Nansen CEO bets on AI agents to overtake human traders within two years
Quick Take
- Nansen CEO Alex Svanevik expects AI trading agents to overtake human traders within about two years, and is rebuilding the analytics platform around execution to get there.
- Of the top 15 perpetual futures traded on Nansen, roughly 10 are non-crypto --- SpaceX, the S&P 500, gold and oil among them, Svanevik said.
Alex Svanevik expects AI trading agents to overtake human traders within roughly two years, and he is rebuilding Nansen around that wager.
The onchain analytics firm, which Svanevik co-founded and runs as CEO, has moved from surfacing data to letting users trade directly, a shift he described on The Block's daily show, The Starting Block. The company has done a little over $500 million in trading volume since launching the feature, he said.
"I would be very surprised if we don't have more trading agents than humans, you know, within two years," Svanevik said. The product vision reduces to a single line, in his telling: trade everything on chain with agents.
Getting there requires three shifts at once, from analytics to execution, from crypto-only to every asset class, and from humans picking tokens to agents picking them, Svanevik told The Block.
Why agents beat humans
Svanevik's case for why agents win rests on their behavior, not just their speed. Human retail traders are "quite sheep-like," he said, prone to piling into the same trades.
Agents draw on more varied inputs, models and tooling, which he argued makes them more diverse than the humans they would replace. That flexibility cuts both ways. Because the agents run on inference rather than fixed rules, their inputs can be contaminated or poisoned to steer their behavior, Svanevik said, a risk he said Nansen has to close off before putting the product in users' hands.
The research is unglamorous in the interim. One of Nansen's trading agents turned $23 in profit while burning $700 in inference costs, Svanevik said, an imbalance he shared to illustrate how early the economics still are.
Nansen's edge, in his account, comes from more than 500 million labeled blockchain addresses accumulated over six years, data he said lets agents see activity on-chain that would otherwise be invisible.
Everything is going onchain
The clearest sign of where markets are heading sits in what Nansen users already trade. Of the top 15 perpetual futures on the platform, about 10 are non-crypto, spanning SpaceX, the S&P 500, gold, silver, crude oil and Brent, Svanevik said.
Nansen added Robinhood to the platform this week, with trading on Robinhood set to switch on within days, he said.
Centralized exchanges will struggle to follow, in his view, held back by licensed businesses that constrain what they can do with agentic trading and by lucrative legacy operations that the technology disrupts.
For now, the tooling isn't ready. Svanevik said Nansen is holding its autonomous agents back rather than shipping what he called slop, running them through backtesting and paper trading before they touch real funds. He put the genuine advantage still months away, against a flippening he expects inside two years.
This content is provided for general informational purposes only and doesn't constitute financial, investment, legal, or tax advice. Any events, rewards, online promotions, or related information mentioned herein should not be considered a recommendation, solicitation, or invitation to purchase, sell, trade, or otherwise deal in any crypto assets. Crypto assets are highly volatile and may result in loss. The availability of WEEX services, products, and related events may vary by region. You are responsible for ensuring that your participation is in accordance with applicable local laws and regulations.
You may also like

August 3 Cryptocurrency Update: Bitcoin and Ethereum in a Wait-and-See Mode After FOMC Meeting

Sky Protocol Achieves Remarkable Milestone with Annual Revenue Approaching $419 Million! Demand for USDS Boosts DeFi Earnings!

Breaking: Arbitrum Foundation Proposes $43 Million Budget for 2027, What Do You Think? Governance Debate Heats Up!

Important: MakerDAO Adjusts Governance During Transition to Sky! Fine-Tuning Continues Towards Endgame

Ethereum Foundation Launches Guide for Governments! Is It Trying to Say, "We're More Than Just a Cryptocurrency"?

Is it true? The company famous for Dogecoin has secured an 80 billion yen contract with AI!? Is this a game changer?

Great News! Kansai Electric's Points Can Finally Be Exchanged for Jpyc (Yen-Pegged) on Polygon!

Breaking: ENS Labs Abandons Fund Transfer to Foundation! DAO Wallet Preserved Amid Delegate Outrage

Exciting News: NEAR Introduces Staking for AI Usage! Tokens Won't Be Consumed!

Curious Invention for the Home: The Interactive Mug to Personalize Your Mornings

After 3 reverse stock splits and a $13.5M loss, this real estate firm bet $8M on crypto it may not be allowed to withdraw

Infidelity, Escape, and a Million-Dollar Divorce: The $730 Million Settlement That Shook the Dubai Royal Family

Cryptocurrency Market in Russia to Receive General Rules and a Register of Digital Depositories

SEC keeps Nasdaq bitcoin options on hold after granting CME review

The Self-Proclaimed Satoshi Nakamoto Attacks Bitcoin Governance Model

XRP extends the longest active ETF inflow streak in crypto as rival funds struggle for fresh cash

Hank Green and the AI Addiction: The Warning Creators Ignore

Counting down the days: State of Crypto

Dibu Martínez's Future Takes a Turn After Key Decision by Aston Villa: Is He Staying?

Post-Quantum Security: AI Discovers Vulnerability in One of the Candidates for New Digital Signatures

Eight Years of Bitcoin Savings Lost in Fifteen Minutes. Hardware Manufacturer's Error Cost 1367 BTC

Due to the income and salary crisis, 62% of Argentines have gone into debt to cover basic expenses

18 Million Dollars in 42 Days: The Sale That Funded Ethereum – The Crazy Crypto Stories

Iguazu Falls: Devil's Throat Closed for 40 Days Due to Possible Flooding

Casemiro's Forgettable Night at Inter Miami: Two Mistakes and an Own Goal in Lionel Messi's Return to MLS

BCRA Reform: Broad Support for Emission Limits and Some Reservations on the Single Mandate

Trump’s legal loophole around the Supreme Court is keeping inflation alive – and trapping Bitcoin in the Fed’s crosshairs

Are stablecoins really fee-free?

What Does Waller Think? Will There Be a Rate Hike in September? Markets Are in a Dilemma Ahead of the August Jackson Hole Meeting










