Circle CPTO Nikhil Chandok explains why the internet needs a native economic layer, how AI will reshape online activity, and why open systems matter.
In his recent appearance on The Milk Road Show, Circle CPTO Nikhil Chandok offers a compelling vision for the next era of the internet. He argues that while the web gave us a global information layer, it never developed a native economic one — a way for value to move as freely as information. Today’s payment systems, he notes, are a fragile patchwork never designed for global access, automation, or machine-driven transactions. As AI agents begin to perform more online activity than humans, the internet will need programmable, open, and globally accessible money to support the economic interactions that follow.
Nikhil also emphasizes why decentralization and openness matter more than ever in an AI-driven world. Drawing parallels to the quiet, resilient protocols that power the internet today, he explains that no single company should control the economic systems the world relies on. His conversation reflects the kind of thoughtful, systems-level leadership shaping Circle’s approach: building responsibly, supporting open infrastructure, and preparing the web for a future where programmable value is as fundamental as programmable information.
