Uneasy Money: Illia Polosukhin on Why Onchain Commerce Needs Confidentiality

Confidentiality acts as a critical catalyst for mainstream crypto adoption, enabling businesses to conduct on-chain commerce without exposing sensitive financial data like revenue or payroll. NEAR Protocol’s "Intents" architecture addresses this by allowing complex, private execution across diverse blockchains, effectively bridging the gap between smart-contract-enabled and non-smart-contract chains. Beyond privacy, the integration of AI-driven security systems like SHIELD provides real-time anomaly detection to mitigate illicit activity and coordinate incident responses across the ecosystem. Organizations in the crypto space are shifting toward market-based coordination, where AI agents handle execution and credit assignment, reducing reliance on traditional hierarchical management. This evolution reflects a broader transition toward decentralized, redundant systems that prioritize functional utility and security over abstract ideological goals, ultimately aiming to create a more efficient, trustless global economy.