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Crypto is built for AI agents, not humans, says Alchemy’s CEO
Alchemy CEO Nikil Viswanathan argues the global financial system was designed for humans, but the next wave of commerce will be driven by AI agents that operate natively in crypto.
Apr 25, 2026, 7:00 p.m.
What to know:
- Crypto matches how agents operate, being borderless, continuous, and fully digital, said Nikil Viswanathan, co-founder and CEO of Alchemy.
- Complexity like keys and code is a feature for agents, not a barrier.
- AI agents will sit on top of crypto rails, handling transactions while humans interact through simpler interfaces, he argued.
The mismatch is everywhere. Banks have operating hours because humans do. Payments are tied to countries because people live in them. Credit cards assume physical identity and presence, he said.
AI agents operate differently. They don’t sleep. They don’t live anywhere. They don’t walk into banks or carry cards. And increasingly, they don’t just assist with tasks, they transact.
“All transactions for agents are online. They’re inherently global,” Viswanathan, who will be speaking at Consensus Miami next month, told CoinDesk in an interview.
That’s where crypto starts to look less like an alternative financial system and more like the native infrastructure for a new kind of economic actor, he said.
