Chris Dixon: AI and crypto will redefine the creative economy

Key Takeaways

• The intersection of AI and crypto is poised to redefine economic models for creators.
• Technological waves often come in twos or threes, reinforcing each other and creating new opportunities.
• There are concerns about the trend towards closed source AI, driven by business interests rather than safety.
• The media protocol empowers creators to register intellectual property on the blockchain, unlocking media rights.
• Creators’ economic models must adapt to an AI-driven world.
• New incentive systems can improve AI data collection by aligning economic and creative incentives.
• Current captcha systems are outdated and ineffective against AI, which raises the need for cryptographic solutions.
• The rise of AI chatbots could disrupt the economic relationship between content creators and platforms like Google.
• A future dominated by a few large AI systems may not direct traffic to individual websites.
• Crypto can create effective incentive programs to help bootstrap networks during their early stages.
• AI and crypto are complementary technologies that could have a major impact on the economic structures of the future.
• The transition to closed source AI can limit innovation and accessibility.

Guest introduction

Chris Dixon is a General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz and Founder and Managing Partner of a16z crypto, which manages over $7 billion in dedicated funds dedicated to crypto and web3 technologies. He previously founded and served as CEO of SiteAdvisor, an Internet security company acquired by McAfee in 2006, and Hunch, a recommendation technology company acquired by eBay in 2011. Dixon holds a BA and MA in Philosophy from Columbia University and an MBA from Harvard Business School.

The convergence of AI and crypto

• The combination of AI and crypto can redefine economic models for smart people.

  — Chris Dixon

• Crypto may serve as a countermeasure to the convergence trend of AI.
• Understanding current trends in AI and crypto is critical to predicting economic changes.

• What will the economic model of this wave be if there are many corrections?

  — Chris Dixon

• Technological advances are rapidly reshaping economic models.
• The power of crypto is important in an AI-dominated environment.
• AI’s demand for data and computing resources is driving centralization.

• Can crypto be the equivalent of AI gravity?

  — Chris Dixon

Technological waves and their impact

• Technical waves often come in twos or threes, reinforcing each other.

  — Chris Dixon

• The historical context shows how technological processes interact and create opportunities.
• Emerging technologies like crypto and AI complement each other.
• Entrepreneurs and investors must understand this connection in order to plan strategies.

• They tend to reinforce each other.

  — Chris Dixon

• The pairing of technologies can lead to new business models and innovations.
• Understanding these waves is essential to navigating the tech landscape.

• Technical waves usually come in twos or threes.

  — Chris Dixon

The open source vs closed source AI debate

• The current trend towards closed source AI is concerning.

  — Chris Dixon

• Business interests may drive the move towards closed source AI, not security.
• Open source AI development is critical to innovation and governance.
• The debate concerns the future of technology development and accessibility.

• I don’t believe the safety thing.

  — Chris Dixon

• Closed source AI can limit opportunities for small developers.
• The trend may lead to autonomous control over AI technology.

• It turned out to be very good for them… I can’t believe the security thing.

  — Chris Dixon

Story protocol and intellectual property

• The news protocol allows creators to register their intellectual property on the blockchain.

  — Chris Dixon

• Blockchain technology can democratize access to media rights.
• Creators can register photos, videos, or music on the blockchain.
• This program maintains a record of the media and the rights surrounding it.

• You can create a photo or a video or a piece of music and register it on the blockchain.

  — Chris Dixon

• The protocol creates an open market for media rights.
• Manage rights management and access for creators.

• A new way of thinking about registering intellectual property.

  — Chris Dixon

Economic models are evolving in an AI-driven world

• Economic models for smart people must evolve in an AI-driven world.

  — Chris Dixon

• Technological progress is inevitable; Adaptability is important.
• Art must depend on technological developments and rethink models.
• The world of AI brings challenges and opportunities to creators.

• Don’t give up on the inevitable that is advancing technology.

  — Chris Dixon

• Economic models must adapt to the changing technological environment.
• AI is having a major impact on the art sector, requiring new approaches.

• Rethink those models.

  — Chris Dixon

New systems to promote AI data collection

• New incentive programs can improve AI data collection.

  — Chris Dixon

• Aligning economic incentives with innovation can improve AI systems.
• Data can be input or model testing in AI development.
• Incentive systems can drive better data collection methods.

• How can you use the new incentive programs to get more data for these AI programs?

  — Chris Dixon

• The combination of blockchain and AI offers new opportunities.
• Effective incentive programs are critical to AI development.

• The data can be the input or it can be the test of the model.

  — Chris Dixon

The need for cryptographic solutions in captcha systems

• Current captcha systems are outdated and ineffective against AI.

  — Chris Dixon

• Captcha puzzles have become too complex and obsolete.
• Cryptographic solutions are needed to protect systems against AI.
• Existing technology is struggling to keep up with AI advancements.

• Captchas today you should go and play these puzzles.

  — Chris Dixon

• Switching to cryptographic methods is necessary for security.
• AI poses significant challenges to current security technologies.

• Maybe it’s not AI proof anymore.

  — Chris Dixon

The impact of AI chatbots on content creators

• The rise of AI chatbots may break an implicit economic pact.

  — Chris Dixon

• AI systems trained on internet data disrupt creator platform relationships.
• Content creators may not receive traffic from AI systems.
• The change could have an impact on businesses that depend on web traffic.

• They took this data and these systems were trained on the data.

  — Chris Dixon

• AI chatbots are changing the dynamics of internet traffic and monetization.
• The agreement between creators and platforms is at risk.

• Under the assumption that they will return the traffic.

  — Chris Dixon

A future dominated by large AI systems

• We may be headed for a future dominated by a few large AI systems.

  — Chris Dixon

• These systems can provide answers without directing traffic to websites.
• Potential monopolistic trends in AI could change the landscape of the Internet.
• Small businesses may be affected by a lack of web traffic.

• You have five major systems let’s call them major AI systems three through five.

  — Chris Dixon

• The future of AI may lie between information and control.
• The implications of content monetization are significant.

• They give you the answer.

  — Chris Dixon

Crypto’s role in bootstrapping networks

• Crypto can effectively create incentive programs that help bootstrap networks.

  — Chris Dixon

• Promotional programs are important during the early stages of network development.
• Crypto’s unique value proposition lies in creating these systems.
• The most difficult part of the network is usually the bootstrap phase.

• Crypto is great for creating incentive programs.

  — Chris Dixon

• Understanding the network challenges is key to using crypto successfully.
• Crypto offers solutions to traditional network development problems.

• The most difficult part of the network is the bootstrap phase.

  — Chris Dixon