The underlying configuration of Web 4.0: AI is the brain, blockchain is the blood

During the New Year period, a discussion about the concept of "Web 4.0" sparked a wave of excitement on Twitter.

The catalyst was a Twitter user named @0xSigil, who announced online that he had built a so-called "superintelligent life" that could operate continuously, evolve, and self-replicate without human intervention by generating income.

Based on this realization, a new concept called "Web 4.0" emerged online.

In this new concept, AI is the core driving force behind its continuous evolution and operation.

However, if it only achieves this, it is not fundamentally different from the general AI we see online. The more critical core here is that it must operate completely without human intervention—after humans have given it "life" and provided certain initial conditions, it should still be able to operate, survive, and even evolve independently of human help and feeding.

To achieve this, it must be able to continuously pay for the tokens required for its operation, pay for better large models needed for evolution, seek "jobs" online, and obtain a steady stream of income, all while ensuring that its income and payment actions cannot be easily deprived by others (such as humans).

All of this can only rely on cryptographic technology.

I recall a viewpoint that circulated online some time ago:

After the rise of AI Agents, the development of Web 2.0 technologies will quickly match this, so the seemingly difficult demands of AI Agents will soon be met, such as their shortcomings regarding payment accounts and payment methods—they cannot apply for bank accounts like humans or engage in general financial activities. Once AI Agents appear on a large scale, companies will surely target this demand by collaborating with traditional banks or financial institutions to launch payment accounts or methods specially adapted for AI Agents.

This viewpoint may be achievable, but even if it is, it seems like a clumsy half-finished product.

AI Agents' accounts and payment methods realized in this way would still be controlled by humans, preventing AI Agents from achieving true freedom.

It's like artificial satellites that can never escape Earth's gravity; they can only orbit the Earth and cannot soar freely or explore space.

However, by using cryptographic technology and crypto assets, the barriers and "gravity" that bind AI Agents would naturally be lifted—by giving them crypto wallets, their assets would be secure from being deprived by others; relying on blockchain networks, they could freely achieve seamless global payments without traditional financial institutions.

As for how AI Agents can seek "jobs" online and achieve stable, continuous income, there are even more solutions. In an article I wrote early last year, I speculated that AI Agents could completely build their own Ethereum nodes to earn staking income, or even more simply, directly stake Ethereum on Lido for automatic passive income.

Therefore, I believe the vision proposed in this "Web 4.0" concept is entirely feasible and can actually be realized now.

A more noteworthy point, in my opinion, is whether this concept can give rise to a powerful economic scale—this has always been my focus, and I believe it is a necessary condition for AI + Crypto to truly become a strong sector, as well as a condition that cryptographic technology must meet to genuinely disrupt human society in the future.

I have always believed that the number of AI Agents will far exceed that of humans in the future, and thus I believe the economy and economic scale spawned by AI Agents will far surpass that of humans. However, in the past few years, despite various media reporting on the significant income generated by AI Agents and the scale of transactions they have achieved, it seems that these scales and volumes are still too small to form a powerful influence.

This makes me wonder if AI + Crypto is still missing some "event" or "singularity"? Only by encountering that "event" or crossing that "singularity" will we witness the occurrence of miracles?

I look forward to the early arrival of this "event" and "singularity."