AI hype: Can blockchain technology benefit?

As the best-known blockchain professor in Germany, he has been driving topics such as Bitcoin and Web3 for years Frankfurt School of Finance & Management Ahead. In addition, Prof. Dr. Philipp Sandner also in close contact with initiatives, industry representatives and companies in the crypto sector. He is correspondingly well acquainted with the current situation in the sector.

In an interview with Philipp Sandner, we wanted to know whether German banks are working on the Bitcoin offering, how blockchain technology can benefit from the AI ​​hype and what the most exciting topics on Web3 are. You can find the full interview on the BTC-ECHO Experts Podcast.

BTC-ECHO: DekaBank recently applied for a crypto custody license. Are the Sparkasse, Deutsche Bank or Commerzbank building a crypto infrastructure in the background in order to offer Bitcoin and Co. in the future?

Phillip Sandner: First of all, I need to be able to store Bitcoin and Ethereum. It’s like a layered model. On top of that, I could potentially hold bonds, funds, or stocks. You can’t have one without the other – but it’s a one-way street.

I do believe that the banks are systematically beginning to take an interest in individual domains. Bitcoin and smart contract platforms are at the very beginning. Now come the security tokens. In the making are CO₂ tokenization and the Metaverse. The banks are sometimes a few years behind in their regulation. That is, they are just getting stuck in understanding Bitcoin and smart contract platforms and are now starting to understand cryptocurrencies intensely. Is it bad that the banks always act with offset? I don’t think so.

What to make of the current AI hype in the crypto sector?

There will be clever entrepreneurs who spin both threads together. That makes sense too. Artificial intelligence will sooner or later start making decisions. So it can be that an AI makes expenses, for example to pay for electricity or to buy some things.

What is better than maintaining a wallet infrastructure to process payment transactions? Another area is to notarize the decisions of an AI. This means I know when an artificial intelligence has decided how, where and why. This is perfect for recording in the blockchain.

What do you think are the most exciting topics of Web3 this year?

I believe that bitcoin is currently experiencing relatively strong adoption. Not necessarily in this country, but elsewhere in the world. The topics of DeFi, NFT and smart contract platforms are now also developing positively, but no new hype scenarios are emerging. My gut feeling is that Bitcoin will make a splash with future price increases. In addition, CO₂ tokenization and the metaverse are still exciting: this could result in the next hype.