AI to Become Main Users of Blockchain Networks, NEAR Co-Founder Predicts

NEAR Co-Founder Illia Polosukhin predicts that AI systems will become the primary users of blockchain networks, with cryptocurrency functioning as invisible financial infrastructure beneath an AI-driven internet.

According to Polosukhin, AI will evolve into the main interface layer across the internet, handling payments, asset management, governance participation, and service coordination on behalf of users who interact only with the AI itself.

Polosukhin sees the continued existence of wallets, block explorers, and transaction hashes as evidence that the industry has not sufficiently abstracted its technology from end users, stating that 'the goal is to make your AI hide all the blockchain.'

He argues that blockchain's role will be determined by the properties AI systems need when acting autonomously, such as neutral settlement, verifiable ownership, privacy, and programmable financial coordination.