i'd say the crypto angle is only one factor. as is usual in the real world, effects are multifactorial.

clawdbot also rode the wave of claude-code being popular (perhaps due to underlying models getting better making agents more useful). a lot of "personal agents" were made in 2024 and early 2025 which seem to be before the underlying models/ecosystems were as mature.

no doubt we're still very early in this wave. i'm sure google and apple will release their offerings. they are the 800lb gorillas in all this.