Reid Hoffman, co-founder of LinkedIn and partner at Greylock, told CoinDesk’s Consensus conference in Miami that non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are expected to experience a “renaissance.” He believes this will happen as AI agents force the Internet to solve new problems of identity and trust.
Hoffman said he began rethinking NFTs when he imagined a future where AI agents outnumbered humans online. He asked: “When you start to think that we will have more agents than people, what does the identity layer look like? » He described a scenario in which an agent books an interview with another agent and questioned whether that transaction was reliable.
Identity Systems for the Open Internet
Hoffman noted that identity systems will exist within companies, but the most difficult challenge is the identity of agents operating on the open Internet. He said: “It’s going to be a kind of Internet freedom, and how does that work? And cryptography is the obvious answer.”
This thinking connects to Hoffman’s work at LinkedIn, where real professional identity was central. He said real identity can create “more accountability, more trustworthiness,” while recognizing that pseudonyms have legitimate uses in certain contexts.
Crypto as a trusted solution for deepfakes
Hoffman, who bought his first Bitcoin more than a decade ago and never sold it, presented crypto as a natural response to trust issues in the age of deepfakes. He cited his own AI clone, Reid AI, which he sent to speak at conferences. He said this shows why provenance will matter more as generative media improves.
He explained that the problem of identity goes beyond simple agent-to-agent commerce. He cited AI-generated content, bot farms, manipulated polls and paid political influence campaigns to illustrate why proof of humanity is increasingly difficult to ignore online.
Bipartisanship and industrial strategy
In a politically nuanced comment, Hoffman urged the crypto industry not to overcommit to Republicans on policy. He warned: “If the industry says, oh, we’re overreacting against Gensler, et cetera, and then we’re sort of anti-Democratic Party on this issue, the problem is the pendulum swings. » He added that it is good to be bipartisan and focus on the ecosystem and its role in society.
Hoffman also disputed the idea that AI is behind layoffs at big tech companies. He said most companies that claim layoffs are due to AI are actually just reorienting their businesses after over-recruiting during the pandemic. He called the AI explanation a “power position” move.
Investing in crypto ideas that could come back
As an investor, Hoffman said he looks for crypto concepts that may have been tried too early in previous market cycles, but could become relevant again as AI changes the internet. NFTs are one example, he said, while “DAOs and other areas” could also see renewed interest.
When asked what his Bitcoin exit price was, Hoffman did not give a number. Instead, he asked: “Is there an exit price?”
