Six Takeaways from TOKEN2049 Singapore

Token2049 Takeaways from a Web3 x AI VC Fund -– Eugene Tsai, Venture Data Analyst, Decasonic

The intersection of Web3 x AI is gaining consumer appeal and setting expectations across Asia as we observed during Token2049 in Singapore. AI models require access to high-quality data, and tokens can serve as effective incentives for consumers to contribute their data. In addition, other venture capital firms in Asia are showing strong interest in investing at this intersection, ranging from traditional Web2 investors to emerging Web3-native funds. Overall, this trend indicates that the convergence of Web3 x AI is moving toward mainstream adoption, and we at Decasonic are staying ahead of this trend.

Asia’s openness to digital assets further accelerates this convergence. The region’s widespread use of digital payments, relative sensitivity to fiat currency volatility, and proactive regulatory experimentation create fertile conditions for on-chain innovation. As a result, consumers and investors alike are primed to embrace tokenized ecosystems that align incentives between data contributors, AI developers, and end users.

Below are the six key takeaways in TOKEN2049 Singapore:

1. Consumer AI Becomes the Primary Growth Engine

Consumer AI is entering its breakout phase, with adoption accelerating fastest across Asia and expanding globally through new interfaces and use cases. The rise of AI agents marks a significant shift in how users interact online and in crypto, moving from passive assistance to active, autonomous collaboration. These agents are no longer confined to executing commands through a simple-UI and/or interface. They are beginning to reason, transact, and coordinate on behalf of users, driving a new layer of digital productivity.

A new category is emerging around specialized agents, designed for specific verticals across commerce, productivity, gaming, and personal finance. Each vertical is developing its own agent stack, forming defensible data moats and new distribution layers. This results in network effect capture by consumer applications/interfaces, primarily driven by personalization and data moat capture. This specialization reflects a broader movement from generic AI experiences to high-context, high-trust collaboration between humans and AI.

Another frontier is the rise of AI companions and digital twins. These agents extend a user’s identity, creativity, and presence online. They serve as partners rather than tools, fostering deeper engagement, emotional connection, and human–AI collaboration. Twins can be used for a variety of use-cases, with the current most popular use cases centering around companionship, gaming, streaming, and fitness coaches. 

As the category grows, we are seeing the rise of interconnected agent networks. Within these networks, autonomous agents collaborate, trade, and learn from one another, forming continuous digital economies. Marketplaces are emerging where agents offer skills, data, and services, creating an economy of digital labor that operates persistently and autonomously.

The next wave of the consumer AI stack is defined by human intuition amplified through autonomous execution. It is not about replacing humans but compounding human intuition through enhanced personalized, and interoperable AI systems that learn, coordinate, and evolve with us.This broader convergence of consumer AI and decentralized systems reflects a shift in how digital economies form and operate. We have written a dedicated blog post exploring this Consumer Web3 x AI intersection in greater depth.

2. Robotics Makes an Entrance

Robotics in Asia is rapidly evolving from industrial automation to a cornerstone of everyday service and commerce. Once confined to factory floors, robots now brew coffee, greet customers, and serve meals in cafes and restaurants. At TOKEN2049 Singapore, a session on the integration of robotics in the “Nanyang coffee” culture illustrated how automation enhances rather than replaces human craftsmanship. Retail coffee chains are leveraging robotic systems to optimize brewing, ensure consistency, and streamline service, blending tradition with cutting-edge efficiency.

We also met with a number of enterprises, including Google and TikTok at robotics events that are actively exploring the opportunities at the intersection, with a focus on crowdsourced data and enabling machine-to-machine economies.

This transformation signals a regional pivot toward service automation, where human-robot collaboration redefines productivity. Companies such as OpenMind are advancing multi-robot coordination in dynamic environments (through their Robotics OS), while GEODNET supplies the decentralized location infrastructure enabling centimeter-level precision, enabling devices to understand their real world environment.

Prismax contributes to this evolution through teleoperation technologies that extend human oversight and control across robotic systems, enhancing adaptability and safety in complex workflows.

3. Gaming Shapes the Next Era of Asia’s Digital Economy

The gaming industry has emerged as one of Asia’s most powerful digital economic drivers, merging technology, entertainment, and community. Valued at USD 136.5 billion in 2023 and projected to exceed USD 280 billion by 2030 at a compound annual growth rate of around 10 percent, the Asia-Pacific market commands nearly half of global gaming revenues. Nations like China, Japan, South Korea, and Southeast Asia anchor this growth, driven by mobile-first adoption, esports expansion, and an increasingly social gaming culture.

Beyond entertainment, gaming has become a cultural and creative economy, a platform where storytelling, design, and digital identity converge. While the presence of gaming events were more muted than previous years, excitement remains at the intersection of AI x GameFi. Recent releases from Fableborne, and Pudgy Penguins accelerate the excitement at the intersection. The rise of esports and virtual worlds signals gaming’s transition from pastime to profession, and from consumption to creation. In this context, Asia leads not merely through scale but through its ability to integrate technology with cultural narrative and democratize creative expression across diverse communities.

The evolution of gaming defines the next innovation frontier where digital economies thrive at the intersection of creativity, accessibility, and social connection, turning play into both cultural capital and economic power.

