Just a thought: most new projects, i.e. the altcoins we have today, do not bring anything new to the table except to enrich the devs, who have these projects milking the life(value) out of existing coins, like bitcoin, which could be why bitcoin is bearish or why it is moving slowly.

What could the long term effects of having more altcoins on the market be, will they help or harm bitcoin?

Exchanges could play an important role in protecting coins that are established to grow from being exposed to shitcoins?

A growing number of altcoins can influence Bitcoin in several ways. On one hand, more altcoins increase competition by offering alternative features, faster transactions, or unique use cases, which can draw investor attention away from Bitcoin. This diversification may reduce Bitcoin’s market dominance as capital spreads across various projects. However, the rise of altcoins can also benefit Bitcoin indirectly. Many altcoin trades occur in Bitcoin pairs, increasing Bitcoin’s trading volume and liquidity. Additionally, innovations developed for altcoins often inspire improvements in Bitcoin’s ecosystem. Despite short-term market fluctuations, Bitcoin remains the benchmark for value and stability in the crypto market. While altcoins expand the ecosystem’s diversity, Bitcoin continues to serve as the foundation and reference point for most digital assets.