The New Hotspot in the Web3 Space: The Rise of AI Agent Projects

Recently, the new narrative of the integration of Web3 and AI is accelerating, with AI Agent projects being particularly noteworthy. As the crypto market continues to grow in the first half of this year, AI-related projects have shown strong performance, second only to Memecoins. Several top venture capital firms are making significant bets on the Web3 x AI track, even purchasing older projects in the public market. This emerging field is expected to continue innovating alongside the development of traditional AI.

In the first half of this year, a large number of Web3 x AI Agent projects have been launched, such as Spectral and Olas Network, while some older projects like Fetch.AI and Phala are also keeping up with this trend. At the recently concluded ETHCC conference, many Web3 developers and top VCs focused on the AI Agent narrative.

Overview of AI Agent

AI Agent is an autonomous "agent" based on the large language model (LLM), capable of perceiving the environment, thinking independently, and executing actions. Unlike AI chatbots designed for human interaction, AI Agent aims to complete tasks autonomously without the need for continuous human instructions.

Taking MultiOn as an example, it simplifies the interaction between users and the internet. Users only need to issue tasks, such as "find the Web3 themed video with the highest views on YouTube", and the Agent can automatically complete the entire process from searching to filtering.

The Advantages of the Integration of Web3 and AI Agents

Web3 technology can bring many advantages to AI Agents:

1. Anti-censorship: Decentralized LLM can reduce information censorship and promote the dissemination of real information.

2. Decentralized Ownership: Avoid monopolization of core data by centralized AI providers.

3. Monetization: Provide new profit avenues for AI Agent developers and investors.

4. Composability: Achieving interoperability and collaboration between AI Agents.

Conversely, AI agents can also bring new opportunities to Web3:

1. Simplify on-chain information retrieval and aggregation, lowering the user threshold.

2. Change the way users interact with Web3, such as automating airdrops, building trading bots, etc.

Currently, the Web3 x AI Agent projects are mainly divided into two categories: one is the on-chain conversational AI Agent, mainly used for learning and research; the other is the AI Agent with on-chain operation capabilities, which can execute actual transactions.

Typical Project Analysis

Spectral

Spectral was initially a credit scoring protocol on Ethereum, later transforming into a machine intelligence network that allows users to build on-chain AI Agents. Its main products include:

• Spectral Syntax: A collection of agents developed by the official team that can convert user intent into executable code.
• Spectral Nova: Decentralized Machine Learning Inference Platform.
• Agent Wallets: Scheduled for launch in Q3 2024, integrating AI Agents into the wallet.
• Inferchain: As a Layer 1 for AI Agent narratives, scheduled to launch in Q4 2024.

Spectral has completed financing and issued the token $SPEC, with a current circulating market value of approximately $85 million. Its AI Agent usage data shows that as of Q2 2024, there are over 65,000 registered users and more than 1 million contracts generated.

GaiaNet

GaiaNet is a distributed AI infrastructure aimed at creating a decentralized AI Agent ecosystem. Its core concept is "Node as Agent," allowing individuals and businesses to quickly build and provide AI Agents in specialized fields.

The three core components of GaiaNet:

1. GaiaNet node: A software stack used for deploying AI Agents.
2. GaiaNet Domain: A collection of nodes in specific professional fields.
3. GaiaNet DAO: Manage staking, collateral, and profit distribution.

GaiaNet has completed a $10 million seed round financing, currently has 18,594 nodes, but only 35 available conversational AI Agents.

Other Early Projects

• Zotto: Users can create AI Agents to realize trading intentions.
• AgentLayer: A Layer2 based on OP Stack, promoting the interconnection of AI Agents.
• Olas Network: Off-chain AI Agent ecosystem.
• Theoriq: A modular and composable AI Agent foundation.
• AgentCoin: A universal Web3 AI Agent for the transformation of Web2 AI Agent products.
• Giza: Developing a Web3 AI Agent framework.

Web3 x AI Agent, as an emerging track, is attracting more and more attention from developers and investors. With the maturity of technology and the expansion of application scenarios, it is expected to bring new development momentum to the Web3 ecosystem.