Fireside Chat I Kartik Talwar and Illia Polosukhin I Pragma Cannes 2025

Thu, Oct 2, 2025, 12:00 AM

In this fireside chat at Pragma Cannes 2025, Kartik Talwar and Illia Polosukhin (Near Protocol) explore the intersection of crypto and AI, focusing on decentralization, privacy, and autonomous agents. They discuss how AI can simplify user experiences in crypto, enabling intent-based actions and predictive interfaces. Key challenges include reliability, data privacy, trust, and sovereignty, especially when AI models are controlled by centralized entities. Illia highlights advances in confidential computing (Nvidia Hopper, Intel TDX) that enable secure, verifiable AI computation with minimal overhead, paving the way for decentralized, unstoppable autonomous agents. They delve into integrating AI agents with blockchain via secure enclaves, programmable encryption (chain signatures), and intent-based smart contracts for payments and work. The conversation covers agent communication protocols (AITP), the evolution of user interfaces towards AI-driven, just-in-time experiences, and the broader vision of merging web3 and AI for secure, user-centric applications. 00:00 Introduction 00:46 Overlap of Crypto and AI 01:51 AI-Driven User Experiences 03:09 Reliability and Trust Issues in AI 04:08 Sovereignty and Centralization Risks 05:18 Blockchain Solutions for AI Challenges 06:28 Confidential Computing Advances 07:36 Integrating AI with Blockchain 08:31 Autonomous Agents and Decentralized Cloud 10:07 Legal Contracts, Payments, and Real-World Integration 11:21 Blockchain Network Evolution 12:39 Confidential Compute and Data Privacy 13:31 Programmable Encryption and Chain Signatures 14:38 Personal Memory Boxes and Secure AI Models 15:07 Intents for Payments and Contracts 16:46 Building AI Agents: Near vs. General SDKs 17:44 Agent Communication Protocols (AITP) 18:45 The Future of Interfaces: AI-Driven Experiences 19:44 Closing Remarks _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ 🇫🇷 *Pragma Cannes* Pragma Cannes 2025 was held on July 3rd at the Carlton Cannes in Cannes, France and was an in-person summit for builders and leaders in the web3 ecosystem. Watch the full Pragma Cannes YouTube Playlist here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLXzKMXK2aHh6jZYPY5-YIBzvMtUT3ajjI ETHGlobal's Pragma series takes place in cities around the world, and is designed to be a different kind of event. Pragma is a one-stage conference with founders-only on stage, bringing together a small group of curated attendees and speakers to discuss the future of web3 and reflect on the past. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ ✅ Follow Illia Polosukhin X: https://x.com/ilblackdragon ✅ Follow NEAR X: https://x.com/NEARProtocol ✅ Follow ETHGlobal X: https://x.com/ETHGlobal​ Warpcast: https://warpcast.com/ethglobal Website: https://ethglobal.com YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@UCfF9ZO8Ug4xk_AJd4aeT5HA _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Are you interested in Ethereum development and entrepreneurship? 👉 Sign up for the next ETHGlobal event: https://ethglobal.com/events 🎁 Get exclusive access and perks with ETHGlobal Plus! https://ethglobal.com/plus 📣 Want us to throw an event in your city? Tell us where! https://ethglobal.com/city _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _