Key Takeaways
- Shaw Walters created Eliza Labs to build AI agents and explore blockchain’s role in decentralized finance and automation.
- He developed ElizaOS, focusing on AI agents in finance and blockchain, creating decentralized decision-making tools.
- He combines AI with blockchain to empower decentralized finance, launching ElizaOS for smarter investing.
Who Is Shaw Walters?
Shaw Walters started Eliza Labs, an open-source project that created the Eliza agent framework, making it easier to build autonomous AI agents. He also launched ElizaOS, formerly called ai16z, a decentralized AI-powered investment DAO. With this project, Walters explores how AI agents can be used in finance and other fields, focusing on automation and decentralized decision-making.
Early Career
Early Interest in Blockchain and Game Development
Walters’ interest in blockchain started with his background in game development, where he looked into how digital items and characters could be used across different platforms. This curiosity led him to try out NFTs, working independently and with brands new to blockchain.
Through these projects, he gained experience with smart contracts and taught himself Solidity. As he worked more with blockchain assets, he became interested in how AI could connect with on-chain identity systems and wallets, seeing a chance to combine the two technologies.
Early Interest in AI and GPT Models
Walters became interested in AI even before ChatGPT was available to the public. While OpenAI was developing GPT-3, he joined a small testing group to explore its abilities. He quickly saw its potential as a major step forward in AI.
By late 2021, he focused on creating smart AI agents, making a living by developing AI-powered virtual characters, and working on NFT projects. At the time, AI agents were not widely known, and few people talked about using them with blockchain. Still, Walters kept improving his ideas, looking for ways to connect AI with decentralized systems.
Role at Webaverse and Transition to AI Characters
Walters’ growing skills led him to Webaverse, where he became a lead developer after the project’s NFT land sale. Webaverse aimed to build a 3D world where AI characters could interact in a decentralized space.
Walters played a key role in developing these smart agents. However, the project suffered a major setback when a hack drained its funds, putting heavy pressure on the team. As a result, the project transitioned to MoeMate, focusing on AI-generated characters with more specific uses instead of a large virtual world.
Open-Source AI Agent Project
After leaving Webaverse, Walters worked on several projects, including MagicML
and Project 89. He also co-founded Magic, an open-source project that provided a no-code tool for building AI agents, making AI development easier for people without coding skills. However, as the project grew, it became clear that users wanted more hands-on guidance instead of just a no-code platform. In response, Walters created Eliza as a working example within Magic, showing how AI agents could be used in real life.
The Creation of Eliza
At first, Magic seemed like a good idea, but Walters soon noticed the problems with no-code development. He realized that simplifying the platform limited what advanced AI agents could do. Because of this, he decided to stop using the no-code method and chose a more flexible, hands-on way to build AI agents.
Since the project didn’t take off right away, he kept working on other things while keeping Eliza as an open-source project. Over time, Eliza became his main focus as he sought ways to connect AI agents with blockchain technology and explore new ideas in both fields.
AI Meets Crypto Investing
In an interview with Unchained, Walters talked about how ElizaOS came to life. After working on AI projects since COVID, he realized his early AI agent didn’t gain interest because it lacked a connection to crypto. Teaming up with the DAOs.Fun investment fund, he helped launch VEGENT Spartan, an AI-powered investor, and met its founder, Bowski.
Wanting a fair and fraud-resistant investment system, he took inspiration from venture capital to create a decentralized version. What started as a small project grew into ElizaOS, an open-source tool that developers adopted, leading to wider research on AI in investing.
Challenges and Adaptation
Throughout his career, Walters has worked in the fast-changing world of AI and blockchain, keeping up with new technology, security issues, and evolving user needs. The struggles at Webaverse and Magic taught him important lessons about security, growth, and working with the community. These experiences strengthened his focus on creating AI tools that are new and exciting and useful in real life.
The Launched of ElizaOS v2
At CATSTANBUL 2025, Walters revealed ElizaOS v2, bringing big improvements like a simpler system, smarter AI planning, and a single wallet for better scaling and compatibility. The update added a package registry, command-line tools, and database-powered AI characters. The team also introduced an agent marketplace with media tools and “Block Tank,” an AI-focused funding program.
Partnering with Jupiter, they launched a $10 million Magic Fund to help open-source AI developers, stressing the connection between AI and crypto. A research preview was planned for March, with a full release in April.
AI and Digital Identity in Web3
Walters has explored how AI agents can improve digital identity in Web3, not just in finance. With more concerns about privacy, identity checks, and data security, he has looked into ways AI can help people create and control their own digital identities. This idea supports the move toward decentralized identity systems, which aim to reduce central data storage while improving security and transparency.
Vision For Blockchain
Walters is focused on expanding AI’s role in blockchain. He continues to create open-source tools that help developers build smart, decentralized AI agents. He aims to make AI a key part of Web3, where AI agents can work smoothly with smart contracts, digital identities, and decentralized finance. Whether through Eliza or future projects, Walters is dedicated to exploring new ways AI can bring more independence to blockchain systems.
Final Thoughts
Shaw Walters has been a key figure in combining AI and blockchain technologies with projects like Eliza Labs and ElizaOS. His work on building AI agents and exploring decentralized decision-making systems is helping shape the future of finance, digital identity, and automation.
By creating open-source tools for developers, Walters is making it easier to build smart, decentralized AI agents, aiming to make these technologies more useful, secure, and accessible for everyone in the Web3 space.
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