Artificial intelligence could significantly drive digital asset adoption as autonomous agents begin transacting for services and computing resources, according to analysis from BlackRock.
The asset manager argues that AI provides what it calls "machine-native intelligence," while digital assets offer the payment and settlement infrastructure that autonomous agents may require to execute decisions. An agent could pay for data requests, book services, or purchase computing capacity without human intervention.
Stablecoins as Near-Term Opportunity
BlackRock identifies stablecoins as the likely first major beneficiary of agentic commerce. The relative price stability of stablecoins makes them suitable for service pricing, and blockchain networks can process payments continuously without traditional market hours constraints.
The asset manager highlights emerging protocols such as Coinbase's x402 as examples of infrastructure enabling agents to pay for online resources, including API calls. BlackRock also notes that traditional payments networks are adapting to accommodate agent-based commerce.
Computing Capacity as Long-Term Play
BlackRock positions computing power as a longer-term opportunity. Standardized claims on computing capacity could eventually be traded, financed, or used as collateral through digital asset infrastructure as demand for AI processing increases.
The company cites analyst estimates projecting that revenue from cloud services offered by Amazon, Microsoft, and Google could reach approximately $1.1 trillion by 2030. However, BlackRock acknowledges that liquid markets for standardized compute contracts have yet to develop, with agent payments still in their early stages.
