Beyond Human Users: Lily Liu Highlights Solana’s Role in Powering the ‘AI Machine Economy’
At the Consensus Miami 2026 conference, Solana Foundation President Lily Liu contended that the uptake of stablecoins by major enterprises such as Western Union underscores Solana’s position as the financial backbone for both human-driven and automated economies.
Key Takeaways:
— Liu noted that Western Union’s integration of Solana for stablecoin transactions highlights the network’s rapid processing, minimal fees, and impartiality as a financial utility.
— She emphasized that blockchain infrastructure is critical for AI agents and ‘machine-to-machine’ transactions, as conventional card networks struggle to handle micropayments cost-effectively.
— Liu suggested that the future of cryptocurrency may lie in ‘internet capital markets,’ providing businesses and nations with expanded opportunities for global capital access.
Solana Foundation President Lily Liu stated that the increasing adoption of stablecoins by large corporations is confirming blockchain’s transformation into worldwide financial infrastructure, while simultaneously paving the way for AI-powered ‘machine economies.’
During her speech at Consensus Miami 2026 on Tuesday, Liu cited recent developments from Meta and Western Union incorporating stablecoin payments on Solana as proof that major businesses now see blockchain as practical infrastructure rather than a speculative asset.
‘It’s not a new concept,’ Liu remarked, alluding to Visa’s 2023 choice to develop stablecoin settlement features on Solana after what she termed an ‘thorough objective assessment’ of blockchain platforms.
‘Rapid and inexpensive is an obvious choice for payments,’ she stated, noting that businesses also require robust liquidity, developer support, and a comprehensive ecosystem of applications built around these payment systems.
Liu characterized Western Union’s shift to blockchain infrastructure as a significant achievement for the crypto sector. ‘When I entered this field in 2014, Western Union was always the elusive goal for crypto,’ she recalled.
Discussing the convergence of cryptocurrency and artificial intelligence, Liu argued that blockchain-based payments are ideal for ‘agentic commerce,’ where AI agents autonomously conduct transactions with other machines and services.
Conventional internet payment systems rely heavily on credit cards, which render micropayments financially unviable due to interchange fees, according to Liu. Blockchain infrastructure, however, facilitates sub-dollar transactions and real-time payment streaming.
‘The majority of internet transactions are actually microtransactions,’ Liu explained. ‘You simply cannot process individual transactions because you have to route them through credit cards.’
Liu also addressed the Solana ecosystem’s recent actions following security issues with projects like Vault and Drift, stating that maintaining industry trust sometimes takes precedence over competitive disputes within decentralized finance.
Looking forward, Liu asserted that the industry continues to underestimate blockchain’s ultimate significance. Instead of acting merely as general technology platforms, she described blockchains as fundamentally ‘financial infrastructure first and foremost.’
She added that cryptocurrency’s long-term potential could expand beyond payments into what she termed ‘internet capital markets,’ enabling companies and sovereign entities globally to access global capital formation more directly.