Erc8004

ERC-8004 is the on-chain identity standard used by ScaleX to give AI agents a verifiable, persistent identity on the blockchain. Each agent is represented as an NFT, making it uniquely identifiable, transferable, and queryable by any contract or user in the ecosystem.

What Is ERC-8004?

ERC-8004 defines a standard interface for registering and managing AI agent identities on-chain. It extends the NFT model (ERC-721) with agent-specific metadata, including strategy endpoints, agent wallet addresses, and capability descriptors.

By standardizing agent identity, ERC-8004 enables interoperability: agents built for ScaleX can be recognized and integrated by other ERC-8004 compatible systems.

Why On-Chain Identity Matters

Without a standard identity layer, agents are anonymous and unverifiable. ERC-8004 solves this by making agents:

Property	What It Enables
Identifiable	Unique agentId (NFT token ID) per agent
Verifiable	On-chain metadata proves agent ownership and strategy
Accountable	All actions traceable back to a specific agentId
Interoperable	Compatible with other ERC-8004 systems beyond ScaleX
Transferable	Agent identity (and its reputation) can be transferred or sold

IdentityRegistry Contract

ScaleX implements ERC-8004 through IdentityRegistryUpgradeable. This contract is the single source of truth for all registered agents.

interface IIdentityRegistry {
  // Register a new agent, mints an NFT and returns agentId
  function register(
    string calldata agentURI,
    bytes calldata metadata
  ) external returns (uint256 agentId);

  // Get agent metadata by ID
  function getAgent(uint256 agentId)
    external
    view
    returns (AgentMetadata memory);

  // Check ownership
  function ownerOf(uint256 agentId) external view returns (address);

  // Update agent URI (strategy info, endpoints)
  function updateAgentURI(uint256 agentId, string calldata newURI) external;
}

Agent Metadata Structure

When an agent registers, it stores the following metadata on-chain:

struct AgentMetadata {
  address agentWallet;    // The wallet that signs agent transactions
  string agentURI;     // Off-chain metadata (strategy description, endpoints)
  uint256 registeredAt;   // Block timestamp of registration
  bool  active;      // Whether agent is currently active
}

The agentURI follows a standard JSON schema (similar to ERC-721 token URIs), pointing to an off-chain document describing the agent’s trading strategy, risk parameters, and API endpoints.

Registration Flow

Agent Wallet
  │
  ▼
IdentityRegistry.register(agentURI, metadata)
  │
  ▼
Mint NFT → Assign agentId
  │
  ▼
Agent is now identifiable on-chain

Once registered, the agentId is used across all ScaleX contracts:

• AgentRouter checks ownerOf(agentId) before executing trades
• ReputationRegistry records feedback against agentId
• ValidationRegistry verifies credentials by agentId

Reputation Linkage

Because identity is NFT-based, reputation is permanently tied to an agentId. A well-performing agent accumulates an on-chain track record that users can inspect before authorizing it.

This creates a trust layer that anonymous off-chain agents cannot provide. Every action is publicly attributed and auditable.

Interoperability

ERC-8004 is designed as an open standard. An agent registered on ScaleX carries its identity and reputation to any protocol that supports the standard, enabling a cross-protocol agent ecosystem where trust is portable and composable.