AI+Web3: Towers and Squares

Introduction

In the past two years, the development of AI has been accelerated as if a fast-forward button has been pressed. This wave initiated by ChatGPT has not only opened a new world of generative artificial intelligence but has also brought about significant changes in the Web3 field.

With the support of AI concepts, the Web3 market financing has significantly boosted. In the first half of 2024 alone, 64 Web3+AI projects completed financing, among which Zyber365 achieved the highest financing amount of 100 million USD in Series A.

The secondary market is more prosperous, with the total market value of the AI sector reaching 48.5 billion dollars and a 24-hour trading volume nearing 8.6 billion dollars. After the release of OpenAI's Sora, the average price in the AI sector rose by 151%. The AI effect has also radiated to the Meme sector, with GOAT quickly gaining popularity and achieving a valuation of 1.4 billion dollars.

AI+Web3 research and topics are heating up, from AI+Depin to AI Memecoin, and then to AI Agent and AI DAO, new narratives are emerging continuously.

This combination filled with hot money and future fantasies is inevitably seen as a marriage brokered by capital. It is hard for us to distinguish whether it is the home ground of speculators or the eve of an explosion at dawn.

This article attempts to examine this pattern: how Web3 plays a role in the AI technology stack, and what new vitality AI can bring to Web3?

Part.1 What Opportunities Does Web3 Have Under the AI Stack?

1. Basic Layer: Computing Power and Data's Airbnb

Hash Rate

One of the high costs of AI is the computing power and energy required for training and inference. The area where Web3 first intersected with AI is DePin, which reduces end-user costs by sharing idle GPU resources in a decentralized manner.

Main Features:

• Gather idle GPU resources
• Long-tail market focused on AI computing power
• Decentralized Ownership

Data

Data is the foundation of AI. Web3 solutions include:

1. Data collection: Obtaining user private data at low cost through distributed networks and incentive mechanisms.

2. Data preprocessing: Utilize decentralized incentive mechanisms to complete tasks such as data labeling.

3. Data Privacy and Security: Protect sensitive data using technologies such as TEE, FHE, zkTLS.

4. Data Storage: Develop high-performance storage solutions to support the large-scale data demands of AI applications.

2. Middleware: Model Training and Inference

Decentralized Market for Open Source Models

Web3 presents the possibility of a decentralized open-source model marketplace, retaining revenue for teams through tokenization and incentivizing development.

Verifiable Inference

In response to the "black box" problem of AI inference, Web3 proposes technologies such as zkML, opML, and TeeML, which achieve verifiable computation while protecting privacy.

3. Application Layer: AI Agent

Web3 brings to AI Agents:

Decentralization: Establish incentive and penalty mechanisms through PoS, DPoS, etc., to promote the democratization of the system.

Cold Start: Assist AI Agent projects in securing early financing.

Part.2 How AI Empowers Web3?

1. AI and On-chain Finance

Potential Applications of AI Agents in On-Chain Finance:

1. Information Collection and Prediction
2. Asset Management
3. Financial Experience Optimization

AI technology can also be used to enhance the security of on-chain transactions, such as transaction monitoring and risk analysis.

2. AI and On-chain Infrastructure

AI and On-Chain Data

AI technology plays an important role in on-chain data collection and analysis, such as Web3 Analytics, MinMax AI, etc.

AI and Development & Audit

AI can assist Web3 development, simplifying the writing, deployment, and auditing processes of smart contracts.

3. AI and the New Narrative of Web3

AI brings new possibilities to Web3:

• NFT: Generate unique artworks and characters
• GameFi: Improve content production efficiency
• DAO: Assisting in community management and decision-making

Part.3 The Significance of the Combination of AI and Web3: Towers and Squares

The relationship between AI and Web3 is like that of a tower and a square. AI represents a centralized tower, while Web3 is a decentralized square.

Web3 brings to AI:

• The transparent system automatically executes rules.
• Token Economic Incentive Mechanism
• Decentralized Governance

AI Injects New Vitality into Web3:

• Attract more users
• Innovative business models and services

The combination of AI and Web3 is expected to open up new possibilities in serving humanity. We look forward to seeing this promising future.