Crypto pioneer warns AI could destabilize banking and infrastructure

Hut 8 co‑founder Marc van der Chijs told CoinDesk that the competitive race to develop artificial intelligence has moved beyond human oversight, creating potential threats to banking systems and critical infrastructure.

AI development outpacing control

Van der Chijs said the speed of AI progress, driven by corporate and national competition, has left regulators unable to keep pace. He warned that without new safeguards, AI could cause systemic shocks before international guardrails are established.

Potential impact on finance and infrastructure

The entrepreneur highlighted two main concerns:

• Legacy banking software may be exposed to AI‑driven vulnerabilities, undermining confidence in interconnected financial institutions.
• Crypto exchanges and related businesses could be more fragile than the underlying bitcoin network.

Economic outlook and policy ideas

Van der Chijs predicts AI and robotics could eventually perform 90%‑95% of existing jobs, driving sharp cost reductions. He suggested governments might need new revenue sources, such as taxes on robots or AI usage, though implementation could be complex.

Investment shift and bitcoin stance

He sold a large portion of his bitcoin holdings to invest in AI, describing AI data centers as a stronger business case than bitcoin mining. Nevertheless, he plans to redeploy some AI profits into crypto, primarily via exchange‑traded funds, and still considers bitcoin the single asset he would hold for life.