Over the past few years, Web3 has been considered a crucial direction for internet development. From DeFi and NFTs to DAOs, numerous new business models have emerged, giving rise to many new professions. However, with the rapid entry of generative AI and automation technologies into this field, the job structure of Web3 has begun to change significantly.
More and more projects are using AI to perform tasks that previously required human intervention, such as writing code, analyzing on-chain data, generating market reports, and handling community issues. As these tools mature, the demand for some positions has begun to decline significantly, while new job types are gradually emerging.
From an overall trend perspective, AI has not diminished the development potential of Web3, but it is changing the industry's demand structure for talent.
I. The Gradually Decreasing Web3 Professions
In the Web3 ecosystem, some highly standardized and repetitive tasks are gradually being replaced by automation tools.
With the development of generative AI and automation technologies, many tasks that previously required manual labor can now be completed quickly through algorithms and intelligent systems, leading to a significant decrease in demand for some positions. 1. Junior Solidity Developer Smart contract development was once one of the most sought-after professions in the Web3 industry, but with the rapid development of AI programming tools, a large amount of standardized code can now be generated automatically. For example, common code structures such as ERC-20 token contracts, NFT contracts, and basic DeFi protocols can be automatically generated by AI in a very short time. AI can not only generate complete code frameworks but also perform basic testing and logic checks. Therefore, more and more companies are reducing their demand for junior developers and preferring senior architects to review and optimize AI-generated code. 2. Web3 Researchers/Analysts In the past, Web3 projects typically required researchers to complete extensive industry research and data processing, including industry trend analysis, project evaluation, market research, and report writing. However, with the development of AI technology, much of this research work can now be automated. For example, AI can quickly analyze on-chain data, simulate token economic models, and automatically generate structured market research reports. Therefore, the demand for research positions primarily responsible for basic information processing and data analysis is gradually decreasing. 3. Community Administrators and Customer Service Representatives Community operations were once a crucial part of the Web3 ecosystem, with many projects requiring community administrators and customer service personnel to handle user issues and maintain community order. However, with the development of AI-powered customer service systems, many repetitive communication tasks can now be automated. For example, AI can provide 24/7 automated responses, real-time multilingual translation, automatic identification and filtering of spam, and quickly answer common user questions. In this context, some basic community customer service positions are gradually being replaced by AI systems. 4. Crypto Traders In the field of crypto asset trading, the advantages of AI technology are particularly evident. AI can analyze large amounts of market data in a very short time and automatically execute trading operations according to preset strategies, including high-frequency trading, automated arbitrage, and risk control. Compared to human traders, AI has significant advantages in execution speed, data processing capabilities, and trading stability, while also reducing operating costs. Therefore, in some trading environments that rely on technological strategies, traditional human trading positions are gradually decreasing. 5. NFT Content Creators The emergence of generative AI has had a profound impact on the NFT ecosystem. Today, AI can generate a large amount of visual content in a short time, such as illustrations, avatars, and various forms of digital art. This has significantly lowered the barrier to entry for NFT content creation, while also intensifying market competition. In this context, some NFT content creators who rely on basic design skills or simple visual creation are gradually losing their original market advantage. 6. Low-Barrier NFT Creators With the widespread adoption of AI image generation tools, the way digital content is created is changing. In the past, some NFT projects generated a large number of works through simple image combinations or basic designs, but now AI can complete similar or even more complex creative processes in a very short time. This poses a huge challenge to the traditional low-barrier NFT creation model. Some creators lacking unique creativity, artistic style, or brand value are gradually losing their competitive edge after the popularization of AI technology. II. Emerging New Web3 Careers While demand for some positions is decreasing, AI is also creating new career opportunities in the Web3 industry. With the continuous integration of artificial intelligence and blockchain technology, the industry's demand for interdisciplinary talent is steadily increasing. 