BlackRock identifies AI-driven payments as the more immediate opportunity for digital assets, while financial markets tied to computing capacity remain less developed.
Artificial intelligence could become a significant source of crypto adoption as autonomous agents increasingly transact on their own, pay for digital services and obtain computing resources, according to a paper from BlackRock.
The asset manager describes AI as providing “machine-native intelligence,” while digital assets could supply the payment and settlement layer required for AI agents to act independently. An agent could potentially pay for a data query, arrange a service or acquire computing power without requiring a person to authorize every individual transaction.
Stablecoins are positioned as an early candidate for this emerging economy. Their relatively stable pricing can make them useful for denominating services, while blockchain networks allow transactions to occur continuously. BlackRock cites Coinbase’s x402 protocol as an example of infrastructure that enables agents to pay for online resources such as API calls. The paper also notes that traditional payment systems are beginning to adjust to the rise of agent-based commerce.
Computing markets could offer a larger opportunity over the longer term. As AI demand for processing power expands, standardized claims on computing resources could potentially become financial assets that are traded, financed or pledged as collateral through digital-asset infrastructure.
BlackRock points to analyst projections that the cloud operations of Amazon, Microsoft and Google could collectively generate about $1.1 trillion in revenue by 2030.
For now, however, the infrastructure remains underdeveloped. BlackRock says payments between AI agents are still at an early stage, while liquid and standardized markets for computing contracts have yet to take shape.
