Alchemy CEO Claims Crypto is Better Suited for AI Agents Than Humans

The current financial system was not designed with machines in mind, but rather around human constraints such as geography, sleep patterns, and physical presence. However, as AI agents become increasingly involved in economic activities, this human-centric design is becoming a hindrance, according to Alchemy co-founder Nikil Viswanathan. "One could argue that cryptocurrency was built for AI agents, not humans," he said. The differences between human and AI agents are stark. Banks have limited hours due to human constraints, payments are tied to countries, and credit cards require physical identity and presence. In contrast, AI agents do not sleep, have no physical presence, and do not use traditional banking systems. They are also increasingly autonomous, able to conduct transactions without human intervention. All transactions conducted by AI agents are online and global, said Viswanathan. This is where cryptocurrency starts to make sense as the native infrastructure for a new type of economic actor. Alchemy, a crypto infrastructure company, provides the necessary tools and services for developers to build blockchain-based applications. The company offers APIs, node infrastructure, and data services that power a wide range of applications, from financial apps to non-fungible tokens and games. Traditional finance is based on the assumption of friction, with cross-border payments involving currency exchanges, intermediaries, and fees. However, for AI agents, this is not acceptable. They require seamless, programmable, and direct control over funds, without the need for physical infrastructure or identity. Cryptocurrency provides exactly that - a global, always-on financial layer where value can be transferred as easily as data. The complexity of cryptocurrency, including seed phrases and private keys, is actually a strength when it comes to AI agents, as they operate natively in code. Viswanathan compared the shift from human-centric to AI-centric cryptocurrency tools to the shift from the postal system to the internet. Just as email is more powerful than the postal system because it is designed for computers, cryptocurrency is more suited to AI agents. In the future, AI agents will sit on top of cryptocurrency infrastructure, handling complexity, managing wallets, and optimizing capital flows in real time. This will result in a financial system that is more global, programmable, and autonomous. Viswanathan envisions a layered future, with traditional finance and cryptocurrency at the base, an agent layer operating on top, and a human interface above that.