1. AI × Web3 Architect AI × Web3 architects are becoming one of the core roles in future Web3 technology teams. With the deep integration of AI and blockchain systems, more and more projects need to build system architectures that support automated decision-making and intelligent collaboration. These roles not only require designing the collaborative architecture between AI and blockchain systems, but also building the interaction mechanism between AI agents and smart contracts, and planning decentralized AI network infrastructure. Simultaneously, these professionals also need to design on-chain automated execution systems. Therefore, this position typically requires practitioners to possess a comprehensive understanding of technologies such as blockchain infrastructure, AI models and agent systems, distributed computing architecture, and cryptoeconomic models. 2. AI Agent Training Coordinator As the application of multi-agent systems in the Web3 ecosystem increases, some projects are beginning to require dedicated personnel to train and coordinate the behavioral logic of AI agents. The main responsibilities of an AI Agent training coordinator include defining collaboration rules between multiple AI agents, designing behavioral constraint mechanisms for agents, optimizing their decision-making logic in DeFi and DAO scenarios, and continuously monitoring the on-chain behavior of AI agents. This position leans more towards AI behavior management and system governance, playing a crucial role in the future Web3 automation ecosystem. 3. Web3 Prompt Engineer With the increasingly widespread application of AI tools in Web3 development, prompt engineering is gradually evolving into a new professional role. The main responsibilities of a Web3 Prompt Engineer include designing complex prompts to generate smart contract code, building AI-automated research and analysis processes, optimizing the interaction between AI and the blockchain system, and designing behavioral instructions for the AI Agent. Compared to traditional prompting engineering, this role focuses more on the design of complex task processes and the practical application capabilities of AI systems. 4. AI On-Chain Data Analyst Blockchain networks generate a large amount of publicly available data every day, and AI technology can help analyze this data and discover potential patterns. The main responsibilities of an AI on-chain data analyst include analyzing on-chain fund flows, monitoring market trends, identifying abnormal transaction behavior, and predicting the development trends of the ecosystem. In addition, they need to build AI data analysis models to extract valuable information from massive amounts of blockchain data. Therefore, this type of role typically requires practitioners to have a data science background, blockchain analysis skills, and AI modeling capabilities. 5. AI-Driven Smart Contract Security Experts As AI-generated code technology becomes more widespread, smart contract security issues are becoming increasingly complex. Therefore, the importance of AI-driven smart contract security experts in the Web3 industry is constantly rising. These experts typically use AI tools to detect code vulnerabilities, design automated auditing systems, simulate potential attack paths, and assess the overall security risks of protocols, thereby improving the security of DeFi protocols and blockchain applications. Smart contract security is also considered one of the fastest-growing areas of demand in the future Web3 industry. 6. Web3 Automated Strategy Designers In the DeFi ecosystem, automated strategies have become an important development direction. Web3 automated strategy designers are primarily responsible for developing automated profit strategies, automated arbitrage systems, and risk control algorithms, while also designing smart asset allocation strategies that enable assets to automatically adjust across different protocols. These strategies are typically executed automatically by algorithmic systems or AI agents, therefore this role requires a combination of financial model understanding, algorithm design skills, and blockchain technology background. III. Trends in Web3 Employment Structure With the continuous development of AI technology, the talent demand in the Web3 industry is showing several distinct trends. First, team sizes are shrinking. Automation tools can handle a large amount of repetitive work, reducing the need for numerous entry-level positions in project teams. Second, multi-skilled individuals are becoming more important. Future Web3 talent will often need to possess blockchain technology, AI technology, and data analysis capabilities. Finally, the importance of senior positions is constantly increasing. Roles such as system architecture, economic model design, and security engineering are becoming core positions in the industry. IV. Conclusion AI is reshaping the career structure of the Web3 industry. Some execution-oriented, highly repetitive positions are gradually decreasing, while positions requiring creativity, systems thinking, and cross-disciplinary skills are becoming increasingly important. In the long run, AI will not weaken the development potential of Web3. On the contrary, it may propel the entire industry into a new phase. In this process, truly technically proficient and innovative talent will become the most important resource in the future Web3 ecosystem.
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