"Building for People, Not Wallets" with Privy cofounder Henri Stern | ZEROPOD S2 E16
What if crypto products weren’t built for wallets, but for people? In this episode of ZEROPOD, Privy.io founder Henri Stern joins host Toady Hawk to talk about building user-first infra, why account abstraction matters, and what it’ll take to onboard the next billion. From his Parisian roots to Protocol Labs and now Privy, Henri shares sharp takes on fragmentation, EIP-7702, and why most crypto apps still miss the point. Come for the insights, stay for the travel tips and Italian bread slander. TIMESTAMPS:00:00 - Intro: Meet Henri Stern, founder of Privy01:44 - Henri’s backstory: Growing up in Paris, moving to NYC03:55 - Adjusting to life in New York and early education04:32 - Choosing Stanford over the French education system06:00 - Discovering computer science and why it stuck07:54 - Founding Shout: a peer-to-peer marketplace experiment10:01 - What went wrong with hyperlocal marketplaces12:20 - Filecoin and Protocol Labs: Henri’s next chapter13:49 - What Filecoin taught Henri about zk, consensus, and infra19:00 - Falling in love with crypto, then falling out of it for a bit20:06 - The origin of Privy: starting with privacy, landing on onboarding24:00 - What Privy does today: abstracting onboarding, not just accounts26:10 - The nuance of account abstraction vs. 4337/770228:30 - Privy’s internal values: focus, experimentation, ownership33:00 - Wallet sprawl and the identity fragmentation dilemma36:00 - Wallets as identity tools, not just money holders39:00 - Why crypto infra must be built now, not later41:00 - Notable partnerships: Farcaster, Pump.fun, Hyperliquid & more45:10 - Privy's current roadmap: chains, funding UX, identity UX47:02 - EIP-7702: What it is and why it matters50:00 - Speculation vs stability: the real bifurcation in crypto52:40 - Henri’s vision for 2025 and hiring at Privy54:08 - Rapid-fire round: food, music, tech, travel, and more1:04:28 - Where to find out more about Privy and wrap-up--- Podcast recorded by Toady Hawk, edited by Toady Hawk. Hosted by Toady Hawk. Produced by Zero Rights Media. This content is zero rights reserved (cc0), please remix and reuse it in any way you like! #base #onchain #ethereum #privy #crypto #stripe
Bonsai on fire: Carlos in Los Fomos
We summoned Carlos’s unfiltered takes by setting his mocktail on fire: cringey club rejections, cursed bonsai trees, black market picks and falling on stage at EthCC. We talk Lens vs. Farcaster, bot relationships and the digital forest we’re all supposedly lost in. This definitely wasn't recorded before noon 🌶️ Join Los Fomos on Farcaster: https://warpcast.com/~/channel/los-fomos and X: https://x.com/LosFomos Become a producer of the show to support Los Fomos and subscribe on Hypersub: https://www.hypersub.xyz/dashboard/los-fomos-fm-producer-yfpf5xwg6qkg
Matcha, robot boyfriends and guests I’d never re-invite: Blake in Los Fomos
Blake is the founder and host of Contextpod w. Boys Club, an onchain creator, investor and art historian. Do you think there are any guests she wouldn't re-invite to her show?? 🌶️ Become a producer of the show to support Los Fomos: subscribe on Hypersub: https://www.hypersub.xyz/dashboard/los-fomos-fm-producer-yfpf5xwg6qkg Join Los Fomos on Farcaster: https://warpcast.com/~/channel/los-fomos and X: https://x.com/LosFomos
Shorts | Jacob: The Evolution of Open Editions
Jacob, Co-Founder of Zora, joined Season 7 and spoke about the evolution of open editions.
Context S4: Navigating the Future of Virtual Worlds w/ Bay Backer, Head Producer @ Decentraland
Blake speaks with Bay Backner about all things Decentraland (she's the head producer there)! This is a must listen to learn all of its ins and outs…from LAND vs. MANA to how the DAO operates vs. the foundation. Bay is the real deal, she started as an artist creating in Decentraland with support from the DAO and now she works for the foundation as the head producer…so she’s seen all sides. Bay and Blake dive into the dynamics of virtual worlds, what makes Decentraland so unique, how it’s a super friendly place for creators and ofcourse, they talk digital fashion and Metaverse Fashion Week, happening April 9-12 (Bay also drops some exclusive alpha about what to expect!). This is such an inspiring convo that will help you understand the future of virtual worlds and why Decentraland is at the forefront. Bay: https://x.com/BayBackner Metaverse Fashion Week: https://mvfw.org/?utm_org=dcl&utm_source=context&utm_medium=paid&utm_campaign=mvfw25&utm_term=podcast&utm_content=bay Decentraland: https://decentraland.org/?utm_org=dcl&utm_source=context&utm_medium=paid&utm_campaign=mvfw25&utm_term=podcast&utm_content=bay Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/
Courtside Crypto Episode 3: Build Your Tomorrow with Moonwell
In this episode, Tristan sits down with Luke Youngblood from Moonwell to dive into their mission of bringing the world onchain with powerful financial tools designed for everyone. From Moonwell's new VISA debit card to virtual bank accounts, Luke explains how Moonwell is simplifying onchain finance and empowering people across the globe to take control of their financial futures. 00:00 - Introduction 01:44 - Who is Luke Youngblood 03:30 - Moonwell Mission and Vision 06:40 - Virtual Bank Accounts 10:54 - The Power of Stablecoin Payments 18:45 - TradFi vs. DeFi 21:00 - Saving in Moonwell Vaults 25:00 - Doing More with Moonwell 29:00 - From Memes to Onchain Finance 34:15 - Lending Made Simple 36:45 - What’s Next for Moonwell 38:42 - Starting Your Crypto Journey 📲 Don’t forget to like, subscribe, and hit the bell 🔔 for updates on future episodes!
