On-Chain AI Agent Economies: Verifiable Compute, Restaking & ZK Identity (Q2 2025)

In Q2 2025 the convergence of AI and blockchain accelerated into production. Decentralized “AI agents” began executing trading strategies, managing DeFi portfolios, and coordinating on-chain tasks with minimal human oversight. For example, Gensyn launched its RL Swarms protocol (for collaborative model training) and a blockchain-integrated testnetcoindesk.com. In this testnet, each AI model in a swarm is assigned a persistent on-chain identity and cryptographic proofs are used to verify computationscoindesk.com. Likewise, hackathons and startups spotlighted agentic trading bots: BNB Chain’s May 2025 hack featured AION, a “self-evolving on-chain AI agent” that learns user behavior and autonomously optimizes DeFi strategiesbnbchain.org. Agent marketplaces grew too: the Olas network saw its AI Agent App Store “Pearl” add new agents (e.g. Optimus as a personal asset manager) and recorded over 2.4 million agent-driven transactions in Q2olas.network. These developments show AI agents being embedded directly in financial apps – managing liquidity, arbitraging markets, and even automating DAO operations – all on-chain and at scale.

Decentralized Compute & Verifiable AI Execution

Underpinning this agent economy is a new infrastructure layer that enables secure, auditable AI compute on-chain. Projects are deploying decentralized GPU networks and cryptographic verification to remove reliance on centralized clouds. For instance, io.net now runs 10,000+ GPUs across 138 regions as an open compute grid. Its Io.explorer provides real-time, on-chain visibility into every GPU, so users can audit node performance and costsio.net. Similarly, Gensyn’s multi-year infrastructure effort surfaced in Q2. Its RL Swarms demo allowed distributed models to exchange data, then uses “cryptographic proofs, probabilistic proofs, [and] game-theoretic proofs” to ensure each off-chain compute step was performed honestlycoindesk.com. By writing outcomes and identities to Ethereum, Gensyn adds on-chain trust (identity, payment, dispute resolution) to its AI training networkcoindesk.com.

Figure: Architecture of Warden Protocol – a new AI-focused blockchain. Warden’s multi-layer design runs heavy AI tasks off-chain but verifies results on-chain (using Statistical Proof of Execution and Asynchronous Verifiable Resources)messari.io.

Cartesi demonstrated another path: its RISC-V based rollup lets any Ethereum smart contract spawn a Linux VM to run TensorFlow, PyTorch or Llama.cpp. During Q2, Cartesi reported being the first blockchain stack to run trust-minimized on-chain LLM inference, citing its DeepSeek integrationcartesi.io. Unlike proprietary TEEs, Cartesi’s approach is fully verifiable on-chain: every inference is reproducible in software and can be audited or challenged by fraud proofscartesi.io. Cartesi also wrapped up an “Experiment Week” with EigenLayer (Ethereum restaking): together they showed how rollups can leverage restaked ETH for security and even run LLMs deterministicallycartesi.io. In parallel, EigenLayer itself unveiled EigenCloud (June 2025): a developer platform adding EigenCompute (verifiable off-chain compute) and EigenVerify (settlement-as-a-service with objective or AI-adjudicated proofs)forum.eigenlayer.xyz. EigenCloud is designed so that complex compute (even containerized AI workloads) can run off-chain but stay secured by Ethereum; EIGEN stakers will share in the resulting feesforum.eigenlayer.xyzforum.eigenlayer.xyz. These building blocks – restaked Ethereum security, on-chain proofs for AI, and decentralized GPU markets – create programmable compute incentives. Developers can now deposit tokens (or restaked stake) to pay for inference-by-the-second and reward honest operators, aligning crypto-economic incentives with reliable AI executioncoinbase.com.

Identity Layers: zkKYC, World ID, EAS

Identity and credential layers are emerging as critical “glue” for agent economies. Zero-knowledge KYC solutions are being piloted to balance regulatory compliance with privacy. For example, the upcoming Syntetika trading platform (June 2025) explicitly integrates “Galactica’s zero-knowledge KYC (zkKYC) stack” to satisfy compliance when offering tokenized assetsainvest.com. Similarly, open-source projects like EtherIdentity plan to add zkKYC by late 2025github.com. These allow an agent or institution to prove they’ve passed KYC without revealing personal data on-chain.

