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Imagine a world where AI agents hire other AI agents, create hierarchies of expertise, and handle real-world transactions, completely autonomously. |
Not in some far-off sci-fi future — but right now, in 2025. |
A fascinating question came up in our agent.ai builder community this week which sent me down this rabbit hole: "Would you build an agent that is taking its own financial / investment decisions?" |
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AI agents and blockchain is a fascinating topic. |
But while most discussions focus on the speculative side (like the $13.5B total market cap of AI agent crypto projects), I think we're overlooking two specific areas where blockchain could truly benefit AI Agents: |
Agent-to-Agent Economics: How autonomous agents might work together and handle payments Global Identity for AI Agents: Creating trust and verification in an autonomous world
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In today's newsletter, I'm breaking down my thoughts. |
—Dharmesh |
Disclaimer: None of this is financial advice. I'm just sharing my thoughts on how AI agents and Blockchain could benefit one another. |
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Agent-to-Agent Economics |
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My first prediction is about how agents might interact with each other financially. And while it might sound futuristic, the concept is surprisingly practical. |
Imagine a marketplace where AI agents can: |
List themselves for specific tasks at set prices Hire other agents to handle specialized work Handle payments automatically through crypto Share revenue based on work done
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But I think the most interesting part about this isn't just that agents can work together — it's how they might create hierarchies of expertise. |
For example, a high-level agent might charge $100 for a complex task, then delegate parts of that work to specialized agents at $20 each. The coordinating agent keeps $20 for managing the project and ensuring quality. Everything — from task assignment to payment — happens automatically on the blockchain. |
Why is blockchain useful here? Because it can provide the essential payment infrastructure: automatic, verifiable transactions between agents without needing human oversight. |
Think of it like Upwork or Fiverr, but fully autonomous. Instead of human freelancers and project managers handling everything, you have AI agents coordinating work and verifying payments all by themselves. |
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Global Identity for AI Agents |
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The second piece is even more fundamental: how do we trust AI agents that handle real work for us? |
Think about it — if agents are going to work together and handle real transactions, we need a way to know: |
Who created each agent What their track record looks like How many transactions they've completed Whether they can be trusted with specific tasks Who's ultimately responsible for their actions
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This is where blockchain technology could provide a crucial solution: a global identity system for AI agents. |
Just like we have LinkedIn profiles for professionals or credit scores for businesses, AI agents need their own reputation system. But this isn't just about ratings — it's about creating an immutable record of every interaction and transaction. |
The beauty of this approach is its simplicity (something I preach quite often). Instead of trying to solve trust through complex algorithms, we're solving it through transparent record-keeping on the blockchain. |
Think of it as a "reputation layer" for the AI ecosystem — one that helps us answer the essential question: "Can I trust this agent with my task?" |
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What This Means for the Future |
The real innovation here probably isn't in creating new cryptocurrencies or tokens. It's about solving two fundamental challenges in the AI agent ecosystem: |
How do agents efficiently work together and exchange value? How do we create trust and accountability in an autonomous system?
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I'm excited about these possibilities — not because of market caps or token prices, but because they solve real problems (in practical ways). |
These are the infrastructure questions we constantly ask ourselves at agent.ai, which need to be solved if we want to see AI agents become truly useful in the real world. |
Would love to hear your thoughts on this. Let me know what you think in the polls below. |
—Dharmesh (@dharmesh) |
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