Episode 11 – Building at the Frontier with Dariya + Brandon of Layer3
Coach Coale talks with Dariya Khojasteh and Brandon Kumar, co-founders of Layer 3, about their origin story, the challenges of building in crypto, and the impact of in-person collaboration. They share the highs and lows of entrepreneurship, the role of risk in growth, and why speed and adaptation matter more than perfection. Through personal stories and hard-earned lessons, they offer insights on co-founder dynamics, navigating crypto, and shaping identity through action—and attention. 🔑 Key Takeaways: 🚀 Building a startup is tough—especially in crypto—but offers huge rewards. 🤝 In-person collaboration strengthens teams in ways remote work can’t. 🧩 Co-founder relationships are key—finding complementary strengths matters. 🌍 Crypto’s distribution landscape is unique, requiring new growth strategies. 🎯 Risk-taking is essential, but belief in yourself shapes how you handle it. ⚡ Iteration beats perfection—getting a product out fast is crucial. 🎢 The founder journey is extreme—highs are exhilarating, lows are brutal. 🧠 Perspective is powerful—how you see a challenge changes how you navigate it. Chapters: 00:00 – Introduction & Personal Updates 02:57 – Coaching & Team Dynamics 06:01 – The Power of In-Person Collaboration 09:06 – The Challenges of Building in Crypto 12:01 – Layer 3’s Role in Crypto & Distribution 14:57 – The Origin Story of Layer 3 (Dariya’s Perspective) 17:48 – Founders' Journey & Lessons Learned 26:18 – Taking Smart Risks in Entrepreneurship 36:01 – The Power of Perspective in Leadership 40:51 – Iteration, Growth & Startup Success 46:46 – Final Reflections & Takeaways 🎧 Follow Layer3 at layer3.xyz and on Twitter (@layer3xyz).
Making your home a castle with Ben Corbier
Joining "Bet on Yourself" this week is Ben Corbier, a real estate broker for Engel & Völkers. Ben shares his professional journey with Fred and Derek, from studying architecture, to becoming a real estate franchise owner, to breaking glass ceilings within his industry. Ben shares how he fought hard to get to where he is as a branch owner for his luxury real estate company, and talks through his personal experience with discrimination and nepotism. In Ben’s own words, “the more you know, the more you can teach”. Based on his passion for professional development, Ben dives into his digital learning platform “RMBA” (Real Estate Mastery of Business Advancement). The goal is to share knowledge beyond his team for those interested in entering real estate or levelling up their skills. Ben’s belief is that working alongside people who are continually improving their skills and sharing their knowledge ultimately serves a team, as it reflects well on a business. Fred and Derek discuss revisiting RMBA’s business model with free content and larger in-person sessions, distribution through hired teachers, and further experimentation within the creative content. Naturally, Fred and Derek also revisit the conversation on confidence within this episode. “You don’t have to qualify yourself.” - Fred VanVleet
"The Hat Stays On" with $DEGEN Founder Jacek Trocinski | ZEROPOD S2 E12
Earlier this month, Jacek Trocinski threw a huge party in Poland to mark the first anniversary of the $DEGEN project on Base, and degens from all over the world flew in to celebrate. On this episode of ZEROPOD, host Toady Hawk sits down with Jacek to learn a little bit about his own personal story, as well as the many twists and turns along the road of degen’s first year, and what lies ahead for the "official unofficial" community token of the Farcaster network. Grab a hot drink and your favorite cap, because the hat stays on for this one!
