The Ouroboros that spits gold
By now it is obvious that crypto is inevitable. Some might even say mainstream. Yet among crypto natives I speak to, there is great skepticism and nihilism. Sure, Bitcoin and stablecoins are now proven “products”, but what’s next? What else could there be that isn’t just a speculative bubble?“Short term bearish, long term bullish.”A deep rift runs through crypto culture: Satoshi’s cypherpunk wish of money without institutions, the degens chasing life changing gains, and the legion of actual i...
The Ouroboros that spits gold
By now it is obvious that crypto is inevitable. Some might even say mainstream. Yet among crypto natives I speak to, there is great skepticism and nihilism. Sure, Bitcoin and stablecoins are now proven “products”, but what’s next? What else could there be that isn’t just a speculative bubble?“Short term bearish, long term bullish.”A deep rift runs through crypto culture: Satoshi’s cypherpunk wish of money without institutions, the degens chasing life changing gains, and the legion of actual i...
What now, crypto?
The questionWhen I started my crypto journey in 2017, the question everyone was asking was: What is blockchain good for? Can it do things other than money? Thousands of ICOs later, the dust settled, and we were left with tens of useable chains. When we started our first fund in 2021, the question in the air was: What new primitives can be built onchain with crypto? In response, we endured the heat of DeFi summer, rode the tide of NFT and PFP mania, amassed laborious hours farming GameFi, and ...
What now, crypto?
The questionWhen I started my crypto journey in 2017, the question everyone was asking was: What is blockchain good for? Can it do things other than money? Thousands of ICOs later, the dust settled, and we were left with tens of useable chains. When we started our first fund in 2021, the question in the air was: What new primitives can be built onchain with crypto? In response, we endured the heat of DeFi summer, rode the tide of NFT and PFP mania, amassed laborious hours farming GameFi, and ...
Going multi-chain: Investing in a plural, inclusive future
Note: This post was written in September 2022, but kept as a draft. I have published it retroactively for reflection. Note: This is an evolving work, and I would love to hear your feedback, be it as a builder, investor, or web3 native. One liner: The future is inevitably multi-chain, hence we invest in infrastructure, products, and middleware that enable and tap into the potential of cross-chain. One paragraph: It is impossible for one blockchain or one ecosystem alone to encapsulate all the ...
Going multi-chain: Investing in a plural, inclusive future
Note: This post was written in September 2022, but kept as a draft. I have published it retroactively for reflection. Note: This is an evolving work, and I would love to hear your feedback, be it as a builder, investor, or web3 native. One liner: The future is inevitably multi-chain, hence we invest in infrastructure, products, and middleware that enable and tap into the potential of cross-chain. One paragraph: It is impossible for one blockchain or one ecosystem alone to encapsulate all the ...
Infra <> App Value Alignment
Today, Infra <> App incentives are broken.ContextFor an infrastructure project to prosper, it needs to have a booming ecosystem. Typically, this is aided through token incentives, either programmatically (e.g. DEX liquidity incentives, airdrops), or by manual distribution (e.g. grant programs). However, recipients of these incentives are often mercenary. They typically sell the tokens as soon as possible, and leave whenever the incentives stop or are no longer attractive enough (caused and wo...
Infra <> App Value Alignment
Today, Infra <> App incentives are broken.ContextFor an infrastructure project to prosper, it needs to have a booming ecosystem. Typically, this is aided through token incentives, either programmatically (e.g. DEX liquidity incentives, airdrops), or by manual distribution (e.g. grant programs). However, recipients of these incentives are often mercenary. They typically sell the tokens as soon as possible, and leave whenever the incentives stop or are no longer attractive enough (caused and wo...
3 Frontiers of Web3 in 2022
Follow the growthTwo years ago, we waved the flag when DeFi hit $1b in Total Value Locked in LongHash’s Newsletter. The building blocks or primitives in DeFi - stablecoins, lending, decentralized exchange - became the minimum viable trio which unlocked the surface area for innovation and growth, propelling the sector beyond $200b in assets. Today, DeFi’s meteoric rise has somewhat plateaued, while further growth catalysts such as institutional involvement and regulatory clarity are just a lit...
3 Frontiers of Web3 in 2022
Follow the growthTwo years ago, we waved the flag when DeFi hit $1b in Total Value Locked in LongHash’s Newsletter. The building blocks or primitives in DeFi - stablecoins, lending, decentralized exchange - became the minimum viable trio which unlocked the surface area for innovation and growth, propelling the sector beyond $200b in assets. Today, DeFi’s meteoric rise has somewhat plateaued, while further growth catalysts such as institutional involvement and regulatory clarity are just a lit...
Notes of a Crypto Environmentalist
When I was 13, I became enamoured with the idea of a naturalist lifestyle: I slept on a wooden floor with no bed and no pillow; I took cold showers only; I went vegetarian. Once, I even refused to eat at a party because they only had styrofoam plates. Today, I am still vegetarian, but I sleep comfortably on a bed in an air-conditioned room. Yet the idea of protecting the environment still rings in my head, and even louder in the media. Especially in crypto, this is still one of the most commo...
Notes of a Crypto Environmentalist
When I was 13, I became enamoured with the idea of a naturalist lifestyle: I slept on a wooden floor with no bed and no pillow; I took cold showers only; I went vegetarian. Once, I even refused to eat at a party because they only had styrofoam plates. Today, I am still vegetarian, but I sleep comfortably on a bed in an air-conditioned room. Yet the idea of protecting the environment still rings in my head, and even louder in the media. Especially in crypto, this is still one of the most commo...
