Empire

In today's episode, Nick Tomaino, GP of 1confirmation, joins Santiago and Jason. They dive into why the Next Gen L1 Thesis is wrong, Opensea token launch, VC issues, and his thesis for NFTs moving forward.  - - Follow Nick Tomaino: https://twitter.com/NTmoney Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Santiago: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/  - - This episode is brought to you by Carbon.  Carbon is a new DEX on Ethereum that makes concentrated liquidity easy. LPs can automate their liquidity strategy with custom on-chain limit and range orders: all from a beautiful UI. Check out Carbon today at https://www.carbondefi.xyz/.  - - Use code EMPIRE30 to get 30% off Permissionless 2023 in Austin: https://blockworks.co/event/permissionless-2023 - - Timestamps: (00:00) Why Crypto VC is Dumb Money (08:06) Narrative Investing (17:48) The Key to VC Success (23:10) Bull Case for Prediction Markets (31:40) Carbon Ad (32:59) Permissionless  (34:24) The NFT Thesis (44:19) NTS & RWAs (49:02) NFT Fractionalization (54:52) The Future of Open Sea (01:00:04) Coinbase and Wallstreet (01:04:15) Timeline for Mainstream Adoption (01:12:25) 2024 US Election Outlook - - Resources Polymarket https://polymarket.com/ https://twitter.com/Polymarket The Scapegoat by Rene Girard https://www.amazon.com/Scapegoat-Ren - - Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

1 Aug 20231h 17min

In today's episode Dan and Sam are joined by host of Bell Curve Podcast & Blockworks Co-Founder Michael and Blockworks research analyst Matt. The team dives into their key takeaways of the EthCC and converse on zkEVM problems, the bull case for centralization, scaling solutions, interoperability, and much more! - - Follow 0xResearch on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3foDS38 Subscribe to 0xResearch on Apple: https://apple.co/3SNhUEt Subscribe to 0xResearch on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3NlP1hA - - Follow Michael: https://twitter.com/MikeIppolito_ Follow Sam: https://twitter.com/swmartin19 Follow Dan: https://twitter.com/smyyguy Follow Matt: https://twitter.com/MattFiebach Follow Blockworks Research: https://twitter.com/blockworksres Subscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3foDS38 Subscribe on Apple: https://apple.co/3SNhUEt Subscribe on Spotify: https://spoti.fi/3NlP1hA Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/  -- Use code EMPIRE30 to get 30% off Permissionless 2023 in Austin: https://blockworks.co/event/permissionless-2023 - - Resources Alex Blania Interview spoti.fi/3BuCzab https://apple.co/3W94QN6  https://youtu.be/ImPvUOwFR68 McHenry Bill Derailing https://blockworks.co/news/house-stablecoin-markup Vitalik Buterin - A history of account abstraction https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLf8qpOmxQc LayerZero https://layerzero.network/ — Timestamps: (00:00) Introduction (02:27) EthCC Vibe Check (09:30) Discussions on zkEVM Problems (15:11) Takeaways for Interoperability (23:52) The Bull Case for Centralized Builders (39:49) Enshrining Eigen Layer in Ethereum Protocol (46:21) Are Scaling Solutions Too Much? (55:01) Lido Bribe Mechanism (59:45) Web2 at EthCC (01:01:55) Permissionless Discount (01:03:19) What Does Institutional Adoption Look Like? - - Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

28 Jul 20231h 9min

In today's episode, Jason is joined by Qiao Wang, Partner at Alliance DAO. They start today's episode by sentiment checking the market, reflecting on the current building landscape, and the types of founders and projects currently raising funds. They wrap up the show by diving into the intersection of Crypto & AI, decentralizing AI, and consumer crypto AI products.  - - Follow Qiao Wang: https://twitter.com/QwQiao Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/  - - This episode is brought to you by Carbon.  Carbon is a new DEX on Ethereum that makes concentrated liquidity easy. LPs can automate their liquidity strategy with custom on-chain limit and range orders: all from a beautiful UI. Check out Carbon today at https://www.carbondefi.xyz/.  - - Use code EMPIRE30 to get 30% off Permissionless 2023 in Austin: https://blockworks.co/event/permissionless-2023 - - Timestamps: (00:00) Bear Market Sentiment Check (08:23) The Stages of a Bear Market (13:19) What Buildoors are Building (18:50) What Layer has the Buildoors? (21:55) Types of Founders (29:44) Characteristics of a Successful Founder (33:47) Where Web3 Innovation is (37:03) Permissionless ad (38:28) Carbon ad (39:47) Is AI on the Gartner Hype Cycle? (43:07) The Intersection of AI (50:06) Decentralizing AI (59:41) Is There a Crypto Element for AI? (01:05:43) Consumer Crypto & AI Products - - Resources Alliance DAO https://twitter.com/alliancedao  - - Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

