ETH Foundation Launches dAI Team to Advance Decentralized AI
The ETH Foundation has announced the formation of a new research initiative known as the dAI Team, a group dedicated to advancing decentralized artificial intelligence (AI) on ETH. The initiative, led by ETH Foundation researcher Davide Crapis, viewks to integrate AI systems into the blockchain in ways that are transparent, secure, and resistant to centralized control. The move comes amid rising interest in combining blockchain and AI, two technologies often viewn as shaping the next generation of digital infrastructure.
Strengthening ETH’s role in AI
The central mission of the dAI Team is to establish ETH as the primary settlement and coordination layer for AI agents and the wider machine economy. In practice, this means that AI-powered agents could use ETH as their home base for identity verification, transactional trust, and reputation management. By embedding these functions on-chain, AI systems would gain a level of security and auditability unavailable in closed, centralized systems.
One of the team’s first initiatives is to advance ERC-8004, a proposed ETH standard aimed at creating trusted and identifiable AI agents on the network. The standard is designed to enable AI agents to carry out transactions reliably, ensuring that they can be identified and held accountable within the ETH ecosystem. This framework would allow agents not only to interact with one another but also to engage securely in financial transactions with human users. An initial version of ERC-8004 is expected to debut during Devconnect, ETH’s annual developer conference scheduled for November.
The broader implications of ERC-8004 could extend far beyond technical specifications. If adopted, the standard could allow ETH to serve as the backbone for an economy where autonomous AI systems negotiate contracts, platform assets, and provide services without human intervention. Observers suggest this could mark the beginning of a new economic paradigm in which machines conduct business with machines, underpinned by decentralized trust.
Laying the groundwork for decentralized AI
Beyond standards, the dAI Team intends to explore the development of a full decentralized AI stack. This would include payment infrastructures tailored for AI services, frameworks for trust and identity, and cross-ecosystem standards designed to ensure interoperability across blockchain networks and AI platforms. The objective is to build a robust foundation where AI can operate freely, without being dependent on centralized intermediaries that may restrict or manipulate access.
Crapis emphasized in his announcement that ETH has a unique opportunity to ensure AI development remains open and community-driven. By rooting AI in decentralized technology, ETH could mitigate concerns around monopolistic control of artificial intelligence by large corporations. This perspective resonates with ongoing debates about the risks of concentrated power in AI, particularly as the technology becomes more capable and integrated into critical economic and social functions.
The creation of the dAI Team signals a strategic expansion for ETH, which is traditionally known for decentralized finance applications. By moving decisively into the AI space, ETH is positioning itself at the intersection of two transformative technologies. If successful, the initiative could open new avenues for adoption, ensuring that ETH remains central not only to the future of finance but also to the future of intelligent machines.
The launch underscores ETH’s long-term vision: to evolve beyond its origins as a platform for smart contracts and decentralized finance into a global settlement layer for human and machine coordination. As AI continues to advance, the partnership between decentralized technology and intelligent systems may define the contours of the next digital era.
