Franklin Templeton Says AI Agents May Be Blockchain’s Next Killer Use Case
Summary
- Sandy Kaul of Franklin Templeton said AI agents may become the next killer real-world use case for blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
- Kaul said Solana (SOL), Aptos (APT) and BNB Chain are blockchain networks well suited to AI agent-based micropayments.
- Visa said AI agent-based micropayments would require infrastructure with fees that are effectively near zero and faster settlement speeds.
Forecast Trend Report by Period
AI agents may emerge as the next killer real-world use case for blockchain and cryptocurrencies.
Cointelegraph reported on July 22 that Sandy Kaul, Franklin Templeton’s head of digital assets and industry advisory services, wrote on X that an AI agent-driven economy would boost demand for blockchains capable of handling machine-to-machine micropayments. Traditional card networks are poorly suited to AI agent payments because of high fees and long settlement times.
Kaul cited Solana (SOL), Aptos (APT) and BNB Chain as blockchain networks that fit the AI agent economy. Those networks can process transactions within seconds, faster than Visa’s existing payment network, which settles in one to three business days.
Visa recently made a similar case in a report, saying traditional card payment rails are not sufficient for an AI agent-based economy. For AI agent micropayments to become commercially viable, the infrastructure would need fees that are effectively near zero and faster settlement speeds.
Visa’s crypto business also launched a tool in March to support AI agent payments.
