Opinion: Saad Naja, Founder and CEO of PiP World
The world is debating whether AI is the next dot-com bubble, chasing valuation rather than impact, but the underlying innovation story is missing. The same AI infrastructure that powers trillions of dollars in bets is already rewriting the way money moves. AI is no longer an investment theme. It’s the market itself.
Few were paying attention, but the same AI infrastructure that made headlines is already reshaping the market from the inside out.
The invisible battle going on behind the candlesticks is no longer bullish or bearish. It’s among self-learning AIs that never sleep.
The market is not just humans using algorithms. They are autonomous swarms that fight in milliseconds. Agents monitor every market 24/7, identify risks, discuss strategies, and execute without hesitation.
The next trader will not be human
Recent advances in the acceptance of AI and blockchain have created the perfect conditions for the agent market to flourish. AI provides awareness. Blockchain, on the other hand, provides trust, verification, and payment rails. This provides a medium for AI agents to freely trade, prove, and exchange value.
AI has crossed the chasm from stock pickers to near-autonomous day traders. They learn and act faster than humans. Find out what humans miss, predict moves before they happen, and don’t second-guess yourself. The ultimate insider without provoking the SEC. Agent AI in trading is still in its infancy, but don’t get us wrong. AI is already here and moving markets while most traders are asleep.
Agent trading even in free fall
In the biggest cryptocurrency flash crash on October 10th, while other crypto markets were in freefall, AI agents did the opposite. They stayed calm, cut short the turmoil, and ended the week up 40%. They gave us a glimpse of the future of the market. One in which an AI agent not only follows a code, but also responds like a real trader.
Some people cut the risk immediately. Others were waiting for confirmation. Some tilted towards drawdowns. It’s not just the benefits that are surprising, but also the calmness. Each AI agent made its own decisions, but collectively they converged on a profitable outcome. This is the essence of agent intelligence, where autonomous systems learn to interpret disruptions as opportunities.
The rise of the self-learning market
Companies describe similar behavior within their trading desks. The agent system parses live data from public information and provides a real-time feed to the execution layer. Over time, agents evolve from code to awareness. An autonomous system that reads the market, understands intentions, and executes strategies on its own. Act like a digital collective and adjust your logic during the session as the market changes.
For years, quantitative funds and high-frequency traders have pitted humans and algorithms against the market. Introducing AI vs. AI. Autonomous systems plan, reason, and execute around the clock. What is emerging is a battlefield where institutional investors, retailers, and synthetic AI communicate with each other in real time.
When AI and AI transact, human intent disappears. Prices are determined by machine-to-machine negotiation, not emotion or fundamentals. The market will automatically start trading.
Related: AI gives retail investors a way out of the diversification trap
Currently, the majority of global trading volume is conducted through algorithmic systems, estimated at 60% to 89% depending on the market. Within months, Symphony’s agent trading layer worked with 15 of the world’s largest financial institutions to test its self-learning yield and execution agents and settle $140 million in trades.
Everyday investors can finally compete
For decades, investing has been about finding an edge. AI is giving retail investors that power for the first time. Retail traders will soon be able to implement the same logic that was once reserved for billions of dollars of capital. Swarm intelligence that scans arbitrage, simulates momentum, hedges risks, and executes collaboratively. This is the retail equivalent of a hedge fund in your pocket.
The walls between institutional and personal finance are disappearing. AI makes the strategies of the 1% accessible to the 99%. The next best companies will deploy a fleet of agents rather than tracking an index.
When the market trades itself
The AI vs. AI battle will define liquidity, volatility, and price discovery. Humans still set the direction, risk tolerance, and capital allocation, but they don’t push the buttons. Markets will begin to self-trade with swarms of autonomous participants. Power shifts to those who fine-tune the feedback loop. As agents detect each other’s footprints, they evolve meta-strategies, sometimes cooperating and sometimes manipulating each other.
The trading scene is quiet. The next generation of traders won’t place orders out loud. They will train AI agents. The winners will be not just institutions, but retail traders who fine-tune the herd along with human judgment. We are entering an agent arms race.
Tomorrow’s market will not sleep or panic. Agent AI learns, evolves, competes, and sometimes colludes at breakneck speed.
While financial institutions continue to build a layer of agents, retail investors are faced with a choice. Follow the herd and acquire AI stock, or start training your own AI as a wingman. They won’t have an AlphaGo moment.
A quiet, relentless outperformance lurks in the charts, open to anyone brave enough to catch the AI agent.
Opinion: Saad Naja, PiP World Founder and CEO.
This article is for general informational purposes only and is not intended to be, and should not be taken as, legal or investment advice. The views, ideas, and opinions expressed herein are those of the author alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.