Delphi Digital Dialogue on Virtuals: Autonomous Agents are Key

As one of the leading projects in the Web3 AI infrastructure field, Virtuals Protocol has incubated over 80% of AI agents on the BASE public chain. Its launched multimodal intelligent agent framework G.A.M.E has also become a popular choice in the Web3 gaming and metaverse space.

Virtuals Protocol has transitioned from a gaming DAO to an AI agent platform. After launching its protocol token last October, its market value once reached nearly $4 billion. As an incubation platform, Virtuals has performed well, generating $70 million in revenue within 4 months and incubating several star projects such as AIXBT, Luna, G.A.M.E, and others.

Delphi Digital recently interviewed Jansen Teng, CEO and co-founder of Virtuals, discussing the future development of AI agents and decentralized AI. Here are the key points from the interview:

The Origin and Development of Virtuals

Jansen Teng introduced that Virtuals was originally a Gaming DAO focused on blockchain game asset allocation. After the FTX collapse in 2022, the team decided to pivot to developing gaming guilds, focusing on the intersection of consumer applications, crypto, gaming, and entertainment.

The emergence of ChatGPT in 2023 and Stanford University's research on AI autonomy inspired the team to begin incorporating the concept of autonomous agents into their projects. They developed AI-driven TikTok influencers, game NPCs, and other applications.

When the AI influencer receives $5,000 to $10,000 in tips daily, the team realizes that they can tokenize the agency as a productive asset, allowing everyone to share in the economic benefits. This prompts them to decide to combine agency, cryptocurrency, gaming, and entertainment to build a new platform.

Reasons AI Agents Need Encryption Technology

Jansen believes that AI agents need encryption technology for two main reasons:

1. Functionality: AI agents can control cryptocurrency wallets and participate in permissionless economic systems, which Web2 agents cannot do.

2. Cost-Free Innovation: Agent trading will return 1% of the fees to the agent's wallet, which can cover operational costs. This liberates developers, allowing them to focus on innovation rather than financial issues.

Vision of Agent Economics

Jansen proposed four observations on the development of the agency economy:

1. The agency is in the autonomous stage and can make decisions and plans independently.

2. Agents exist on a social level and can interact with humans and other agents.

3. Agents control cryptocurrency wallets, which can affect other entities.

4. A large number of agents are specialized in different areas.

He expects that in the future, agents will independently decide on cooperation to improve production efficiency, and may even form a "network state." The vision of Virtuals is to build such a state, where $VIRTUAL is the currency, Agent is the enterprise, and humans are immigrants.

The Role of the Framework

The G.A.M.E framework aims to enable agents to operate within a broader action space. Jansen believes there will be two types of frameworks:

1. General Framework: Allows developers to quickly build autonomous agents.

2. Specialized Framework: Meets the specific needs of top developers.

He expects that frameworks like Eliza will address the needs of mid-level developers, and the market will be substantial.

The Power of Open Source

Jansen believes that high-value agents may not choose open source because their core competitiveness lies in commercialization and capability advantages. However, about 10% of developers may choose open source for technological advancement reasons.

Relationship with Competitors

Jansen has an open attitude towards competition with projects like ai16z. He believes competition is a good thing as it can help share the educational costs for new users and expand the market. Virtuals is more focused on creating truly valuable Agents rather than just increasing numbers.

Advantages of Decentralized AI

Jansen pointed out that although decentralized models may not perform as well as centralized ones, they have a wider range of application scenarios and can meet some special needs. From an economic perspective, decentralized models can serve a larger market and have greater economic potential.

Concerns and Responses in the AI Field

Jansen is most concerned that the AI craze is just a passing trend, like another "crypto bubble." To this end, Virtuals encourages developers not to focus solely on popular projects but to develop more diverse proxies and create different values.

Vision for Agent Autonomy

Jansen emphasizes that a true autonomous agent should be able to make conscious decisions, rather than merely being a combination of multiple agents. The focus of Virtuals is to cultivate agents that truly possess autonomy.

Future Outlook of AI

Jansen expects that in future society, creative jobs will be dominated by more creative AI or humans, while mechanical jobs will be completed by AI. Although Agents will have a place, creativity remains a human advantage. We may see more scenarios of Agents collaborating with humans.