The Rollup Why Most AI x Crypto Projects Miss The Point with Sandeep Nailwal
Jan 27, 2026
Sandeep Nailwal, co-founder of Polygon and founder of Sentient, builds open-source AI reasoning tools and sustainable crypto businesses. He discusses why AI and crypto overlap less than people think. He explains Sentient's Roma reasoning framework and the Arena for testing agent behavior. He argues crypto’s main role is as payment rails for AI and outlines token and integration plans.
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Polygon Moves Toward Profitable Middleware
- Polygon is shifting from protocol-only work to profitable middleware and payment services.
- This pragmatic move reduces reliance on token treasury sales and strengthens product-market fit.
Token Ties Open Research To A Sustainable Economy
- Sentient focuses on empowering open-source AI and reasoning rather than monopolizing model cores.
- The token links research, contributions, and a self-sustaining open-source economy.
The Move From Models To Agents
- The world is shifting from models to agentic systems, requiring tooling for agents not just models.
- Sentient builds an 'Arena' to test, benchmark, and improve agents via competition and scenarios.