Armstrong Slams 'Zero-Sum Thinking' in Crypto-AI Pivot Debate

Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong has pushed back against advice to 'pivot to AI' for crypto firms, calling it 'zero sum, scarcity thinking.'

Armstrong argued that crypto is a general-purpose technology and infrastructure, like electricity or the internet, that underpins emerging technologies such as AI.

He noted that AI agents will need their own financial infrastructure, including real-time programmable money in the form of crypto, to hold funds and pay for things on their own.

Coinbase has leaned into the emerging 'AiFi' category with its contributions to the x402 protocol and its own Base blockchain, while its USDC stablecoin powers the vast majority of agentic payments.