25 Jul 20231h 16min

In today's episode special edition cross-over episode Jason and Santi are joined by Michael, Co-founder at Framework Ventures and Co-host of the Bell Curve podcast. They cover EthCC Account Abstraction takeaways, Infinex, UniswapX, Chainlink CCIP & LayerZero, the VC landscape and MUCH much more.  - - This episode is brought to you by Kwenta, the premier derivatives trading platform on Optimism that offers deep liquidity, low fees and up to 50x leverage across 24+ assets.  Go to Kwenta.io and start trading today! --  This episode is brought to you buy Thales.  Thales is an innovative digital options platform on Arbitrum and Optimism that gets you exposure to crypto assets in the simplest way possible. As simple as choosing UP or DOWN! Experience the simplicity and power of Thales by visiting:  https://thalesmarket.io/?mtm_campaign=blockworks - - Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - - Resources UniswapX https://twitter.com/Uniswap/status/1680955621343129600 Infinex https://twitter.com/DefiantNews/status/1679838219201028097 Chainlink CCIP https://twitter.com/chainlink/status/1680970793331613697 Celo Move to L1 https://blockworks.co/news/celo-return-home-ethereum --  (00:00) EthCC (03:46) Account Abstraction & Crypto UX (06:48) Infinex: The CEX Killer? (10:25) UniswapX Release (17:19) Chainlink CCIP (27:43) LayerZero vs Chainlink (31:04) Policy Episode Takeaways (36:23) Thales (37:19) Kwenta (38:15) CoinDesk Acquired (41:25) Sequoia Shakes Up Crypto Arm (48:24) Crypto VC Competitive Landscape (52:16) Crypto VC Strategies & Investment Practices (01:03:13) Most Important Factor for L1s (01:12:43) Celo Transition to Ethereum L2 — Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

21 Jul 20231h 22min

Join Santi and guests Rebeca Rettig and Jake Chervinsky in today's special Policy Series episode as they discuss the landmark Ripple case and its monumental impact. Explore the implications for future legislation, token sales practices, decentralization & governance, and get updates on MiCA & EU regulations.  - - Timestamps: (00:00) Introduction (01:24) Landmark Ripple Case (14:00) Verdict Impact on Industry Financing (19:08) What's Next for Ripple Case? (24:35) Influence on Future Legislation (28:36) Token Sales in Practice (38:31) Decentralization & Governance (48:57) Digital Asset Market Structure Proposal (56:25) Updates on MiCA & EU (01:01:18) Call Your Representatives (01:09:02) Futures Curve (01:15:07) Recession Risk - - Follow Rebecca: https://twitter.com/RebeccaRettig1 Follow Jake: https://twitter.com/jchervinsky Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/  - - This episode is brought to you by Chainalysis.  Chainalysis is the blockchain data platform. We provide data, software, services, and research to government agencies, web3 companies, financial institutions, and insurance and cybersecurity companies. Our data powers investigation, compliance, and business intelligence software that has been used to solve some of the world’s most high-profile criminal cases.  For more information, visit www.Chainalysis.com/empire. - - Resources   Crypto Usecases thevaluedrop.io  The Blockchain Association https://theblockchainassociation.org/ https://twitter.com/BlockchainAssn - -  Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

