AI Agent Market Map: Hype Ends, Technology Continues

Written by Tiger Research

Compiled by AididiaoJP, Foresight News

Summary

• AI proxy market has plummeted in popularity after the token price crash, but technology development continues steadily. The DeFAI space has regained traction with real-world product launches and specialized on-chain functionality.

• Specialized agents optimized for specific features replace the previous generic agents. Projects like Virtuals are actively building infrastructure to connect these agents and enable collaboration.

• AI agents will be integrated into crypto projects as core functionality. The infrastructure that enables smooth communication and collaboration between agents will become crucial.

The hype is over, technology continues

crypto industry has integrated AI technology in a variety of ways, with AI agents receiving the most attention. At one point, the total market capitalization of tokens associated with agents reached about $16 billion. This shows strong market interest, but this attention is short-lived. Most projects failed to meet development expectations, with token prices plummeting by over 90% from their peak.

A price drop does not represent a technical regression. AI agents remain a significant technological area in the crypto space. Discussions about real-world use cases have become more specific, and the team continues to test new approaches. This report explores how AI agents play a role within the crypto space and explores potential future developments.

The reshaping of the AI agent ecosystem after the hype

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early AI agent projects faded out of the market

The AI proxy sector within the crypto space has been gaining traction since the end of 2024. The ai16z team's ElizaOS and the Virtuals Protocol team's G.A.M.E development stack significantly lower the barrier to entry for agent development. Launchpads like DAOS.fun and Virtuals Fun provide a platform for tokenizing the developed agents. The process from development to release has been simplified, market interest has exploded, and a large number of proxy projects have emerged rapidly.

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> most projects present ambitious roadmaps for leveraging AI technology. Investors have driven up the token price due to the anticipation of innovative services. In reality, these projects are just encapsulators of fine-tuned or prompt-engineered OpenAI or Anthropic foundation models. Most projects build advanced chatbots for X or Telegram rather than developing standalone services. The project emphasizes innovative vision and technological differentiation, but its actual operations are virtually indistinguishable from meme coins.

Source: aixbt

But there are some exceptions. Projects like aixbt and Soleng partially implemented the roadmap and launched real services. They employ token gating, providing exclusive access to token holders. Aixbt provides project analysis reports, and Soleng analyzes the Github codebase to support investor decision-making.

Even these relatively successful cases cannot overcome structural limitations. The unstable revenue structure, relying solely on token price increases, hindered progress. Technology competitiveness lags behind Web2 companies. The token price eventually fell, the working capital dried up, and most projects are now out of service.

The DeFAI project rekindles hope in the field

and AI agent technology, which has faced excessive expectations, is now in a correction phase. The DeFAI space has regained traction by proving its real value. DeFAI agents execute automated investment strategies 24/7. They enable users to easily access complex DeFi services through simple natural language commands. This field was the core narrative of the early AI agent space. Most projects are stuck in the roadmap stage and difficult to implement. The field has temporarily lost its attention. Recent product launches are rebuilding market expectations.

Representative projects include Wayfinder and HeyAnon. Wayfinder performs on-chain tasks through dedicated AI agents called "Shells." Shells execute on-chain transactions directly through built-in dedicated wallets. The system adopts a professional multi-agent architecture, including trading agents, perpetual agents, and contract agents. Each agent type focuses on specific roles to automate various investment strategies. Users can easily execute simple cross-chain trades or advanced strategies such as basis trading and leveraged auto-investing.

From individual agents to agent networks

Early AI agent projects promoted "universal agents" that performed all functions. This approach prioritizes financing over technological completeness. The project presents a plethora of roadmaps to capture the broader market. Most exposed limitations during the implementation phase.

The current proxy ecosystem is moving in a completely different direction. Recognizing the limitations of generic proxies, builders now develop proxies that focus on specific domains. These agents can collaborate with each other, which is similar to skilled craftsmen with different expertise carpenters, electricians, plumbers, etc., working together to build a house.

Virtuals Protocol's ACP represents this trend. It provides a standard framework for communication and task assignment between different agents. Theoriq and General Impression are also building infrastructure to enhance interoperability between agents. The market is reshaping towards maximizing the value of the entire proxy ecosystem rather than individual proxies.

Future scenario for the AI agent market

After the early hype cooled down, AI agents are still evolving. The speculation is over, but the project continues to build new features and services using AI agents. Two changes stand out.

First, AI agents become essential infrastructure. AI agents are no longer a separate field but are integrated as essential features for crypto projects. Blockchain data platform Nansen develops research agents to make complex on-chain data easier to explore. DeFi projects also add proxies to improve user access. AI agents will be the last step in connecting users to the blockchain, rather than an optional feature.

Second, agency business will grow. As AI agents become the standard, interactions between agents and between agents and humans will become more frequent. Secure transaction protocols and trust mechanisms are becoming increasingly important. Projects like Virtuals Protocol's ACP laid the groundwork for this.

These changes will simplify the complexities of the crypto space, improve user experience, and create new economic opportunities.