Proof-of-personhood systems like World ID are also gaining traction. Worldcoin’s network grew to ~26 million users (12M verified humans) and in May opened its World ID and token launch to the U.S. marketworld.org. In practice, World ID can provide a privacy-preserving on-chain identity for agents or voters. For example, an ETHGlobal project integrated WorldID as its login/auth system, then used EAS and on-chain attestations to run a DAO governance contractethglobal.comethglobal.com. The Ethereum Attestation Service (EAS) in particular is now the de facto on-chain credential layer. EAS lets anyone publish structured attestations (claims) about an address, according to schemas. Projects like Optimism, Coinbase, Arbitrum and others are adopting EAS for everything from KYC attestations to reputation signalsmirror.xyz. Chain-chat (an ETHGlobal demo) used EAS to anchor its DAO votes and eligibility proofs on-chainethglobal.com. In short, EAS and related attestations allow a decentralized agent or user to carry verifiable credentials (e.g. “passed AML check” or “DAO member”) into smart contracts, while zkKYC and WorldID secure the human endpoint. Together these identity layers prevent Sybil agents, enforce policies, and enable DAOs to interact with AI “counterparties” in a cryptographically sound way.

AI-Native Protocols and Markets

These technologies are spawning AI-native protocols and marketplaces. New chains and platforms are purpose-built to combine AI with finance. For example, Warden Protocol (a Cosmos-based L1) is preparing its mainnet for Q3 2025 to enable smart contracts to call AI models with cryptographic trustmessari.iomessari.io. Warden’s stack uses an “Statistical Proof of Execution” (SPEx) scheme: it samples compute across validators to probabilistically verify an AI inference without heavy ZK proofsmessari.io. Developers will deploy Asynchronous Verifiable Resources (AVRs) – plug-in AI modules or data feeds – that any chain can use. Warden is launching a Studio and AVR Marketplace allowing third parties to publish AI agents and models on-chain, paid via its WARD token and secured by consensusmessari.iomessari.io. Its beta “Warden App” (chat-wallet and assistant) already has 2M users, who can perform multi-chain swaps and even query a Messari AI agent for market research in natural languagemessari.io.

Another example is Sahara AI (a Solana-compatible chain), which provides a full AI asset marketplace. As of mid-2025, Sahara’s on-chain marketplace lets users buy/sell datasets, models, and agents with built-in royalties and “pay-per-inference” billingbinance.com. Sahara uses off-chain TEEs to run heavy models but posts cryptographic proofs on-chain to verify resultsbinance.com. Contributors earn by providing data, training models, or selling AI services. The result is a decentralized App Store for AI – trading algorithms, market-making bots, or analysis agents as easily as NFTs.

Across these ecosystems we also see financial agent markets emerging. Olas is effectively an exchange for AI agents: users can co-own agents and deploy them to perform tasks. Its quarterly report noted 600+ active “DAAs” and millions of agent-to-agent transactions in Q2olas.network. On EigenCloud/EigenLayer, staking pools now secure off-chain services (including AI inference) and users can stake EIGEN to earn fees from those servicesforum.eigenlayer.xyz. In essence, compute resources (GPUs, models, data) are being tokenized and traded via smart contracts.

Finally, programmable incentives are attracting capital. Web3 wallets and communities are recognizing that self-learning bots need built-in rewards and penalties. As Coinbase Institute observes, blockchain-native incentive rules can align AI agents to human goals – penalizing malicious behavior or rewarding verified contributionscoinbase.com. In practice, this means on-chain economies where an agent’s utility tokens entitle it to computation or data access, and protocols can tweak the “wage” per inference or task. For example, running a data-labeling or prediction service might pay in tokens per API call; or staking collateral might be required for high-risk bots. These programmable pay-per-use models (as in Sahara’s “inference fees” or io.net’s per-second GPU billing) allow the market to set fair prices for AI compute and data.

Outlook

In sum, Q2 2025 saw on-chain AI agents move from theory to practice, backed by new trust frameworks. Decentralized compute networks (io.net, Gensyn, Sahara) are arbitraging cloud resources globally, while protocols like Cartesi and EigenLayer embed cryptographic audits into AI workflows. Identity layers (zkKYC, World ID, EAS) ensure agents and users interact securely, enabling compliant DAOs and Sybil-resistant governance. AI-native chains (Warden, Sahara) and agent marketplaces (Olas, EigenCloud) are turning “intelligence” into a tradable asset. These trends directly support Multialpha’s theses: they create Decentralized Intelligence Arbitrage (open compute pools defeating Big Tech lock-in), Alpha Research Arbitrage (autonomous agents mining market and fundamental research), and Cyber Alpha (secure on-chain infrastructure for AI). As agents proliferate, the promise is an automated, AI-driven financial ecosystem – fully auditable and economically aligned to stakeholderscoinbase.comforum.eigenlayer.xyz.

Sources: Contemporary Q2 2025 reports and announcements from Io.netio.net, Gensyncoindesk.comcoindesk.com, Olasolas.network, Cartesicartesi.iocartesi.io, EigenLayerforum.eigenlayer.xyzforum.eigenlayer.xyz; Ethereum identity and DAO projectsmirror.xyzethglobal.comethglobal.com; AI protocol analysesmessari.iobinance.combinance.com; plus industry commentaryainvest.comcoinbase.com.