In a forward-looking annual letter posted on X, Stripe co-founders Patrick and John Collison have made a bold prediction: the future of artificial intelligence (AI) agents will require blockchains to process up to 1 billion transactions per second (TPS).
The letter, which also detailed the company’s 2025 performance, delved into the burgeoning world of AI agents and their potential to revolutionize online transactions. According to the Collisons, AI agents are poised to become the primary conductors of internet commerce, driving a surge in blockchain transaction activity.
The Infrastructure Gap
However, the Stripe co-founders highlighted a significant infrastructure gap that must be addressed to support this vision. They cited a recent incident where a memecoin trading frenzy on a major blockchain delayed payouts for a Bridge user by over 12 hours and increased transaction costs by 35 times. This, they argue, is just a taste of the operational challenges to come as transaction volumes grow exponentially.
“In our view, agents will most likely soon be responsible for most internet transactions, and we will likely need blockchains that support more than one million — or even one billion — transactions per second,” the Collisons wrote.
Current Capabilities and Future Potential
According to data from Chainspect, the current leaders in blockchain transaction speed are the Internet Computer Protocol and Solana, processing approximately 1,196 and 1,140 TPS, respectively. Even at their peak, these networks have only managed 25,621 TPS and 5,289 TPS, far short of the 1 billion TPS needed to support widespread AI agent adoption.
The Collisons outlined five levels of AI agent capabilities, ranging from completing web forms and descriptive search to more advanced functions like persistence, delegation, and anticipation. They noted that AI agents are currently hovering between the first two levels, with significant room for growth.
Interoperability and Collaboration
For the vision of AI-driven commerce to become a reality, the Collisons emphasized the importance of universal interoperability. They likened the current state of AI agents to the early internet, where success depended on the ability of different systems to work together seamlessly. “If all goes well, the little critters won’t be cooped up in walled gardens, but will be zooming down the wide-open protocol highways,” they wrote.
As AI agents move beyond the hype phase into real-world experimentation, the need for robust, scalable blockchain infrastructure becomes increasingly urgent. The challenge for the tech industry is to bridge this gap and create the foundational technologies that will power the next generation of internet commerce.
Looking Ahead
The predictions from Stripe highlight a critical juncture in the development of blockchain and AI technologies. As AI agents become more sophisticated and integrated into everyday life, the demand for high-speed, reliable transaction processing will only grow. The tech community must rise to this challenge, ensuring that the infrastructure can support the future of digital commerce.
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