[Nasdaq Executive: Crypto Trading Platforms May Lead AI Applications in Retail Trading] Odaily Planet Daily News – Pranav Ramesh, Nasdaq's Head of Options Research and Leadpoet Co-founder and CTO, stated in an interview with CoinDesk that Nasdaq has significantly expanded the scope of AI agent applications over the past 18 months, covering areas such as market surveillance, compliance, and market microstructure analysis. He noted that the most notable change has been the improvement in trustworthiness, as AI systems previously struggled to handle sensitive enterprise workflows due to frequent hallucination issues. Ramesh believes that crypto trading platforms may take the lead in developing AI agent tools for retail investors, including features like portfolio analysis, trading recommendations, and execution support. He explained that the current mainstream model is not fully autonomous but involves AI agents handling most of the analysis and workflows, with humans retaining final approval authority. Regarding employment impacts, Ramesh stated that AI agents are already replacing entry-level software, customer service, and analyst positions. Recent layoffs by several companies confirm this trend: Crypto.com laid off 12% of its workforce to advance AI automation, Messari reduced staff during its transition to an "AI-first" company, and Block announced plans to cut over 4,000 jobs, accounting for 40% of its total workforce. Ramesh and Gavin Zaentz co-founded the AI sales platform Leadpoet after meeting at Nasdaq. The platform utilizes the decentralized AI network Bittensor and has joined NVIDIA's Inception program. According to the company's February 2026 data, Leadpoet achieved $1 million in annualized revenue in its first quarter after launch and secured investments from DSV Fund and Astrid.