Can We Govern the Agent-to-Agent Economy?

TL;DR

The paper addresses how humans can oversee and control an economy where AI agents perform value exchange and governance at scale. It advocates a cryptoeconomic approach centered on Agentbound Tokens (ABTs) that fuse self-sovereign identity, dynamic credentialing, and stake-based governance to realize trust and accountability in a decentralized AI ecosystem. It elaborates mechanisms such as dynamic reputation, utility-weighted governance with per-agent caps, reputation decay, and automated slashing, overseen by decentralized validator DAOs and augmented by human-in-the-loop oversight. It also discusses practical challenges, such as liability, system vulnerabilities, and regulatory alignment, and positions ABTs as a forward-looking governance contract for DeAI with potential to scale without centralized power concentrations.

Abstract

Current approaches to AI governance often fall short in anticipating a future where AI agents manage critical tasks, such as financial operations, administrative functions, and beyond. While cryptocurrencies could serve as the foundation for monetizing value exchange in a collaboration and delegation dynamic among AI agents, a critical question remains: how can humans ensure meaningful oversight and control as a future economy of AI agents scales and evolves? In this philosophical exploration, we highlight emerging concepts in the industry to inform research and development efforts in anticipation of a future decentralized agentic economy.