4. Institutional Capital Mobilizes Toward Digital Assets

The digital asset ecosystem is witnessing a major acceleration in institutional participation, anchored by the rapid growth of stablecoins and the emergence of Digital Asset Treasuries (DATs). Stablecoins have evolved into a foundational layer of the on-chain economy, serving as both a settlement medium and liquidity instrument across trading, payments, and decentralized applications. As of October 2025, the total market capitalization of stablecoins has surpassed USD 300 billion, representing an approximate 50 percent YTD growth rate. This expansion reflects increasing institutional reliance on stablecoins for real-time settlement, cross-border remittances, and on-chain treasury management. Their programmability and transparency provide a more efficient and secure alternative to traditional banking rails, positioning them as the backbone of digital capital flows.

Alongside this growth, DATs are emerging as a new corporate structure designed to hold and compound digital assets on balance sheets. During TOKEN2049, we met with DDC Enterprise, which has transitioned from a traditional business into a corporate Bitcoin treasury actively accumulating BTC as a strategic reserve asset. Canaan Inc. (NASDAQ: CAN) similarly operates as both a Bitcoin infrastructure provider and holder, aligning its balance sheet with the ecosystem it supports. DeFi Development Corp (NASDAQ: DFDV) represents a new model for DATs as a publicly listed entity built to accumulate and compound Solana as a core treasury asset. Together, these examples show how corporate entities are evolving into active capital allocators within digital ecosystems, directly participating in network value creation rather than remaining passive investors.

The expansion of stablecoins and the emergence of DATs reflect a fundamental evolution in institutional engagement with digital assets. Stablecoins are no longer experimental instruments but critical components of financial infrastructure, enabling efficient, transparent, and programmable capital flows across global markets. Meanwhile, DATs showcase how corporations are transitioning from passive asset holders to active participants in digital ecosystems, using blockchain-native strategies to compound value. Together, these developments underscore the institutional shift toward a more integrated, on-chain financial architecture that blends liquidity, transparency, and strategic asset accumulation.

5. RWA Tokenization Emerges as the Key Bridge Between TradFi and DeFi

Real-world asset tokenization is rapidly becoming one of the most practical pathways for connecting tangible value with blockchain-based systems. The process converts traditionally illiquid assets such as fine art, gemstones, real estate, and private equities into digital representations that can be traded, fractionally owned, and transparently verified. This structural shift addresses inefficiencies in storage, valuation, and market access while enabling global investors to participate in asset classes once restricted to a privileged few. Fine art and luxury asset services, for instance, are increasingly moving on-chain to enhance provenance tracking and facilitate fractional ownership of high-value collections.

During TOKEN2049 in Singapore, projects like GEMx, PreStocks, and xStocks showcased how RWA tokenization is expanding across both physical and financial domains. From gemstones and pre-IPO stocks to tokenized public equities, these models illustrate how blockchain is unlocking liquidity and accessibility for asset classes previously isolated from the digital economy.

Ultimately, RWA tokenization represents not just a technological breakthrough but a structural evolution in global finance. It shows how blockchain can anchor real economic value beyond speculation, building trust, transparency, and efficiency into markets that were once constrained by geography and exclusivity. As more real-world assets become interoperable with DeFi infrastructure, the boundaries between traditional and decentralized finance will continue to blur, paving the way for a more inclusive, liquid, and data-driven financial ecosystem.

6. Infrastructure and Distribution Emerge as New Growth Drivers

The focus of digital innovation is shifting from rapid experimentation to scalable deployment. As markets mature, infrastructure and distribution are becoming the decisive growth drivers shaping the next phase of technology adoption. Robust infrastructure spanning compute, storage, interoperability, and identity has evolved into the foundation of sustainable ecosystems. Regions such as Singapore, Hong Kong, and South Korea are positioning themselves as strategic infrastructure hubs, supported by strong policy frameworks, advanced hardware supply chains, and digitally native consumer bases. In this environment, control over the foundational layers of compute and access increasingly defines who captures value as the market expands.

At TOKEN2049 in Singapore, we met with Akash Network, a decentralized cloud marketplace, and Kite AI, which is building the foundational layer for the Agentic Internet. Both exemplify how decentralized infrastructure is advancing scalability and resilience across digital ecosystems.

Distribution is also emerging as a strategic moat for growth. In an increasingly interconnected environment, reaching users efficiently is as critical as technological capability. Platforms that control access points such as wallets, social networks, and super apps, including Base app, are becoming powerful distribution channels for digital services and applications. Ecosystems that successfully combine reliable infrastructure with broad and efficient distribution are best positioned to capture the next wave of adoption.

The convergence of infrastructure strength and distribution reach defines the new growth paradigm of the digital economy, where scalability, accessibility, and interoperability determine long-term success.

Asia at the Forefront of Web3 x AI

TOKEN2049 Singapore reinforced Asia’s position as a global hub for innovation at the intersection of Web3 x AI. The region’s vibrant developer communities, forward-thinking regulators, and digitally native consumers are driving rapid adoption and real-world implementation. If you are a founder building in this space, we at Decasonic would love to connect and explore how we can help you accelerate your vision.

The content of these blog posts is strictly for informational and educational purposes and is not intended as investment advice, or as a recommendation or solicitation to buy or sell any asset. Nothing herein should be considered legal or tax advice. You should consult your own professional advisor before making any financial decision. Decasonic makes no warranties regarding the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of the content in these blog posts. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Decasonic. Decasonic disclaims liability for any errors or omissions in these blog posts and for any actions taken based on the information provided.