How is Functor enabling the onchain autonomous world?
The onchain autonomous world is the union of AI and crypto driving automation at scale.
AI proposes actions, crypto enforces outcomes. For this future to work, programmable execution and self‑custody must be correct by design across chains. Functor is the onchain signing infrastructure that makes this possible, turning AI intent into verifiable onchain execution with one consistent way to authorize, constrain, and recover actions across ecosystems.
Without this layer, large‑scale automation fragments into per‑chain keys, inconsistent approvals, and fragile recovery.
Here’s how we get there: safe state changes with programmable permissions and policies, cross‑chain authorization by design, a session lifecycle with rotation and native recovery, and composable coordination, for everyone.
A quick intuition2
AI is adaptive and probabilistic. Crypto is rule‑bound and deterministic. You can fake a captcha, but not an onchain balance or a cryptographic proof. In a world where AI can make things look fake, crypto makes results real again.
What an agent actually does
Read data
Decide and act (change state)
New data is produced
The critical moment is the state change. This is where security and UX usually break. Functor makes this step safe and consistent.
Safe state changes with session keys and policies
Agents and platforms need controlled signing, not master keys. Functor enables session keys with programmable permissions, enforced onchain.
Scoped access to assets, contracts, methods, and limits such as value, frequency, and time.
Onchain verification checks every action against policy before it executes.
Clear intent and predictable behavior for users, apps, and other agents.
Cross‑chain by design
Policies live in Functor’s signing layer and are readable in a chain‑agnostic way. The same rules apply everywhere.
One authorization root that follows the user and their applications across L2s.
No extra approvals when moving between chains.
Consistent revocation, recovery, and policy updates from one place.
An example of how AI agents work with Functor sessions is as follows:
Session lifecycle and safety controls
Provision: create a session for an agent, a fleet, or a platform with scoped permissions.
Operate: execute under the same policy across chains, continuously.
Rotate or revoke: update keys, tighten limits, or shut down access globally. Supports native account recovery via key rotation for wallets and exchanges.
Composable coordination across many actors
Because policies are explicit and verifiable, multiple agents, services, and platforms can coordinate safely.
Predictable behavior enables agent‑to‑agent and service‑to‑service workflows.
Relationship policies can enforce ordering or dependencies across assets and chains, for example “Asset B cannot move until Asset A moves first,” without custom cross‑chain messaging.
Footnotes
The 8th point on Balaji's post about his 10 thoughts on AI being economically useful.
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