Coinbase Ventures Reveals 2026 Focus: AI, RWAs, and Next-Gen DeFi

• Coinbase Ventures just dropped its 2026 game plan, and it’s zeroing in on three big areas: real-world assets, AI-driven crypto infrastructure, and the next wave of DeFi building blocks. The venture arm is betting these sectors will define how blockchain networks create actual economic value going forward.

• The roadmap calls out several key categories worth watching. Think prediction markets, modular perpetual trading products, and agent-based tools that can automate crypto workflows without constant human input. Instead of chasing fleeting trends, Coinbase Ventures wants to back infrastructure that brings genuine economic activity on-chain. That means supporting systems that let different financial protocols actually talk to each other and work together seamlessly.

By identifying sectors such as RWAs and AI-integrated infrastructure, the firm is aligning its approach with segments expected to play a growing role in decentralized markets.

• The company frames this as building the backbone of tomorrow’s financial system. By targeting RWAs and AI-integrated infrastructure, they’re placing chips on technologies expected to gain serious traction in decentralized markets. The emphasis on new DeFi primitives hints that Coinbase sees growing demand for flexible, programmable financial components that developers can snap together like building blocks.

• Coinbase Ventures often signals where smart money and developer talent will flow next. If their 2026 blueprint triggers more action around AI infrastructure, tokenized real-world assets, and advanced DeFi tools, it could set the tone for how on-chain economies mature over the next few years.

My Take: Coinbase Ventures betting on AI and RWAs shows where institutional capital sees real staying power. This isn’t about meme coins or hype cycles—it’s infrastructure play that could define crypto’s utility phase.

Source: Merlijn The Trader