Sharplink CEO: The Future of the Smart Economy

Author: Joseph Chalom, Sharplink CEO

Compiled by: Jiahua, ChainCatcher

No agent, platform, or financial institution should be an unavoidable gateway for people entering the financial market. Our goal is not just to create more AI agents, but to establish an interconnected financial system where agents can compete with each other, allowing users to freely switch platforms and avoid control being concentrated in a single key entry point.

This is my third article in the series on agent finance. The first article, "$4 Trillion Revolution: How AI Agents Will Reshape Finance and Trigger an Economic Boom," looked at the new agent economy and its impact on the financial industry. The second article, "$4 Trillion Revolution: The Biggest Winners of the Agent Revolution Will Be Consumers," discussed the upcoming battle over financial service fees and how consumers will benefit from it. However, whether consumers can truly reap these benefits depends on whether this transformation can avoid the pitfalls of past technological revolutions: where the market is ultimately dominated by a few winners.

This situation must not be repeated in the agent economy. No platform or bank should decide whether agents can enter this new financial system and how they should operate. This time, the stakes are higher because it concerns whether you can autonomously manage your financial affairs in the future. Without establishing necessary safeguards, this autonomy could be stripped away. Now is the time to set the rules right.

This article will propose a set of principles to prevent the agent economy from falling into the hands of a few institutions that control the entry points. I will also explain why open and neutral financial infrastructure is most beneficial for consumers.

Establishing an Open and Fair Agent Economy

We are discussing a critical issue: how to ensure that AI does not destroy our society and lives. Currently, discussions mainly focus on open models versus closed models, whether governments should control the pace of AI development, and the competition between the U.S. and China for AI leadership.

But these discussions do not answer how your financial security will be guaranteed as agent finance gradually becomes mainstream in the coming years. The world's largest financial and tech companies have already begun to position themselves in this agent competition. While everyone's attention is focused on issues concerning human survival, we may overlook the financial security mechanisms that need to be established right now.

Business leaders often have a negative attitude towards regulation, especially in emerging industries. Regulatory bodies sometimes do act hastily without fully understanding the technology. However, carefully designed and implemented regulatory rules can build trust, establish standards, and support industry development.

Based on this idea, we propose the following safeguarding principles, hoping to establish the necessary trust to promote the responsible development of the agent economy.

Agents Must Serve Users

The responsibilities of agents to users must be clear. Agents should uphold the interests of the individuals or businesses that entrust them with tasks. Their recommendations should align with the clients' needs, rather than catering to the interests of external third parties.

All commercial interests must be transparent. Clients should be able to understand how agents and the companies behind them make money. Any proposed contracts or collaboration arrangements should fully disclose relevant financial information and interests.

Agents cannot bypass their own limitations by delegating tasks. Assigning work to another agent must not become a means to circumvent their own authority limitations or the user's original preferences.

Users Must Always Retain Control

Authorization must be explicit and bounded. Clients decide what agents can and cannot do, including which activities are allowed, how long the authorization lasts, which accounts can be accessed, and what the spending limits are.

Users must be able to revoke authorization. Each agent needs a mechanism to immediately halt its actions, and this mechanism must cover the permissions it has delegated. Once permissions are revoked, agents must comply immediately.

Every action must have a clear responsible party. Every action taken by agents and their delegated agents must leave an auditable record. For every agent decision, it must be clear which individual or company that created or authorized it is responsible.

Agents Must Be Able to Migrate Freely

Agents must be able to use services from different providers. Users and agents should be able to access competing service providers and switch freely between them.

Agents must control the use and migration of information. Agents should be able to bring financial records, preferences, settings, and identity credentials to new service providers. Users should also be able to delete or remove personal data in accordance with applicable laws.

The identity of agents should be usable across platforms. Agents should be able to maintain a persistent identity. This identity consists of a unique non-human digital identifier and corresponding access permissions, allowing agents to maintain a continuous awareness of their identity, retain memories while performing different tasks, and ensure that the accountability for relevant actions is auditable.

It’s Time to Act

Now, responsible industry participants and policymakers should establish the necessary safeguards and trust to allow the agent industry to thrive in a fair and open environment. These principles also need to be incorporated into the broader AI discussions that governments around the world are undertaking.

This is not easy. The pace of technological development always outstrips the establishment of rules. Regulating AI may be the most challenging issue policymakers have faced in decades. The speed of AI innovation has surpassed any previous round of technological change.

If we do not act now, existing industry giants and large tech companies will set the rules themselves, deciding how they interact with agents and consumers. Historically, these rules may ultimately be hidden in binding terms of service, agreements requiring click-through consent, and other subtle competitive barriers.

Even with the most comprehensive regulatory rules, it is hard to imagine an agent economy lacking an open, decentralized system that can meet the above principles. Neutral and trustworthy blockchains like Ethereum are most likely to provide such an environment: where any developer, entrepreneur, or user can freely develop new agent functionalities and conduct new businesses. These blockchains are also most likely to expand the potential market size of agent finance and benefit consumers from it.
Finally, I want to say one more thing.

I am an optimist: I firmly believe that agent finance can improve the lives of billions of people around the world. But I am also a realist: we must act now and consciously drive this transformation to achieve better outcomes than previous technological cycles.

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