The Role of Transformer Models in Advancing Blockchain Technology: A Systematic Review

As blockchain technology rapidly evolves, the demand for enhanced efficiency, security, and scalability grows.Transformer models, as powerful deep learning architectures,have shown unprecedented potential in addressing various blockchain challenges. However, a systematic review of Transformer applications in blockchain is lacking. This paper aims to fill this research gap by surveying over 200 relevant papers, comprehensively reviewing practical cases and research progress of Transformers in blockchain applications. Our survey covers key areas including anomaly detection, smart contract security analysis, cryptocurrency prediction and trend analysis, and code summary generation. To clearly articulate the advancements of Transformers across various blockchain domains, we adopt a domain-oriented classification system, organizing and introducing representative methods based on major challenges in current blockchain research. For each research domain,we first introduce its background and objectives, then review previous representative methods and analyze their limitations,and finally introduce the advancements brought by Transformer models. Furthermore, we explore the challenges of utilizing Transformer, such as data privacy, model complexity, and real-time processing requirements. Finally, this article proposes future research directions, emphasizing the importance of exploring the Transformer architecture in depth to adapt it to specific blockchain applications, and discusses its potential role in promoting the development of blockchain technology. This review aims to provide new perspectives and a research foundation for the integrated development of blockchain technology and machine learning, supporting further innovation and application expansion of blockchain technology.