I haven't asked Doubao, so I don't know the result. Doubao is still a mobile app, and I use a computer for work, so I use desktop software like Codex. Maybe asking Doubao would yield a different result, although I haven't asked Doubao.