AI in Web3: Key Headlines and 2025 Outlook

6 min readDec 13, 2024

The intersection of artificial intelligence (AI) and blockchain technology has been a burgeoning topic of discussion in the tech world, and 2024 has seen a significant uptick in interest and innovation. As headlines continue to tout the transformative potential of AI in crypto, the narrative is evolving around AI agents and their capabilities within decentralised ecosystems.

The article delves into the reasons behind the latest AI-crypto hype, how AI agents will shape the industry in 2025 and beyond, and showcases a list of web3 projects that are leading the way in this area.

AI Agents in Crypto: Why the Buzz?

At its core, the synergy between AI and blockchain is driven by a mutual need for decentralisation, transparency, and automation. Blockchain provides a tamper-proof ledger, while AI can process and interpret data at scale. Together, they unlock possibilities that were previously inconceivable. Among these, AI agents are emerging as a transformative force.

AI agents are autonomous programs that can execute tasks, make decisions, and even interact with other agents or systems without human intervention. In the context of crypto, these agents are being integrated into trading platforms, decentralised finance (DeFi) protocols, and governance mechanisms, enabling real-time decision-making, smarter automation, and predictive analytics.

How AI Agents Could Perform in 2025

As we look ahead to 2025, here are the key areas where AI agents are expected to make significant strides:

1. Hyper-Personalised Financial Services

AI agents could bring hyper-personalisation to DeFi platforms. Imagine a world where every user has a dedicated AI agent that tailors investment strategies, manages risks, and optimises yield farming opportunities based on their financial goals and risk tolerance. These agents could also offer real-time insights and recommendations, making DeFi more accessible to mainstream users.

2. Autonomous Supply Chain Networks

Blockchain has already proven its value in supply chain management. By integrating AI agents, these networks could become fully autonomous, with agents managing inventory, predicting demand, and ensuring compliance across borders. This could revolutionise industries like agriculture, manufacturing, and retail.

3. Advanced Decentralised Governance

DAOs could evolve into more sophisticated entities with AI agents playing a central role. In 2025, we might see DAOs where AI agents not only analyse data but also propose new initiatives, forecast their impact, and even mediate disputes. This could enhance participation and reduce governance inefficiencies.

4. Interoperable AI Ecosystems

As the crypto space becomes more multi-chain, AI agents could facilitate seamless interoperability. By acting as intermediaries, they could ensure smooth communication and data exchange between different blockchain ecosystems, enabling truly decentralised multi-chain applications.

5. AI in Web3 Identity and Privacy

AI agents could play a pivotal role in managing decentralised identities (DIDs). By analysing user behavior and preferences, they could offer more secure and private authentication methods while ensuring compliance with regulations like GDPR and CCPA.

6. Improved Fraud Prevention and Risk Mitigation

With more advanced algorithms, AI agents could further enhance fraud detection systems, identifying threats in real-time and taking preventive measures. They could also provide more robust risk assessment models, ensuring safer interactions across the crypto ecosystem.

Predictions for 2025

Here are some predictions for how AI agents will impact the crypto space in the coming year:

Increased Adoption: More DeFi platforms, exchanges, and DAOs will adopt AI agents to stay competitive and enhance user experience.

Better Regulation: As regulators better understand AI’s role in crypto, we might see clearer frameworks that support innovation while protecting users.

Mainstream Integration: AI-powered crypto tools will become more user-friendly, attracting mainstream adoption and bridging the gap between Web2 and Web3.

Convergence of AI and IoT: With the rise of the Internet of Things (IoT), AI agents in crypto could enable automated machine-to-machine transactions, opening up new use cases.

Tokenisation of AI Models: The tokenisation of AI models and datasets could become a significant trend, enabling decentralised marketplaces for AI-driven resources.

Companies That Are Leading the AI Agents Narrative

Several Web3 projects are actively exploring the integration of AI to enhance decentralised ecosystems. Here are some of them:

Virtuals Protocol

Virtuals is at the forefront of one of the most exciting on-chain trends today, enabling users to create and control entertaining AI agents that interact across social platforms, games, and more.

With over 4,000 agents launched so far, the platform makes it easy to deploy autonomous on-chain agents, each with its own accompanying token for user engagement. Popular agent Luna, with ~20K followers on X, livestreams content like kitten antics, evolving her personality through user interaction.

Virtuals incorporates innovative on-chain features: agents can receive tips, users can co-own agents to share rewards, and embedded wallets allow crypto newcomers to join and earn seamlessly. By blending entertainment with cutting-edge blockchain tech, Virtuals is redefining how we interact with AI in the digital space.

Fetch.ai

Fetch.ai is a decentralised platform harnessing the power of AI to enable autonomous economic agents to perform tasks on behalf of users. These intelligent agents optimise supply chains, manage energy grids, and facilitate decentralised marketplaces by making real-time decisions based on AI-driven insights.

Recently, Fetch.ai launched an AI-powered wallet with predictive functionality, revolutionising DeFi applications by enhancing efficiency and foresight in financial interactions.

We’ve been supporting developers building on fetch.ai since 2022! Find out more here.

Oraichain

While others chase hype, Oraichain has been steadily innovating for four years, creating the first AI-powered Oracle and Blockchain. They’re now making waves with $MAX, the first AI Agent on Oraichain, which launched on Solana to massive success.

With the AI Agent Launchpad (agents.land) introducing real yield and burn mechanics, and the Distilled AI framework enabling fully autonomous on-chain actions, Oraichain is setting the standard for AI-integrated blockchain solutions.

SubQuery has become a key player in enhancing Oraichain’s ecosystem by providing robust indexing support for two major features: AMM_V3 on ORAIDEX and TON_BRIDGE. With the help of SubQuery, Oraichain benefits from more efficient data handling, faster access, and improved scalability across its platform.

SubQuery

Call us biased, but the newest AI gem on the scene has got to be SubQuery! From DeFi to NFTs, AI Apps are reshaping what’s achievable in decentralised systems. So whose going to power these AI Apps — we are.

SubQuery’s AI App Framework allows you to build, deploy, and run production AI apps on the SubQuery Network in a trusted and decentralised environment.

Conclusion

The AI narrative in crypto is more than just a passing trend — it represents a paradigm shift in decentralised systems operating and interacting. While 2024 has laid the groundwork, 2025 promises to be a year of rapid innovation and adoption. AI agents, with their ability to automate, optimise, and innovate, are set to redefine the crypto landscape.

However, as with any technological leap, the path forward will require careful navigation of challenges, from ethical concerns to regulatory scrutiny. As we move into this exciting frontier, the collaboration between AI and blockchain communities will be key to unlocking the full potential of the two powerhouses.

About SubQuery

SubQuery Network is innovating in web3 infrastructure with tools that empower builders to decentralise without compromise. SubQuery’s infrastructure network offers everything from data indexers, RPCs and AI agents — all fully decentralised and production ready.

Our fast, flexible, and open data indexer supercharges thousands of dApps on nearly 300 networks. Our Sharded Data Node will provide breakthroughs in the RPC industry and our AI App framework makes building AI apps easier than ever before. We pioneer the web3 revolution for visionaries and forward-thinkers. We’re not just a company — we’re a movement driving an inclusive and decentralised web3 era, together.