CZ Drops Truth Bomb on Crypto AI Hype at Token2049: ’Show Me the Utility’

Binance’s founder cuts through the Dubai conference buzz with a skeptic’s edge—while VCs scramble to justify their AI token bags.

Key question: Are these agents solving real problems or just inflating dev budgets?

Bonus jab: Another ’revolutionary’ use case for moving imaginary money between imaginary wallets.

CZ is Advising Dozens of Country on Crypto Policy

CZ’s ambitions extends beyond education. He revealed ongoing advisory roles with over a dozen governments, including the UAE, where his early involvement helped establish Dubai’s crypto regulatory body, VARA. He emphasized that blockchain’s value goes far beyond trading—covering use cases like land rights, digital IDs, and cross-border public services.

“The Currency for AI is Crypto”

“AI will change everything,” CZ said, highlighting its role in streamlining storybook creation, improving character consistency, and powering more interactive apps. He sees crypto as the natural financial layer for AI agents, which he believes will soon transact autonomously. “The currency for AI is crypto,” he added.

Binance co-founder also said that while there were many AI agents with tokens today, most lacked real utility. He expressed a desire to see agents that provided genuine value and practical use, backed by meaningful tokens. He criticized the rise of AI token launchpads where users could create an agent with their own name at the click of a button, calling such tokens useless and claiming that “99.99% of them were useless.”

CZ on Global Crypto Regulations

On the state of global adoption, CZ noted that Europe is lagging while countries like Bhutan and the U.S. are leading the way with crypto strategic reserves. Talking about India, CZ pointed out high taxes as a blockade for crypto adoption in the country. He called for more mission-driven founders in Web3 and urged entrepreneurs to focus on building real, user-centric applications—not just chasing token hype.

Reflecting on Binance’s early days, CZ admitted to underestimating the speed of its growth and the impact that stablecoins were going to have.