Aptos

Sandy Kaul, head of digital assets and innovation at Franklin Templeton, has expressed the view that AI agents will become the next killer use case for blockchain and crypto assets. She argues that as the AI agent economy expands, demand will grow for blockchain protocols that handle machine-to-machine micropayments. Traditional payment networks like Visa require one to three business days for settlement and are structurally unsuited to an agent economy that generates vast numbers of micropayments, whereas high-speed chains such as Aptos, Solana, and BNB Chain can process transactions in seconds and simultaneously handle recording and settlement, making them a good fit. Citing forecasts referenced in the report, Kaul said agent-based commerce could reach a scale of three to five trillion dollars by 2030, and that investors will need to buy the crypto assets and altcoins issued by decentralized networks in order to capture their value.