# Building AI Agents on The Graph | Kevin Jones

- Speakers: Kevin Jones
- Channel: [ETHGlobal](https://streameth.org/ethglobal)
- Date: 2026-08-09
- Duration: 22:30
- Topics: The Graph, Kevin Jones, Edge & Node, ETHGlobal Lisbon 2026, AI agents, subgraphs, substreams, GraphQL, blockchain data, indexers, decentralized network, MCP server, AI skills, Cursor, Claude Code, AssemblyScript, Rust, ClickHouse, composable subgraphs, x402, API keys, HTTP 402, Coinbase, Scaffold Agent, Scaffold-ETH, Next.js, Vercel AI SDK, One Claw, MPC, HSM, TEE, Google Cloud, burner wallet, USDC, Base, Uniswap, bounties, hackathon, workshop, DeFi
- Watch: https://streameth.org/watch/yt-0ZX19RQVeMI
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0ZX19RQVeMI

## Description

In this workshop at ETHGlobal Lisbon 2026, Kevin Jones, a BuidlGuidl member who works at Edge & Node (the original creators of The Graph Protocol), shows hackers how to build AI agents on The Graph and walks through the bounties. He explains The Graph as a decentralized network of indexers that serve blockchain data, and covers its two main products. Subgraphs are GraphQL-based APIs, easy to create in the subgraph studio and usually focused on a specific smart contract, that make complex time-series blockchain data far easier to query than hitting an RPC directly. Substreams are a Rust-based streaming protocol that pipes deeper, blockchain-wide data (transactions, value transfers, wallets) directly into your own database like ClickHouse. He notes subgraphs are written in AssemblyScript (a TypeScript subset) while substreams are Rust, both of which AI tooling handles well.

Kevin focuses on the AI angle. He introduces The Graph's two MCP servers (one for subgraphs, one for substreams) as discovery tools that let an agent find the right data (for example, asking for Uniswap data returns the relevant subgraphs with a recommendation), and points to installable subgraph and substreams skills for coding agents in Cursor, Claude Code, or any IDE. He lays out the bounties: $7,000 split five ways for tooling that helps agents use Graph data or the best AI use case of The Graph, plus a prize for best use of composable subgraphs (which sit on top of per-contract, per-chain subgraphs to unify a protocol deployed across many chains). He then demos Scaffold Agent, an AI-native command-line alternative to Scaffold-ETH (reusing its components, hooks, and burner wallet) that bootstraps a Next.js AI chatbot wired to the subgraph MCP server and able to consume The Graph over x402, Coinbase's crypto-native reinvention of the HTTP 402 status code that replaces API keys with pay-per-query. Using his own startup One Claw for MPC and HSM key custody (generating a signing key inside a TEE on Google Cloud so no private key sits on his machine), he scaffolds a project, funds the fresh wallet with 10 cents of USDC on Base, and attempts to query the last five Uniswap V3 swaps paid over x402. The live query does not go through, but he frames Scaffold Agent, the MCP servers, and the skills as strong starting points and points hackers to the booth for help.

00:00 Introduction
00:11 Meet Kevin and Edge & Node
00:29 What This Workshop Covers
00:50 Who Has Built a Subgraph
01:10 What The Graph Protocol Is
01:42 Subgraphs as GraphQL APIs
02:13 Creating a Subgraph in the Studio
02:53 Introducing Substreams
03:19 Streaming Data Into Your Database
03:44 AssemblyScript vs Rust
04:03 Why Rust Is Easy With AI
04:26 The AI Tooling in the Docs
04:44 The Two MCP Servers
05:11 How the MCP Discovers Data
05:31 Subgraph vs Substream MCPs
06:36 Installing the Skills for Your Agent
07:14 The Bounties and What The Graph Wants
07:53 Examples of Agent Tooling
08:14 Best Use of The Graph in AI
08:43 The $7,000 Prize Split
09:06 Best Use of Composable Subgraphs
09:29 Introducing the Scaffold Agent Demo
09:59 Why Scaffold Agent Is AI Native
10:26 The MCP and x402 Integration
10:53 What Is x402
11:17 Reinventing the HTTP 402 Status Code
11:45 x402-Enabled Subgraph Endpoints
12:09 What the Starter Kit Wires Up
12:36 Running the Scaffold Agent Command
13:17 Using One Claw for Key Custody
13:50 Generating an API Key
14:42 Generating Signing Keys in an HSM
14:58 Configuring The Graph and the LLM
16:06 Forcing Signing in a TEE
16:28 Bootstrapping the Application
16:56 Funding the Fresh TEE Wallet
17:58 Loading the Project in Cursor
18:26 The Encrypted and Public ENV Files
18:50 Running the App With One Command
19:22 The Next.js Application
19:39 Querying the Last Five Uniswap Swaps
20:45 Troubleshooting the Live Query
21:45 Why Scaffold Agent Is a Good Starting Point
22:07 Closing

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🇵🇹 *ETHGlobal Lisbon 2026*
This workshop is specifically for ETHGlobal Lisbon 2026, a 3-day hackathon held July 24-26 at the Carlos Lopes Pavillion, bringing together the most skilled web3 developers, designers and product builders from all around the globe for a weekend-long adventure to advance the Ethereum ecosystem! Watch the full ETHGlobal Lisbon 2026 playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLWgAODGnD_is

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