BlackRock: AI Agents Will Drive Major Demand for Stablecoins and Blockchain Payments

Traditional card networks and ACH already automate payments, but BlackRock is questioning their fit for tiny, continuous transactions. BlackRock is arguing that the wider adoption of AI could create new demand for stablecoins and blockchain payments. According to the asset manager, autonomous AI systems may require financial infrastructure built for machines, and blockchains could also become a way to pay for the computing resources those systems use. Three Areas of Convergence In a paper it published on September 22, the firm described AI as “machine-native intelligence” and digital assets as “machine-native money.” It argued that the technologies, which have largely developed along separate tracks, are beginning to converge as AI systems gain the ability to interact with financial networks and carry out transactions with limited human involvement. BlackRock focused on three areas of overlap, with the first being tokenization. Here, large language models divide text into tokens that can be processed numerically, while blockchains represent value and ownership claims as digital tokens. Their functions may be different, but both systems translate information into standardized format...