Source of article repost: On-chain Observation
Many people are puzzled as to why PHA suddenly became popular? To put it abstractly, even Phala Network might not have anticipated how it suddenly became the chosen one. Because the rise of PHA has both accidental and necessary factors, and it is certainly not something that any overt or covert plot can bring about. There are three key points: TEE technology was well-prepared, ai16z's support was secured, and the timing of the AI Agent windfall is just right.
1) The efforts of Phala Network in TEE technology are the 'inevitable' cause of this matter. Why do I say this?
TEE (Trusted Execution Environment) is not a new concept, but it has always been considered 'marginal' in the mainstream technical narratives of crypto over the past few years. For example, many high-performance chains compete based on the advantages of languages like RUST and MOVE, and there has been a wave of ZK technology dominated by ZK. TEE and other cryptographic technologies like MPC, FHE, and Blind Compute occasionally appear in the differentiated positioning of individual projects, but they are not on the same level as the booming ZK.
In fact, while mainstream chains are focusing on the efficiency of 'block space' (MEV, TPS, Gas, etc.), ZK technology is only applied to the most basic trusted state changes between layer1 and layer2. The advantages of ZK technology in more foundational zkVM virtual machines, zkSNARKs, and evolving chain data structures have not yet reached the point of being utilized, let alone achieving a broader mass adoption.
The main reason is that previous technical narratives pursued a purely 'on-chain' environment. ZK is the first step towards separating off-chain computation and on-chain verification, but the bigger goal still serves 'on-chain'. The trusted execution environment (TEE) is inherently a 'preprocessing' process in the 'off-chain' secure enclave.
It can serve on-chain, and is the result of leading projects like Unichain and Flashbot gradually expanding into the new narrative of Pre-confirmation. In other words, without combining with the chain, TEE is just a mature technology of pure web2; when combined with the chain, it can bring trustworthy preprocessing and isolated privacy computing, among other benefits.
Therefore, those who dare to apply TEE technology to the blockchain field must be able to endure solitude, while also possessing unique and wise vision. In this regard, Phala Network indeed has a mature TEE solution, without a doubt.
2) What Phala Network did not expect was the sudden emergence of a mysterious client named 'ai16z', which adopted its own TEE solution. This was the biggest 'accidental' factor in PHA's explosive rise.
After seeing the AI-Pool official Twitter about AI Agents autonomously issuing tokens, I immediately tweeted a technical interpretation of the TEE solution (TEE allows AI to achieve autonomous management of private keys, signing applications in a usable yet invisible secure enclave), as well as the historic opportunity that the cooperation between Phala and ai16z might present. (That is also an excellent entry point for most retail investors.)
The super commercial IP status of ai16z in the AI Agent track does not need further explanation. The AI-POOL adopts Phala's TEE solution, which at least indicates two things:
1. Phala's TEE solutions have many mature commercial cases and were selected by ai16z.
2. Phala's TEE solution will be the first to benefit from the AI Agent PumpFun, which is a major commercial concept of AI-controlled private key token issuance.
Understanding this naturally leads to understanding what Phala can gain from the phenomenon of AI-Pool and the autonomous issuance of tokens by intelligent agents. It’s a very natural logic; as the wave of AI Agent token issuance continues, the private key management and remote authentication services provided by TEE will become a 'necessity' business, while the entire set of verifiable consensus adaptable to the TEE off-chain environment will become a plus point, representing the new infrastructure of the AI Agent era.
So, even if I jumped into PHA, I may not really understand Phala Network, but it doesn't matter; I think I understand the market potential and incremental opportunities that AI Agent + TEE, AI Agent + Chain might unleash.
3) What truly gave Phala Network the momentum was the currently booming AI Agent narrative. I have pinned several articles related to the AI Agent narrative in my Twitter profile highlights. New friends can take a look; those articles repeatedly emphasize four words: 'Don't miss out, don't miss out, don't miss out.'
Because the AI Agent has evolved from AI MEME to the emergence of launchpad platforms like Virutual and Vvaifu, then to singular AI projects like AIXBT and Zerebro, and finally to frameworks and standards like ELIZA and ARC, until old chains like Phala are carried to the forefront, everything is rapidly evolving, almost beyond everyone's imagination. Why?
Just one point, because this is a historically significant opportunity, the main uptrend of DeFi Summer. The eruption of innovative gameplay in this process, the thirst for hot money to pour in, and the existing information gap opportunities will all inevitably remain 'hot and sizzling'.
That’s why I shout my slogan loudly, just hoping that more retail investors can seize the Alpha growth opportunities within, and that more project parties can break out of the past 'delivery inability' dilemma of pure VC tokens.
A new narrative whirlwind is stirring, and its purpose is not merely to blow dust in your face (chicken feathers), but to send you to the forefront, becoming that little piglet rolling in wealth.
By the way, the subtext of this statement is not to worry about missing out on PHA, because Phala is just one player in the windfall, having first reaped the benefits of the trend. Following the narrative evolution logic and direction I have laid out, please believe that there will definitely be more opportunities to come.