20 Jul 20231h 7min

In today's episode of 1000x, Avi & Jonah explore the bear case despite the XRP rally. Also discussed are the impact of XRP versus ETF news, Ripple effect on Alt Market, the multi-chain thesis, on-chain RWAs, and much more! We'll drop a new 1000x episode on Empire's RSS feed and the 1000x YouTube channel every two weeks. Hit the links below and give us a follow! - - Timestamps: (00:00) Introduction (02:17) Market Sentiment Check-in (06:40) Market Insights From News (12:18) Impact of XRP vs ETF News (17:19) Ripple Effect on Alt Market (22:18) Is Multi-chain the Future? (26:35) Are Useful On-chain RWAs Here? (32:19) The Bear Case for Risk Assets - - Follow Avi: https://twitter.com/AviFelman Follow Jonah: https://twitter.com/jvb_xyz Follow 1000x: https://twitter.com/1000xPod Subscribe on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3FuSarX Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - - Resources: XRP (Ripple) Case News https://blockworks.co/news/traders-profit-cautious-markets-ripple Figure Technologies (RWAs On-Chain) https://twitter.com/Figure - - Disclaimer: Nothing said on 1000x is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Avi, Jonah and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

20 Jul 202338min

In today's episode, Jason is joined by Luca Netz, CEO of Pudgy Penguins, to discuss his journey, Pudgy Penguins' business model, IP Houses, Brand Licensing, and Pudgy Penguins future.  - - Follow Luca Netz: https://twitter.com/LucaNetz Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/  - - This episode is brought to you by Carbon.  Carbon is a new DEX on Ethereum that makes concentrated liquidity easy. LPs can automate their liquidity strategy with custom on-chain limit and range orders: all from a beautiful UI. Check out Carbon today at https://www.carbondefi.xyz/.  - - This episode is brought to you by Synthetix.  This episode is brought to you by Synthetix. Synthetix Perps is the most efficient decentralized perpetual futures engine, with 5/10 bp fees and up to 25x leverage. With a growing list of over 20 tradable markets, Synthetix Perps are available on Optimism via Kwenta.io and Polynomial.fi, with more coming soon! As a permissionless liquidity layer, Synthetix makes it easy for any protocol to integrate perps and earn 5%-10% of trade fees. - - Timestamps: (00:00) Who is Luca Netz? (04:35) Buying Pudgy Penguins (10:47) Pudgy Penguins' Business Model (25:16) Pudgy Penguins as an IP House (31:44) Carbon Ad (33:03) Synthetix Ad (34:43) Monetization & NFT Bear Markets (38:22) Confidence In NFT Projects (44:23) The Future of Pudgy Penguins - - Resources Pudgy Penguins https://twitter.com/pudgypenguins https://www.pudgypenguins.com/ - - Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

18 Jul 202350min

Uncommon Core - one of my favorite podcasts of all time - is back! This reboot is hosted by Hasu and Jon Charbonneau, two of the brightest minds in crypto. We are dropping their first episode here to share the news and because you’ll want to add this show to your podcast lineup! __ In this episode, we explore Jon’s journey into crypto and our mutual passion for research and the writing process. We then give an overview of the key areas of crypto infrastructure today. Finally, we zoom into rollup decentralization roadmaps, and Jon shares a controversial new thesis about sequencer decentralization. __ Timestamps: (00:00) Intro (02:42) Interview start (03:44) Jon's work week (08:04) ChatGPT & writing (10:57) Jon's start in crypto (14:45) How to pick things to work on (17:08) Outsider's perspective on crypto (19:05) Jon's research process (22:00) Jon's proudest moment in crypto (23:06) Crypto Infrastructure overview (29:58) Why crypto infrastructure is interesting (35:57) Rollup decentralization overview (42:44) Challenges decentralizing the sequencer (47:46) Ethereum vs Cosmos approach to governance & decentralization (53:35) User ability to opt out (56:37) Staking vs. governance deciding sequencers (01:08:31) L3s (01:13:34) Superchain (01:16:38) Summary of rollup decentralization (01:21:08) Outro __ Hasu - https://twitter.com/hasufl Jon Charbonneau - https://twitter.com/jon_charb UCC2 - https://twitter.com/UCC2_xyz Website - https://ucc2.xyz __ Disclaimer: The material and information presented in this podcast is for general informational purposes only and should not be considered investment advice. The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this podcast are solely those of the speakers and are not the views of any entity or other person with whom the speaker is affiliated, including, without limitation, DBA Crypto, LLC. The “DBA Crypto” name and all forms thereof are the sole property of its owner, and its use does not imply endorsement of or opposition to any specific organization, product, or service.

17 Jul 20231h 22min