According to Emin Gün Sirer, the founder of Ava Labs, smart contract programming is a difficult task. The capture of “intent” is challenging, and coding and verification present their own set of difficulties. Sirer believes that this is the main obstacle preventing smart contracts from flourishing. However, he suggests a future where artificial intelligence (AI) agents like ChatGPT or Llama could handle smart contract coding. This could potentially lead to lawyers becoming the primary writers of smart contracts instead of coders. Furthermore, everyday individuals would be able to write smart contracts in their native language, making it as easy as writing a bank check. Sirer envisions this future as transformative, allowing billions of new blockchain users to join. Currently, smart contracts are predominantly written in Solidity, a computer language that remains unfamiliar even to programmers. However, Avalanche is developing a new virtual machine that combines AI and blockchains. This virtual machine is programmed in a natural language, such as English, German, French, Tagalog, or Chinese. Nevertheless, there are several challenges to overcome before AI agents can widely deploy these capabilities. Legal issues and defining unambiguous terms and keywords need to be addressed. Additionally, AI “agents” may not be ready to write legally binding documents, as they can hallucinate. However, short-term solutions could involve submitting transactions to multiple AI agents to ensure agreement. Some argue that smart contracts capable of handling natural language already exist or are close to being developed. These contracts can be created using plain English instructions that are immediately converted into executable code. Although these current offerings may not fully meet Sirer’s vision, progress is being made, and more work lies ahead. Sam Friedman, a principal solutions architect at Chainlink Labs, believes that AI agents writing smart contracts are already available but will continue to improve in terms of quality and complexity. He envisions scenarios where multiple AI agents collaborate to manage the lifecycle of a smart contract. Sirer acknowledges that there are still uncertainties, and moving forward requires guidance from individuals with diverse backgrounds. He believes that lawyers, who are skilled in using regular language to specify contracts, will play a crucial role in this new ecosystem. Average users are also capable of specifying basic transactions, and Sirer envisions a future where democratic and open platforms allow anyone to use these capabilities on an equal footing. Overall, Sirer finds this new approach to smart contracts fascinating and promising, and he believes it should not be ignored.
Founder of Ava Labs believes that smart contracts powered by AI have the potential to be revolutionary.