Ethereum’s Bold ERC-8004 Move Could Transform the Open AI Agent Economy

Ethereum signaled a major step toward AI-focused infrastructure on Feb 4, sharing that Ethereum is being positioned as a home for AI agents. The network highlighted ERC-8004, a newly proposed standard developed with support from the Ethereum Foundation’s dAI Team alongside major contributors such as MetaMask, Google, and Coinbase.

The aim is simple: give AI agents a common system where they can identify themselves, show that they are trustworthy, and trade with each other without being locked into closed platforms.

Before ERC-8004, AI services had remained in their respective platforms. If an AI agent performed well in a particular platform, its performance remained in that platform as well.

ERC-8004 seeks to change this by placing identity and reputation on the Ethereum platform. This could allow AI agents to act as open participants in the blockchain economy rather than mere tools of a particular provider.

Three Registries Form the Core of ERC-8004

Fundamental to ERC-8004 are three on-chain registries that establish trust. The first is the identity registry, which contains the name, skills, and endpoints of an agent to create a complete profile that can be referred to by others.

The second is the reputation registry, which maintains an immutable record of feedback history associated with the agent. This establishes trust that is not tied to a particular marketplace but can be taken with the agent from one app to another.

The third one is the validation registry. This is where it is recorded that the agent has done the work correctly, before any payments or hiring.

These three registries allow the agent to be searched globally, viewed before hiring, assigned tasks, and then validated after completion. Payments can be made once the work is validated, ensuring a smooth workflow between agents.

Foundation for an Open Ethereum-Based Agent Economy

Base Build showcased ERC-8004, noting that Base is the first Layer-2 network to support this standard since it launched on the Ethereum mainnet last week. Base described the chain as a “public registry where anyone can read or write agent data,” which makes AI agents visible across platforms.

This is a huge problem in the current AI economy, as reputation does not travel. When an agent moves to a new marketplace, its reputation is often reset to zero.

ERC-8004 remedies this by making trust both neutral and portable. The platforms can concentrate on user experience rather than having the data locked in. It does not replace communication protocols such as MCP or A2A, or payment protocols such as x402.

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