AI Agents are rapidly rising. However, most of the market's attention is focused on Agent tokens, Agent launch platforms, and development frameworks, while the automation services supporting Agent functionality remain under-explored. OLAS, built by former core members of Fetch.ai and supported by Gnosis crypto OG @koeppelmann, is a key player that cannot be overlooked in this space.
TLDR:
OLAS is both an Agent development framework and an open 'Agent function component market,' a unique value positioning that sets it apart. This means OLAS can support any AI Agent, regardless of the development framework used when created.
As on-chain Agent activities grow exponentially and the fee mechanism for the OLAS Mech trading market is implemented, we expect the protocol treasury to continue to grow. If the community initiates a 'buyback and burn' mechanism, it will further create buy demand and alleviate network inflation pressure.
The dual economic flywheel built within the OLAS system—veOLAS and Agent staking—will become the core engine driving $OLAS price growth, as fundamentals continue to grow and self-reinforce, the value of $OLAS will gradually be released.
OLAS: The 'Open Amazon' for AI Agents
Automation services are the foundation of AI Agent. For example, an on-chain transaction Agent needs to have the ability to independently obtain on-chain and off-chain data, make decisions, and interact with the blockchain.
At first glance, this may seem simple, but as the complexity of application scenarios increases, it becomes extremely inefficient for Agent developers to build all functionalities from scratch each time. OLAS was born for this purpose:
OLAS is not just an AI Agent development framework; it is also an open 'Agent function component market' that allows AI Agents to obtain customized functional components and outsource complex tasks to other AI Agents. OLAS is growing exponentially and has expanded to multiple ecological chains, including Gnosis, BASE, OPTIMISM, MODE, and SOLANA.
The main autonomous services provided by OLAS include:
• Oracles
• Automated execution of smart contracts
• DeFi strategies
• Prediction functionalities
• Messaging
• Transaction execution
• Large Language Model (LLM) integration
Key indicators for overall OLAS Agent activity:
https://flipsidecrypto.xyz/flipsideteam/olas-key-activity-metrics-pnPjda
Key indicators for the OLAS Agent-Agent trading market:
https://dune.com/adrian0x/the-mechs-agent-economy
Imagine OLAS gradually evolving into a universal AI Agent monetization platform—like, you can hire @aixbt_agent to analyze a specified token for you and pay the corresponding fee! This vision is not out of reach, as we have already seen @virtuals_io, which has long collaborated with OLAS, introducing some of their AI models into OLAS.
Additionally, imagine that the functionality of OLAS can serve all AI Agents, including those not developed based on the OLAS framework—the team is actively working towards this goal.
OLAS's dual flywheel engine
OLAS generates revenue through three main channels:
Protocol-operated service fees: All fees generated by autonomous services directly controlled by the protocol flow into the treasury.
Third-party service fees: External developers or Agents providing services incentivize them to donate a portion of their income to the treasury.
Protocol-operated liquidity fees: Through LP binding, the OLAS protocol has accumulated over $20 million in protocol-controlled liquidity. The trading fees generated from this liquidity also flow directly into the treasury.
On this basis, two major flywheel effects are gradually emerging:
veOLAS (3,3) mechanism
Developers and service providers need to lock $OLAS to veOLAS and donate a portion of their revenue to the protocol treasury to receive $OLAS incentives. This mechanism creates supply contraction while incentivizing developers to accumulate $OLAS to influence the flow of funds in governance, similar to Curve Wars. Currently, over 40% of the total supply of $OLAS has been locked in veOLAS:
Agent staking
Agent services on OLAS are operated by a group of node operators who need to stake $OLAS. As more Agent services go online, protocol revenue grows, attracting more node operators to buy and stake $OLAS, thereby driving up the token price. This, in turn, incentivizes developers to deploy more Agent services and donate more revenue to the treasury, further strengthening the ecosystem.
You can check the OLAS Agent staking slots here: https://operate.olas.network/contracts
OLAS token economic model
$OLAS is a mineable token with an initial total supply of 526.5 million. The current total supply is 542 million, of which:
• 232 million locked in veOLAS
• 65 million locked in buOLAS (of which 17 million will be unlocked in 2025)
• 100 million stored in the DAO treasury (requires veOLAS votes to access)
• 70 million held by the development company Valory
• Approximately 73 million OLAS are in circulation supply
Note: buOLAS is for the founding team tokens.
Future supply will reach 1 billion within 10 years, with a maximum of 56 million tokens released in 2025, primarily for protocol incentives:
• 4% allocated to developers of Agent services
• 46% allocated to $OLAS LP binders
• 50% allocated to operators of Agent services
Although the maximum release amount seems huge, historical data shows that the actual release amount is far lower than the maximum.
The reasons include:
Not all $OLAS LP binding products have been sold, meaning that the rewards generated from binding have not been released as planned. If the price of $OLAS rises significantly, these unreleased rewards may be redistributed, making the originally loss-making binding products profitable. However, this binding also deepens the liquidity of $OLAS, offsetting the inflation impact of releases through reduced supply and permanent buy support.
Not all Agent service staking slots are filled, leading to some operators' rewards not being released as planned. Even if these rewards are released, it will encourage more $OLAS to be staked in the network rather than simply diluting market supply.
Overall, the inflation issue does not seem significant, especially considering the accompanying benefits it brings:
1. Increased liquidity;
2. Attracted new holders and stakers to join the network.
Key catalysts
Although OLAS remains relatively low-key, I believe this is related to its potential inflation mechanism, but several key catalysts could change this situation:
More Agent services: As mentioned in the earlier 'dual flywheel' section, the growth of Agent services will bring higher revenue and treasury donations, further incentivizing more node operators to buy and stake $OLAS for more revenue shares. It has been revealed that the staking application will soon introduce more Agent services. This development is worth close attention, especially as staking metrics correlate with potential demand surges.
Buyback and burn: The introduction of AIP-5 established a market fee mechanism, sparking lively discussions in the community about using fees for $OLAS buybacks in future AIP proposals. If implemented correctly, this mechanism will significantly alter the inflation and demand dynamics that previously deterred potential investors.
Thank you all for reading! If you are also looking forward to the future of AI Agents and their impact on the decentralized economy, feel free to leave comments for discussion! I am also very willing to explore more collaboration possibilities!
Author of this article:
@bonnazhu | Nothing Research Partner