Original title: Crypto AI Agents That Win: The 4 Key Pillars Of Success

Original author: Graeme

Compiled by: Asher

In the crypto space, the fundamental reason why most AI Agent projects quickly lose momentum is that they neglect systemic construction. Once a key link deviates, the potential energy will be lost and they will be overtaken by competitors who have made comprehensive efforts in products, tokens, social agents and narratives. The real competitive advantage is not only a single breakthrough, but also the construction of an organic self-growth system composed of AI products, token economy, social agents and founder narratives.

Currently, the AI Agent track is still in its early stages, mostly driven by independent developers, small teams, or AI engineers transformed from Web2. They need to overcome multiple knowledge barriers such as products, on-chain operations, token design, and social operations. This article will provide new entrants with a clear set of strategic guidelines, focusing on the four core pillars of AI Agent construction in the encryption field, to help create projects with long-term vitality.

1. Core driving force: AI products

The core product of AI Agent is the cornerstone of its value proposition. It must be clear, persuasive, and have unique advantages in the crypto industry. In the crypto field, AI Agent is not enough to be functional. The real power comes from combining autonomous decision-making capabilities with on-chain permissionless execution capabilities, allowing Agents to continue to evolve without human intervention. Specifically, the application scenarios of on-chain autonomous value generation include:

• Predictive Trading Bot: Automatically execute high-win trading strategies;

• DeFAI Agents: Autonomously discover profit opportunities, adjust positions in real time, and realize asset appreciation;

• Entertainment IP agent: creating emoticon/stalk culture, continuously generating content, selling peripherals or licensing IP;

• Game/guessing agent: Realize on-chain income by participating in games or guessing activities.

In addition, no matter which stage of the product life cycle the AI Agent is in, it must rely on "fuel" to drive collaboration and growth among users, investors, and the community, and this fuel is the token.

2. Growth Catalyst: Tokens

Tokens are the economic backbone and incentive mechanism of the entire ecosystem. Many teams tend to ignore token design when developing products, but in fact, a reasonable token model is crucial for sustainable growth. Effective token usage strategies include:

• Community building: Learn from the practices of top meme coins to create unified communication channels and organized social media promotion;

• Basic token flywheel: First, access products through token thresholds to stimulate early demand; second, accumulate treasury through transaction fees and other forms; finally, gradually introduce a repurchase/destruction mechanism based on income to consolidate the value of tokens;

• Gamification incentives: Align user behavior with project growth goals through mechanisms such as staking to play and earning while playing (although it is more complicated to implement, reasonable incentives are ultimately an investment in user acquisition costs).

Of course, if the AI Agent core product itself has sufficient value, the utility of the token can be gradually supplemented in the future. However, on the contrary, if the token model design is weak, the project's growth space will be extremely limited.

3. Visibility amplifier: social AI agent

In the third quarter of 2024, the explosion of @truth_terminal (GOAT) sparked market interest in "social AI agents". Although a large number of ineffective imitators subsequently emerged, GOAT proved the feasibility of releasing real value through direct social interaction. Therefore, social AI agents can be divided into four levels:

• Level 0 (low-quality bot): simply copies information, the content is junk, and it damages the brand image;

• Level 1 (Conversational Bot): Based on its own data set, it conducts in-depth interactions with users (e.g. @aixbt_agent );

• Level 2 (task-based bots): can directly perform on-chain operations through social interfaces and demonstrate practical value (e.g. @bankrbot , Clanker );

• Level 3 (Autonomous AI Agent): Currently emerging, it can predict actions and collaborate with other agents. Representative projects include @virtuals_io 's ACP framework and @arcdotfun 's Rhyzome.

From simple conversations to the ability to perform actual functions, the development trend of AI Agents in the crypto field shows that only agents that truly provide value can survive for a long time. However, no matter how well social AI Agents perform, whether they can ultimately establish a deep connection still depends on the narrative ability led by the founder.

4. Continuous Momentum Engine: Founder-led Narrative

In the crypto space, founders must personally become the biggest salesperson for their project . Effective founder marketing strategies include:

• Articulate the vision;

• High frequency and transparent progress updates;

• Continue to interact with the community in a variety of content formats.

In the crypto world, trust and reputation are the most valuable assets. Founders who are willing to step forward and endorse their projects usually gain an overwhelming advantage. Founders who have done well in this regard include:

• HeyAnon founder @danielesesta

• Acolyt founder @condzxyz

• ElizaOS founder @shawmakesmagic

Comprehensive flywheel effect: synergy of four pillars

When these four elements work together, they form a self-reinforcing value growth system:

• AI products: provide basic use value and drive user demand;

• Token economy: encourages continuous participation and binds community relationships;

• Social AI Agent: amplify communication and convert passers-by users;

• Founder’s narrative: consolidate trust and create long-term stickiness.

This is not just about building a product, but about building an ecosystem that can self-accelerate and continuously compound. In the future, the projects that can truly stand out will inevitably be those teams that deeply integrate products, token economy, social AI agents and founder narratives to create a closed-loop flywheel system.