Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong recently addressed concerns regarding the necessary focus of cryptocurrency companies. While some have suggested a pivot toward artificial intelligence (AI), Armstrong pushed back against this narrative, stating that AI's status as a megatrend does not diminish the importance of the crypto sector.
Armstrong characterized the cryptocurrency landscape as essential infrastructure, comparing its role to that of electricity or the internet. He argued that rather than being a zero-sum game between the two technologies, the rise of AI actually makes crypto more critical.
AI megatrends do not diminish crypto; they make it more important as essential infrastructure.
The core of Armstrong's argument lies in the functionality of AI agents. He noted that these entities will require their own financial infrastructure to perform tasks such as trading, acting as financial advisors, and raising capital. Because these agents are expected to transact far more per day than all humans combined, they require 'real-time programmable money' in the form of crypto.
AI agents will need their own financial infrastructure.
At present, the USDC stablecoin—launched in 2018 by Circle and the Coinbase-backed Centre Consortium—powers the vast majority of these agentic payments. These views come as Coinbase undergoes a restructuring to become a leaner, faster, and AI-native organization, a move Armstrong described to staff as an 'inflection point'.
Growth on the Base Network
Data from the Base network, a Layer-2 Ethereum solution launched by Coinbase in 2023, supports this transition. In June, agentic payment activity on the network exceeded 100 million transactions.
Agentic payment transactions recorded on the Base network in June.
Reports from Chainalysis indicate that these payments, specifically those utilizing the x402 protocol—which is based on the '402 Payment Required' standard—surpassed 100 million transactions within approximately nine months. Of these x402 payments, 95% of the total value transferred consisted of transactions worth at least $1.
While the company is moving toward an AI-centric model, it faces broader economic pressures. Earlier this year, Coinbase reduced its workforce by 14%. Despite these internal adjustments, analysts project Q2 revenue of $1.29 billion (a 13.8% year-over-year decline), with earnings per share expected to remain flat.