Ethereum's First Steps into AI... ERC-8004 to Embed AI Agents on the Blockchain
Ethereum (ETH) is making a full-scale foray into the artificial intelligence (AI) industry. Ethereum developers are preparing a new standard upgrade that will allow AI to be integrated with blockchain, and the technology will soon be implemented on the mainnet.
On the 27th, the Ethereum development team officially announced the imminent release of a new standard called "ERC-8004." ERC-8004 is a type of "AI Agent Protocol" designed to enable AI agents to connect and interact with each other on the blockchain without a trust foundation. The developers explain that this could lead to the creation of a decentralized AI network, or "agent economy."
The proposal was first proposed in August 2025 and has since undergone numerous community reviews and revisions, reaching its final implementation stage. "Development is complete, and we're slated for launch on Thursday, January 30th at 9:00 AM ET," said Marco De Rossi, AI Lead at MetaMask, who spearheaded the development.
Blockchain ID for AI Agents… Implemented as NFTs
The core of ERC-8004 is to provide AI agents with a unique digital identity and a reliable activity history. To achieve this, each AI agent is assigned an ERC-721 NFT. This NFT serves as the agent's "on-chain ID" and can also be combined with an Ethereum Name (ENS), which serves as a username. This allows users to interact with non-human AI agents based on a secure identity.
Furthermore, Ethereum uses this standard to store AI agents' behavior records and evaluation results on the blockchain. This allows other agents and users to easily verify their reputation and trustworthiness, enabling collaboration without the need for pre-established trust. This provides a fundamental difference from the existing AI ecosystem dominated by centralized platforms.
The Ethereum Foundation's AI Director also emphasized that "ERC-8004 is the first example showing that Ethereum can become a 'platform that can verify and settle interactions between AIs.'"
Ethereum's "AI Expedition" Didn't Happen Overnight
While ERC-8004 represents a milestone in Ethereum's AI integration strategy, AI research on Ethereum has actually been ongoing for a long time. The Ethereum Foundation has already established a dedicated organization called the "dAI Team," which has laid the technological foundation for building decentralized AI infrastructure and serving as a coordination and settlement layer for autonomous systems. Building on this foundation, ERC-8004 represents a significant step forward toward practical implementation.
Ethereum is currently trading at around $2,948 (approximately 4.23 million won) as of the 1st. The market is focusing on whether Ethereum, with ERC-8004 as a springboard, will establish itself as a major platform connecting AI and blockchain. Real-world experiments are just beginning to explore how decentralized technology can transform the AI industry and how blockchain can address AI's trust issues.
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🔎 Market Interpretation
ERC-8004 is a core protocol that marks Ethereum's entry into the AI agent economy, enabling trustless collaboration and identity verification based on blockchain. This accelerates the convergence between the AI and blockchain industries, enhancing the scalability and utility of the Ethereum ecosystem.
💡 Strategy Points
- For investors, it will generate new interest in Ethereum-based projects at the intersection of future industries such as AI and blockchain.
- Provides developers with a roadmap for developing decentralized AI services.
From a corporate perspective, a structure has been created that allows companies to transplant their own network reputation to the blockchain while solving the data monopoly problem of existing AI services.
📘 Glossary
🔹 ERC-8004: An Ethereum standard designed to allow AI agents to identify and interact with each other on-chain via NFTs and ENS.
🔹 AI agent: An artificial intelligence program that operates and makes decisions on its own and executes specific tasks on behalf of the user.
🔹 ENS (Ethereum Name Service): A system that converts Ethereum wallet addresses into human-readable names.
🔹 NFT (Non-Fungible Token): A digital asset whose uniqueness and ownership can be proven by registering it on the blockchain.
💡 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
Q.
Who will use ERC-8004?
ERC-8004 is primarily used by developers seeking to leverage AI agents, Web3 businesses, and participants in decentralized AI platforms. Potential users include anyone seeking to develop or operate AI-powered automated services on a decentralized basis.
Q.
How is it different from existing AI technologies?
Existing AI operates on centralized servers, with each company owning and controlling data. In contrast, ERC-8004's decentralized structure allows AI agents to operate independently on the blockchain, undergo evaluation and settlement, and collaborate. A key difference lies in its ability to clearly define data ownership and incentive structures, even in a trustless environment.
Q.
How can this system be applied in the real world?
Examples include automated order processing AI, customer service chatbots on the blockchain, and AI operators employed by decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs). These AI operators can function effectively in decentralized ecosystems by being authenticated with their NFT-based identities and earning trust based on past collaborations.
TP AI Precautions
This article was summarized using a TokenPost.ai-based language model. Key points in the text may be omitted or inaccurate.
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