Building a DeFi AI App: A Step-by-Step Guide

The idea of no-code development is taking over the tech world with many projects hoping to make a breakthrough product that would make the dream possible. However, the unfortunate reality is that we can’t create apps without writing at least some code. Conceptualizing, developing, and deploying even the simplest applications without any technical know-how is close to impossible. Even if it is, you will end up with a subpar product for DeFi investment.

Creating DeFi applications that are focused on artificial intelligence is even harder despite the existence of platforms like Fetch.ai, which offer relatively simple tools for AI development. The problem here is the difficulty of creating a functional piece of code that can be easily injected into the infrastructure and frameworks that are offered by Fetch and Ocean, leading platforms in the DeFi ecosystem in the AI sector.

AI in DeFi in 2025

Artificial intelligence was one of the most important talking points in the world of tech in 2024. The DeFi investment sector was also affected by the accelerating hype train with protocols focused on agentic AI seeing significant TVL growth. For instance, Morpheus AI managed to reach a $550 million TVL one month after launching. Virtuals Protocol was making close to $350K in daily revenues in January.

It is true that all these projects slowly lose their momentum due to the limited nature of their products. General AI use cases in DeFi investment are not as demanded as the founders of Morpheus AI envisioned.

Here are some examples of successful projects in the field of DeFi and AI:

• Ocean Protocol is a key player in the sector with its data marketplace offering a wide range of data sets that can be used to train various AI models. The product is widely used by massive corporations including Mercedes, Toyota, Roche, BMW, and many others. Ocean is also a unique environment for training models focused on DeFi investment. The Predictoor is a highly specialized bot that can predict price action movements in the crypto market.
• Fetch.ai is still one of the most important frameworks for people interested in building a DeFi AI app. Fetch offers a wide range of tools designed to accelerate research and development while laying out a plethora of options for live deployment. The FET token is performing better than many other similar digital assets making it a solid DeFi investment. Despite dipping significantly after reaching its ATH ($3.1 in March 2024), it is still trading over the $0.75 level which is 87.5% higher compared to the launch price.
• Rivo.xyz is a great example of a company that takes things slowly and develops an AI agent that provides utility instead of promising something close to unachievable. The Maneki AI is a multifunctional system that can provide tips and suggestions to users while they are exploring the website. It can also receive feedback from users in natural language to suggest the best DeFi strategies based on what it learns about users. By understanding how communities relate to innovation in DeFi, it is possible to build agentic AI that works well.

Creating an artificial intelligence app that can operate in the DeFi investment ecosystem is still a very demanding task that can be accomplished only by trained professionals. However, we can outline some crucial steps and tooling options that you can learn to peak inside the exciting world of app building.

A step-by-step guide to DeFi app development

We don’t have to list the general steps in app development (defining goals, planning features, designing UX/UI, etc.). These steps are explained to complete newbies and can be found on any website dedicated to software in general. Instead, it is important to understand which tools to use and where to find them.

Here are some important steps, topics, and tools that you must check out while doing your research on DeFi development technologies:

• Choosing the right blockchain. Newcomers should start with Ethereum. Solidity is a relatively simple coding language. You can find a plethora of different tutorials, guides, and practical lessons. We strongly recommend checking out DappUniversity as it offers one of the most comprehensive and easy-to-digest beginner courses. You can learn more about DeFi investment from a different perspective.
• Build a smart contract. It is the backbone of any DeFi project. A smart contract is a tiny app that operates on the chain and actualizes the functionality of a protocol. Again, starting with the basics is a good idea. One of the best destinations for newcomers is the UseWeb3.xyz courses page where you can learn how to build a variety of decentralized apps for multiple chains including Ethereum and Bitcoin.
• Learn about artificial intelligence development. It may sound counterintuitive but building an AI app is slightly easier than becoming a developer of DeFi investment solutions. There are functional no-code solutions that do not require you to learn a whole new language to get started. For instance, you can learn the basics by using Zapier Open AI integration to learn more about machine learning. You can also learn by using a variety of other AI models with Bubble, a very useful platform for app web app development.

It may be somewhat saddening for our readers to learn that the basic step-by-step guide is:

1. Identify a hurdle.
2. Learn how to overcome it.

The impact of AI on DeFi investment is still relatively small. The combined TVL of the AI agents category is just $114 million which is 0.001% of the DeFi TVL which stands at $110 billion. Artificial intelligence is an actively evolving and developing field. Many techniques are still underbaked and require active studying to be used effectively. Creating an application without coding at all is still not possible.

Future trends in DeFi technology

While many people are very excited about the “tomorrow” of AI tech, the decentralized finance ecosystem is not sold on it fully. The slowly growing TVLs and relatively small investments in projects outside of the Ocean Protocol and Fetch.ai duet are concerning for many investors. AI should not be perceived as a target for capital allocation (at least, for now) but as a useful tool that can elevate user experience.

For instance, Rivo is implementing its AI features to create a better environment for DeFi investment. Maneki AI is designed to provide guidance and suggestions on which are the best DeFi strategies for specific types of investors based on their preferences and risk styles. By using contemporary methods for assessing the effectiveness of DeFi AI applications, one can create a product that generates value without directly interacting with the crypto market.

If you are interested in the best DeFi strategies that revolve around AI, it is a good idea to invest small portions of investable capital instead of banking on a breakthrough. We strongly believe that you should be looking at ways to diversify investments. For example, you can check out strategies like the VIRTUAL-cbBTC pool on Aerodrome (59.8% APY) or the Base Yield Index (21.7% weekly APY) to spread capital while still investing in AI-related projects.

Based on current and future trends in DeFi and AI, we will soon see excellent tools for no-code AI app development. Right now, you should simply enjoy effective solutions like Rivo Maneki AI and Virtuals Protocol. Observe, learn, and prepare yourself for the day when it will be possible to create an app without much effort.