Goldman Sachs Projects AI Token Demand Could Rise 55 Times by 2040 as Agentic Era Expands
Goldman Sachs published a demand model on May 8 projecting that AI token requirements could reach 55 times current levels by 2040 if enterprise-level agentic AI achieves widespread integration. The bank’s base case assumes more moderate growth, with the upper-bound scenario contingent on broad deployment of autonomous AI agents that transact, compute, and settle on blockchain rails.
The projection spread rapidly across cryptocurrency markets, contributing to same-day gains in AI-linked tokens including Bittensor (TAO), Akash Network (AKT), and Internet Computer (ICP).
What the Model Assumes
The Goldman Sachs projection, covered by GuruFocus on May 8, centers on agentic AI systems that operate autonomously, execute multi-step tasks, and make payments without human intermediaries at each step. The model identifies on-chain token payments as a natural settlement layer for machine-to-machine transactions, given the absence of bank account requirements and the programmability of smart contracts.
The 55-times figure represents the high end of Goldman’s range. The bank did not publicly recommend any specific AI token as an investment.
The stock Goldman’s analysts cited most directly in the same research context was Nvidia, whose GPUs power the majority of commercial AI training workloads.
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Background
Goldman Sachs has issued several cryptocurrency and AI market projections in the 2024-2026 period.
A prior 2024 note placed the addressable market for tokenized real-world assets at $2 trillion by 2030. The AI token demand projection represents a newer line of analysis that treats blockchain infrastructure as a necessary component of the agentic AI stack rather than a parallel asset class.
That framing is a shift from earlier Goldman research, which treated cryptocurrency primarily as a speculative instrument or portfolio diversifier.
The May 8 projection arrived in the same week that the Senate Banking Committee announced a market structure hearing for May 14, adding regulatory momentum to the AI-driven narrative.
Also Read: ONDO Finance Gains 28% as Real-World Asset Tokenization Draws Institutional Attention
What to Watch
Goldman Sachs has not confirmed a publication timeline for follow-up research. Traders who moved into AI tokens on the May 8 projection face the risk of narrative exhaustion if no further institutional endorsements follow.
The 55-times figure represents a 14-year forward projection, a time horizon that makes near-term price moves difficult to anchor to the underlying thesis. Any revision to Goldman’s base-case assumptions, particularly around enterprise AI adoption speed, could shift the demand math considerably.
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