Grayscale: As AI impacts tech stocks, blockchain may become a long-term beneficiary

Odaily Planet Daily News: As artificial intelligence triggers volatility in tech stocks and drags down the software sector, digital asset management firm Grayscale states that blockchain and AI are not competitors but are long-term complementary technologies. Blockchain is expected to become a key infrastructure for the AI economy.

Grayscale’s Head of Research, Zach Pandl, pointed out that although recent crypto asset price movements are highly correlated with declines in software stocks, this synchronized correction masks a more constructive long-term relationship between the two technologies. This year, the S&P 500 Software Index has fallen about 20%, with the combined market value of software and service companies evaporating around $1 trillion, putting pressure on crypto market valuations as well.

Pandl believes that in the future, AI agents equipped with digital wallets will be more likely to conduct transactions via blockchain rather than traditional banking systems. Blockchain’s features—24/7 operation, global accessibility, fast settlement, and transparent verifiability—make it an ideal infrastructure for AI agents to automate payments and transactions. The growth of small, high-frequency transactions with stablecoins could be an important signal of this trend.

Additionally, Grayscale suggests that blockchain could help mitigate some risks associated with AI, such as unverifiable data sources, the proliferation of deepfake content, and concentration of technological control. Public blockchains can provide verifiable records and a more decentralized infrastructure, creating a system of checks and balances.

However, the report also notes that AI technology could pose new challenges to crypto networks, including more efficient on-chain monitoring that might weaken privacy protections, and AI tools potentially discovering new security vulnerabilities in smart contracts. Overall, Grayscale believes that the rapid development of AI will create new use cases for blockchain rather than replacing the crypto industry.