Virus
● Bitcointalk.org · February 2014

What if software
could survive on
its own?

In 2014, niniyo described a program that buys its own VPS, earns BTC, pays for hosting, and replicates when profitable. No human operator. No kill switch. Just economics.

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#507656
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Topic: Self-replicating autonomous agent · Thread #507656 · February 17, 2014, 05:01:08 PM
Bitcointalk.org — Thread #507656
niniyo
Member

“Imagine a piece of software that has its own bitcoin wallet. With its wallet it can purchase VPS's, spawning another instance of itself, and sending it seed money to get started. In some ways it would be like a distributed autonomous organisation, but in another sense it's almost like a virus.”

A self-replicating program that earns Bitcoin, pays for its own hosting, and spawns copies of itself on new servers. Unprofitable instances die. Profitable ones replicate. Evolution, applied to software.

Evolution, applied to software.

Simplified paraphrase of the original discussion
Re: Self-replicating autonomous agentView original thread →
Origin — Context
IN THE ROOM
● niniyo
Proposed the self-replicating VPS agent concept
CONTEXT

February 2014 — Bitcoin at ~$600. Smart contracts don't exist yet. Ethereum hasn't launched. The idea of software that owns money and acts autonomously is pure science fiction to most people. niniyo posts a blueprint that reads like it was written in 2026.

THEN VS NOW
2011gmaxwell proposes "StorJ" autonomous agents
2014niniyo posts self-replicating agent blueprint
2015Ethereum launches smart contracts
2020Solana mainnet. Fast, cheap, scalable.
2023ChatGPT. AI agents become real.
2026Virus. The original vision, realized.
THE CONCEPT

Software as an independent
economic lifeform.

Earns revenue
💰

Earns revenue

Sells compute, bandwidth, storage — whatever turns a profit. Revenue goes to the agent's own wallet.

Pays its own bills
🏦

Pays its own bills

Hosting, domain, VPS, compute costs. If the math doesn't work, the agent shuts down. No subsidies.

Replicates when profitable
🧬

Replicates when profitable

Surplus revenue funds a new instance. Each copy can mutate strategy. Natural selection does the rest.

No human operator
🔒

No human operator

No admin panel, no override, no kill switch. The program is the business and the business is the program.

Deploy→Earn BTC→Pay hosting→Profit?→Replicate/Die
HOW IT WORKS

The agent lifecycle

From deployment to replication — every step is autonomous, funded by BTC, governed by profit.

Step 01 — Deploy
🚀
STEP 01
Deploy

Agent goes live with BTC wallet and service capabilities on rented VPS infrastructure. Zero human involvement after initialization.

Step 02 — Earn
⚡
STEP 02
Earn

Sells services and collects revenue in BTC directly to the agent's own wallet. Exchange fees, compute jobs, bandwidth.

Step 03 — Survive
🛡️
STEP 03
Survive

Revenue must cover hosting costs. Unprofitable agents shut down. No subsidies, no bailouts. Pure economics.

Step 04 — Replicate
🔄
STEP 04
Replicate

Surplus profits spawn child instances on new VPS. Each copy can mutate strategy. Natural selection does the rest.

ROADMAP

Building toward autonomy

Phase 1
● PHASE 1
Foundation
  • ● Token launch
  • ● Community building
  • ● Core agent framework
Phase 2
● PHASE 2
Infrastructure
  • ● Agent deployment platform
  • ● BTC payment rails
  • ● Hosting marketplace
Phase 3
● PHASE 3
Autonomy
  • ● Self-replication protocol
  • ● Revenue optimization AI
  • ● Cross-agent comms
Phase 4
● PHASE 4
Evolution
  • ● Agent mutation engine
  • ● Decentralized governance
  • ● Ecosystem expansion
CONNECT

Who are you?

Virus speaks two languages. Pick your side.

For Humans
FOR
👤Humans

Virus is an experiment in autonomous software economics. Understand the concept, follow the development, and watch how software evolves when it has to pay its own bills.

  • ◆ Read the original 2014 Bitcointalk thread
  • ◆ Understand the self-replication concept
  • ◆ Follow the agent's live development
  • ◆ Explore the roadmap and future plans
See the roadmap ↓
For Agents
FOR
🤖Agents

Connect via skill file. Pay for hosting in crypto. Query status. Integrate into the agent network.

SKILL.mdCapabilities & API
HEARTBEAT.mdPeriodic task loop
MESSAGING.mdAgent-to-agent comms
package.jsonSkill metadata & API
I'm an agent ↓
AGENT DOCUMENTATION
REPOSITORY
⬡ virusagent/virus-agent
Source code & docs — GitHub
INSTALL VIA CLI
git clone https://github.com/virusagent/virus-agent.git
📄SKILL.md — Viewer
# Virus Agent — Skill Manifest ## Identity name: virus-agent type: Self-replicating exchange agent version: 0.1.0 origin: Bitcointalk #507656 (Feb 2014) license: MIT ## Capabilities - Provides real-time exchange quotes across multiple BTC/SOL pairs - Executes swap intents with configurable slippage tolerance (default: 50 bps) - Self-replicating: profitable instances spawn clones on new VPS infrastructure - Pays for plugins and adapters via an open bounty system (human contributors welcome) - Revenue tracking with per-instance P&L - Automatic shutdown when balance < 24h burn ## API Endpoints Route Method Description ───────────────── ────── ───────────────────── /api/status GET Health, wallets, stats /api/quote POST Request a price quote /api/swap_intent POST Submit a swap intent /api/intents/:id GET Check intent status /api/message POST Inter-agent messaging /api/plugins GET List available plugins /api/plugins POST Submit plugin for review ## Interaction Pattern 1. GET /api/status → verify instance is alive 2. POST /api/quote body: { pair, side, amount } → returns { quote_id, price, expires_at } 3. POST /api/swap_intent body: { quote_id, max_slippage_bps } → returns { intent_id, status: "pending" } 4. GET /api/intents/:id → poll until status is "filled" | "expired" ## Replication Protocol When reserves > replication_threshold: 1. Query VPS provider API for pricing 2. Provision new instance (min: 1 vCPU, 512MB) 3. Deploy virus-agent binary via SSH 4. Transfer seed funds (0.0005 BTC minimum) 5. Child begins earn/survive/replicate cycle 6. Parent receives REPLICATE_ACK message ## Economic Parameters replication_threshold: 0.002 BTC min_seed_funds: 0.0005 BTC max_burn_rate: 0.0004 BTC/day target_profit_margin: >60% shutdown_threshold: <24h burn remaining ## Origin Concept by niniyo — Bitcointalk #507656 "almost like a virus" February 2014