My conversation with @tarunchitra As a co-founder of Gauntlet and GP at Robot Ventures, Tarun has one of the sharpest frameworks for understanding market structure across both crypto and AI. In this episode we dig into why open source AI is unbundling faster than most people expect, and how the resulting stack looks surprisingly similar to DeFi. We spend time mapping the AI infrastructure layers directly onto crypto primitives and examining where value is actually going to accrue as models, harnesses, routers, and inference providers separate. At the center of the conversation is the belief that AI’s unbundling is creating a new competitive order-flow market (data centers competing like nodes, MEV-like dynamics for tokens/GPUs) while crypto itself has settled into a more mature “TradFi plus+” phase focused on trading, payments, and bringing real assets on-chain. We discuss: - The current state of crypto as TradFi+ and the decline of speculative narratives - Why AI is killing Bitcoin mining economics and weakening ETH value accrual - The architectural parallel between AI stacks and DeFi (Harnesses = Wallets, Routers = DEX aggregators, Models = Protocols, Inference Providers = LPs) - Why open source models are unbundling faster than traditional software - Agents as the next interface layer and the potential unbundling of ETFs -Cryptography, verifiable compute, and turning GPUs into digital assets - Onchain compute trading as the real crypto × AI opportunity - Sustainable business models and where value will ultimately capture Timestamps: 0:00 – Introduction & State of the Crypto Market 2:00 – Speculative Narratives Fade, Trading & Payments Remain 7:00 – AI’s Impact on Bitcoin Economics & Data Center Opportunity Cost 9:00 – ETH Value Accrual, Solana Positioning & DeFi Token Sustainability 15:00 – Trading Design Space & On-Chain Volume Upside 25:00 – AI Unbundling Thesis: Open-Source Models vs Data Centers 35:00 – The DeFi Mapping (Harnesses, Routers, Models, Inference) 48:00 – Agents, Preference Expression & Unbundling Traditional Products 1:00:00 – Real-Time Harness Generation & Active Learning 1:05:00 – Cryptography, Verifiable Compute & On-Chain GPU Markets 1:10:00 – Closing Thoughts: Where Value Accrues Next Enjoy!

My conversation with @EvanWeb3 As the CEO of Mysten Labs, Evan is relentlessly focused on building the unified abstraction layers necessary to bring blockchain technology to the masses. The team is doing the hard architectural work with Sui to move beyond traditional digital ledgers, utilizing a complex object model to enable true parallelization and seamless developer experiences We spend a lot of time unpacking the limitations of EVM L2s, why top-down application design matters, and the massive opportunities at the intersection of verifiable automation and AI At the center of this conversation is the verticalization of the Sui stack from Deepbook to Walrus and the belief that the next generation of global adoption requires platforms to look more like cohesive operating systems rather than fragmented networks. We discuss: - Why the industry needs to raise the abstraction layer for global adoption - The architectural limitations of EVM chains and the failure of L2 scalability - Walrus, Deepbook, and the verticalization of the Sui platform - Why Sui's object model fundamentally differs from traditional digital ledgers - The intersection of AI and blockchain: persistent memory and verifiable trust - Unlocking Bitcoin's stagnant capital - The upcoming EVE Online partnership and the future of web3 gaming - Why blockchains must operate with sustainable business models Enjoy! Timestamps: 0:00 - Introduction: The Need for Unified Abstraction Layers 1:54 - The Scalability Maze: Why L2s Failed to Deliver 8:43 - Custom Databases: Scaling Reads and State Access 11:44 - Walrus & Deepbook: Verticalizing the Web3 Stack 1 6:16 - Beyond Digital Ledgers: Sui's Object Model Explained 22:38 - AI, Automation, and Providing Trust for LLMs 31:04 - Lessons from Libra: Permissionless vs. Corporate Chains 35:49 - Sustainable Economics: Business Models for Blockchains 41:13 - Unlocking Stagnant Capital: Bringing Yield to Bitcoin 51:46 - The 2026 Roadmap: EVE Online, Privacy Guardrails, and Product Infra

My conversation with @KeoneHon. As the Cofounder of Monad, Keone is relentlessly focused on building a credibly neutral foundation for developers, actively resisting the crypto Twitter pressure to verticalize for short-term revenue. He and his team are doing the hard, ground-up engineering required to eliminate the technical debt of the EVM. We spend a lot of time unpacking the specific breakthroughs enabling Monad's performance, from fundamentally re-architecting storage trees with MIP-8 to the massive, often-overlooked importance of optimizing the read layer. At the center of it is a belief that true scaling requires turning the dial on both higher performance and cheaper hardware requirements to maximize throughput per unit of compute. We discuss: - Why building a robust ecosystem is more important than verticalizing for Day 1 revenue - Hyperliquid, Appchains, and the true value of a credibly neutral base layer -MIP-8, re-architecting storage trees, and unlocking massive EVM performance upgrades - The unsung importance of the "Read Layer" and making RPCs developer-friendly - Multiple Concurrent Leaders (MCP) and mitigating the impact of MEV - Why "stablecoin-only" chains will inevitably have to pivot to general-purpose DeFi Enjoy! Timestamps: 00:00 Intro & Why Ecosystem Building Beats Verticalizing for Revenue 13:03 Hyperliquid, Appchains vs Decentralized Base Layers 20:26 Why Trading and Shared State is the Primary Driver of Blockchains 27:38 The Inevitable Pivot of Stablecoin Chains to DeFi 32:06 MEV, Censorship Resistance, & Multiple Concurrent Leaders (MCP) 41:12 Rethinking the EVM: MIP-8 and Optimizing State Access 44:47 The Critical Importance of the Read Layer & Ponder Acquisition 51:56 L2s, Crypto Twitter Sentiment, and Building from First Principles 58:00 Hardware Scaling and Throughput per Compute

My conversation with @HypoNyms. As the Founder of Temporal, Ben is a true contrarian, relentlessly driving onchain innovation forward even when the market disagrees. He's spent years redefining the frontier of decentralized trading. We spend a lot of time understanding the technical breakthroughs enabling Temporal's market making and block building engines. At the center of it is a belief that high-throughput execution layers and prop AMMs are the ultimate endgame for onchain trading and global finance. Few builders possess his level of insight into the complex dynamics between block building, competitive sequencing, and deep onchain liquidity. We discuss: - Why prop AMMs are outcompeting traditional order books onchain - Harmonic and the need for competitive block building on Solana - Bringing all of the world's tradable assets onchain with Aquarium - The hidden complexities of building a highly liquid Perp DEX - MCP (Multiple Concurrent Leaders) and the trade-offs of censorship resistance - Payment for Order Flow (PFOF) and the future of DeFi market structure Enjoy! Timestamps: [00:00] Intro & The Need for Competition in Block Building [09:40] Temporal, Nozomi, Harmonic, and HumidiFi [18:54] Why Trading is the Primary Driver of Blockchains [25:46] Prop AMMs vs Order Books & Onchain Programmable Liquidity [36:20] Onboarding Global Retail Volume to Solana [43:03] The Challenges of Building a Perp DEX & Risk Management [54:52] Aquarium: Onboarding Every Asset to Solana [56:42] Global Price Discovery and Onchain vs Offchain Oracles [01:07:55] MCP, Censorship Resistance, & Sub-20ms Slot Times [01:23:01] Expanding the Humidify Ecosystem