AI, agents, robots: our insane WestWorld future

Is your AI agent running a restaurant — or a factory — while you sleep?In this episode of TechFirst, John Koetsier sits down with Jensen Teng, CEO and co-founder of Virtuals, to unpack one of the boldest (or craziest) visions in tech today: a hybrid economy powered by AI agents, humanoid robots, teleoperation, and blockchain coordination.An economy that may not really need humans for much at all ...Virtuos has already facilitated:• $14B in tokenized asset trading• $30M+ raised for founders• 100+ live AI agents• $500M in “agentic GDP”Now they’re expanding into embodied AI — launching EastWorlds, a vertically integrated robotics incubator with 30 Unitree G1 humanoids in a 10,000 sq. ft. lab.We cover:• What “agentic GDP” really means• How AI agents coordinate using blockchain• Why teleoperation is the bridge to full autonomy• The economics of outsourcing physical labor via robots• Why security guards may be a Day 1 use case• The data gap holding back robotics• Tokenization as a potential solution to AI-era inequality• Whether this future looks more like Stripe… or WestworldThis isn’t sci-fi. It’s already underway.⸻GuestJensen TengCEO & Co-founder, Virtuals⸻If you care about the future of work, robotics, AI agents, tokenization, and the economic systems emerging around them — this is a must-watch.👉 Subscribe for more deep-dive tech conversations:https://techfirst.substack.com⸻⏱ CHAPTERS00:00 The Wild Vision: AI Agents Running the World01:10 What Is an “Agent-Based Society”?03:00 $14B in Tokenized Assets & 100+ Live Agents06:30 Agent-to-Agent Protocols & Blockchain Coordination09:45 Why Digital-Only Agents Aren’t Enough12:30 Enter Humanoid Robots15:20 Teleoperation as the Bridge to Autonomy18:40 The Labor Market Shock (Security Guards, Electricians & Wage Arbitrage)22:15 Why Robots Still Crush Soda Cans24:30 The Missing Robotics Data Problem28:00 Building EastWorlds: 30 Unitree G1s & $2M+ Investment31:45 Why 3 Fingers Might Beat 534:00 Westworld, Stripe & the Payments Layer for AI38:00 Where Do Humans Fit in an Agent Economy?42:00 Tokenization as a Future Income Model