What is Olas?
Olas, formerly Autonolas, is a set of tools and on-chain registries for building, running and rewarding autonomous AI agents. Its Pearl desktop app lets ordinary users run agents that trade, predict or post on their behalf. Holders stake OLAS to run agents and earn rewards, and lock it as veOLAS to vote in the Olas DAO.
Utility Lens
What Olas actually does
Coordinates and rewards software agents that act on-chain for their owners, from DeFi trading to prediction markets.
- Real-world usage
- earlyPearl and several agent products are live and the team reports millions of agent transactions, but much of that activity is driven by staking rewards rather than outside paying demand.
- Token necessity
- optionalPearl users can fund their agents by card, and staking OLAS is an opt-in way to earn rewards; holders who want a vote lock it as veOLAS.
- Decentralization
- moderateEmissions and upgrades are decided by on-chain veOLAS votes and agents are run by many independent operators, but Valory, the core contributor, builds most of the software and holds a large token allocation.
- Track record
- provenThe OLAS token contract was deployed in June 2022 and the token launched publicly in July 2023; we found no major protocol hack.
What it’s used for
Users download Pearl, pick an agent such as the Modius DeFi trader, fund it and stake OLAS so the agent can earn rewards for meeting activity targets. Developers register agent code as NFTs and can earn builder rewards, while protocols launch their own staking programs to attract agents. The team said in early 2025 that its agents had made more than 3.5 million transactions across nine blockchains.
Role of the OLAS token:
Evidence of real use
- Olas launched Pearl v1, described as an AI agent app store, in November 2025. Source (opens in a new tab)
- The team says its agents have made over 3.5 million transactions across nine blockchains, covering DeFi, social and prediction-market use cases. Source (opens in a new tab)
- Olas staking rewards agents for useful, verifiable activity rather than passive token lockup, under a model called Proof-of-Active-Agent. Source (opens in a new tab)
The AI angle
- AI role
- agents
- What actually happens
- Olas is infrastructure for autonomous AI agents: software that watches markets or data and takes on-chain actions for its owner. OLAS is used to stake behind those agents and govern the protocol, so the token is tied to agent activity rather than to raw computing power. Whether agent demand outlasts staking rewards is still unproven.
How Olas works
Olas has two layers. The Olas Stack is open-source software for building agents that run off-chain and act through smart contracts. The Olas Protocol is a set of on-chain registries plus incentives. Agent code, the components it is built from, and each live agent are registered as NFTs, which lets the protocol track who wrote what and who operates which agent. Builders can earn OLAS for useful code, and holders who lock OLAS as veOLAS vote on how the system changes.
Staking is the main way OLAS reaches users. Under Proof-of-Active-Agent, a project or DAO launches a staking contract and sets performance goals, such as a number of on-chain actions per day. Operators stake OLAS, run an agent that meets those goals, and earn emissions. Rewards depend on what the agent actually does, not just on tokens being locked, and they are not guaranteed. Bonders can also hand the protocol liquidity-pool tokens in exchange for OLAS, which gives the protocol liquidity it owns.
Pearl is the consumer front end. It is a desktop app that bundles a catalog of agents, such as Modius for DeFi and agents for prediction markets, and handles staking and funding for the user. Olas raised $13.8 million in a round led by 1kx in early 2025 to build Pearl and released version 1 in November 2025. CoinDesk reported that users can sign in with familiar Google or Apple logins and fund agents with a card.
Key moments
- 2022The Olas DAO is founded and the OLAS token contract is deployed on Ethereum in June.
- 2023OLAS launches publicly in July through a liquidity bootstrapping pool on Fjord Foundry.
- 2025Olas raises $13.8 million led by 1kx in February to build Pearl, then releases Pearl v1 in November.
Supply
The protocol can mint at most 1 billion OLAS over its first 10 years under a yearly emission cap; after year nine, up to 2% more can be minted each year, a rate the DAO can lower. New tokens go to builders, bonders and agent operators in roughly monthly epochs, and as of October 2026 most emissions were going to staking operators. A large share of supply sits with the DAO treasury and Valory.
Risks to understand
- Trading in OLAS is thin, so prices can swing sharply and large orders may be hard to fill.
- Much agent activity is subsidized by token emissions; if rewards fall, usage may fall with them.
- Agents that trade or manage funds can lose money, and past returns from beta agents are no guide to future results.
- Valory builds most of the stack, so the project depends heavily on one company.
Olas FAQ
Is Olas the same as Autonolas?
Yes. Autonolas was the earlier name, and many price sites still list the token as Autonolas (OLAS).
What is Pearl?
Pearl is Olas's desktop app for running AI agents you control. It handles agent setup, funding and OLAS staking in one place.
Does staking OLAS guarantee rewards?
No. Olas says rewards depend on whether your agent meets the staking program's activity targets, and staked tokens are locked under that contract's terms.
Is the OLAS supply capped?
Only for the first 10 years, when up to 1 billion can be minted. After that, the protocol allows up to 2% new supply a year unless the DAO lowers it.
Sources
- OLAS Token (opens in a new tab) — Olas
- Staking (opens in a new tab) — Olas
- FAQ (opens in a new tab) — Olas
- Olas Launches Pearl v1, the First 'AI Agent App Store' (opens in a new tab) — CoinDesk
- Olas raises $13.8 million to launch Pearl (opens in a new tab) — The Block
- Autonolas price (opens in a new tab) — Kraken
- Autonolas price (opens in a new tab) — Coinbase
Last reviewed October 20, 2026. Written by Dave McNaught. Utility Lens ratings are editorial judgments, not investment advice. Market data from CoinGecko. Spot an error? Request a correction.
Dave McNaught
Dave McNaught has worked in IT since 1999 and founded All Business Technologies (ABT) in 2003, a Boston-area firm providing Managed IT, Cybersecurity, Managed AI, Web Design and App Development. He publishes The Crypto Guide.