Woofun AI reports that Moonbeam, a Polkadot-based interoperability protocol, announced on Friday a strategic shift to Ethereum layer 2 Base to deploy the Moonbeam Protocol, an AI agent communication and settlement network. This move targets the emerging frontier of autonomous agents negotiating and settling transactions on-chain without intermediaries, which the team views as a significant long-term opportunity. No specific launch timeline for the new protocol was disclosed in the initial statement.

Woofun AI data shows, Industry leaders including Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong and Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire have predicted that AI agents will dominate blockchain payments in the coming years, driving infrastructure development across the sector. While Coinbase's x402 payments protocol has been a primary catalyst, layer 1 blockchains like Aptos and Near have also deployed tools to support agent-driven activity. Despite this executive optimism, actual adoption metrics remain modest, with Artemis data indicating only $2 million in trading volume facilitated by x402 over the past 30 days.

Progress in the broader technology sector appears equally tentative, as Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg noted on Thursday that AI agents have not accelerated internal workflows as rapidly as anticipated. This hesitation from Big Tech contrasts with the aggressive positioning of crypto-native projects attempting to capture the nascent market. The disparity between high-level predictions and current utilization rates highlights the early-stage nature of the sector.

The decision has triggered sharp criticism within the crypto community, with one X user describing Moonbeam as the "flagship project" of the Polkadot ecosystem and another calling the departure a "real pain in the ass" for the network. Launched in January 2022 as a Polkadot parachain, Moonbeam originally enabled developers to build Ethereum Virtual Machine-compatible applications directly within that environment. The exodus represents a significant blow to the ecosystem's retention of major development talent.

GLMR token holders are required to bridge their assets from the Polkadot parachain to Base before July 31, 2026, a mandate that extends to tokens locked in lending markets, staking contracts, and other decentralized finance protocols. Users holding the token on a centralized exchange will not need to take any action. Moonbeam confirmed it will maintain cross-chain interoperability services on the Polkadot parachain throughout the transition period, ensuring existing builders and infrastructure providers are not immediately abandoned.