a16z recently released its annual report on December 11th, providing an overview of 17 key trends expected to shape the crypto and blockchain market in the coming year. In this report, the renowned investment fund stated that the cryptocurrency ecosystem is entering a more mature phase, with strong growth in stablecoins, Token of traditional assets, decentralized payment solutions, security, privacy, and AI combined with Cryptology.
In its latest report, a16z argues that the digital economy is entering a period of restructuring, where three key forces will shape the entire future of Web3: the explosion of autonomous AI agents, the “disappearance” of traditional payment technologies, and the dominance of blockchain with privacy at its core. As these factors converge, the financial structure of the internet will enter a completely new era.
The biggest highlight is the rise of AI agents. a16z describes these agents as “economic entities” capable of making decisions, interacting, consuming, and transacting on behalf of humans. The scale of development in this field has grown so rapidly that the number of AI agents in the financial services industry now exceeds humans by a ratio of nearly 100:1. However, the majority of these agents still lack clear identities, access rights, and compliance protocols, making them like “digital ghosts” unable to become legitimate entities in the market.
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a16z predicts that by 2026, the world will witness the formation of KYA – Know Your Agent – a cryptographic identification infrastructure that links automated agents to their real owners, enabling accountability and compliance. With clear identification, agents will be able to transact, spend, sign contracts, or automatically process payments securely. This is XEM as the key to unlocking an economy where humans and AI participate equally in the on-chain market.
Parallel to the rise of AI agents is the prediction of a fundamental shift in the global payment system. Payments – Capital a separate functional layer – will gradually disappear at the application layer and integrate directly into the network infrastructure. As billions of AI agents begin to automatically purchase data, pay for GPU usage time, process APIs, and execute transactions in real time, the flow of money must be as fast as the speed of data. New technologies like x402 enable instantaneous value transfer without permission, completely eliminating the Capital layer that slows down traditional money flows. In this new model, banks, stablecoins, and payment systems will become "invisible infrastructure" operating behind the scenes, replacing Vai current clear intermediary roles.
The third key pillar in a16z 's report is privacy – a factor the company believes will become the "ultimate competitive advantage" for blockchain in the coming period. As more and more actors – both humans and AI – put sensitive data onto the network, the need for anonymous or semi-anonymous transactions will become essential. However, switching between blockchains with different privacy mechanisms creates the risk of metadata leaks, leaving users "locked" in ecosystems that are already well-secured. a16z predicts that privacy-prioritizing blockchains will become central to future Capital flows and economic activity.