Theft, dating vegans and eating souls: Lambchop in LF 🍸
Lambchop is a creator and graphic designer. Find her on Farcaster and Tiktok! Become a producer of the show to support Los Fomos: subscribe on Hypersub: https://www.hypersub.xyz/dashboard/los-fomos-fm-producer-yfpf5xwg6qkg Join Los Fomos on Farcaster: https://warpcast.com/~/channel/los-fomos and X: https://x.com/LosFomos
Plant-based eats with Shante Bartlett
In this episode, we get to know Shante Bartlett, the incredible creator behind Baked By Té, delicious handcrafted vegan cookies in Toronto. Shante works as a registered nurse, but would like to transition her baking business to a full-time venture. Shante shares the story of her Jamaican roots and how baking rum cakes with her mom inspired her journey to develop the perfect plant-based cookies. Fred and Derek offer Shante guidance into finding confidence as a new business owner, while also covering e-commerce platforms, marketing strategy, building a team (start with your family!), and how a business loan could take Baked By Té to the next level. Although there is a lack of representation of vegan bakers of colour in Canada, Baked By Té is breaking new ground.
"Agents of Change" with Moxie founder Jason Goldberg | ZEROPOD S2 E11
This week on ZEROPOD, host Toady Hawk sits down with Jason Goldberg, the founder of Moxie.xyz and the soon-to-be-launched Moxie AI platform. We dig into his previous startups, find out what made him want to organize the creator economy via Moxie, and what to expect from the new AI features. If you’ve always wondered about the man begin the moxie, this pod is your opportunity to find out.
In the kitchen with Jason: Berghain nights, startup highs, and Amazon's blow 🍸
Jason, also known as betashop, is a serial entrepreneur and the founder of Airstack and Moxie. This week he shares his spicy side with us! Let us know what you think about this session with Jason! Become a producer of the show to support Los Fomos: subscribe on Hypersub: https://www.hypersub.xyz/dashboard/los-fomos-fm-producer-yfpf5xwg6qkg Join Los Fomos on Farcaster: https://warpcast.com/~/channel/los-fomos and X: https://x.com/LosFomos
"Credit Where It's Due" with Onboard Founder Yele Bademosi | ZEROPOD S2E10
Welcome back to another episode of ZEROPOD our zero copyright video podcast for people who enjoy Ethereum. This week we were excited to welcome as our guest Yele Bademosi the founder of many things in this space, but most recently Onboard.xyz, which is a digital wallet designed as a full service neobank for onchain creators. In this pod, host Toady Hawk from Zero Rights Media talks with Yele about his upbringing in Nigeria, his schooling in London and his series of interesting start-ups since. They chat about why he was drawn to build on Ethereum, and specifically on Base, why he believes providing under-collateralized credit to the world is the most important future priority for Onboard, one simple thing he never learned to do, and much, much more. We hope you enjoy this conversation as much as we did. Please don’t forget to give this video a Like and a Comment, or if you’re on Spotify or apple podcasts, a 5 star review goes a long way. --- Timestamps: 00:00 - Yele’s Big Idea 01:41 - ZEROPOD Intro 02:51 - Yele’s upbringing 05:00 - Studying to be a doctor 09:00 - A word about our friendly sponsor Clanker.world 09:40 - Sports and hobbies 13:30 - Binance, Bundle and Nestcoin 16:50 - The difficulty of building many companies at once 19:00 - Focusing on fundamental real world problems with Onboard 20:50 - An onchain neobank 30:00 - Finding a niche and going after it 33:57 - Competing against huge take rates 35:00 - Undercollateralized loans as a priority 38:00 - Defi Mullet 50:00 - “I’m a Newgen” 52:00 - Impressed by Base’s bootstrapping without a token 53:00 - The importance of culture 57:00 - More about plans for onchain credit offerings 1:00:00 - “Creating supranational economies.” 1:06:15 - The killer onchain use case 1:10:00 - Where to learn more about Onboard. 1:11:00 - Outro— --- Podcast recorded by Toady Hawk, edited by Toady Hawk, JackWyldes and Santhosh. Hosted by Toady Hawk. Music by Toady Hawk, SuperTightWoody & Suno AI. Ad spot by JackWyldes. Produced by Zero Rights Media. This content is zero rights reserved (cc0), please remix and reuse it in any way you like! #base #onchain #ethereum #crypto #onboard
Wild nights in Los Fomos w. Six 🍸
LFer, let me know what you think about this session with Six! Become a producer of the show to support Los Fomos: subscribe on Hypersub: https://www.hypersub.xyz/dashboard/los-fomos-fm-producer-yfpf5xwg6qkg Join Los Fomos on Farcaster: https://warpcast.com/~/channel/los-fomos and X: https://x.com/LosFomos
"Onchain Native" with Native.fun Founder Derek Brown | ZEROPOD S2 E9
On this episode of ZEROPOD, we sit down with Derek Brown, the mad scientist developer and founder behind the upcoming agentic onchain game called Native dot fun, built on top of the Clanker protocol on Base. We had a blast getting to know Derek and hearing his story, from working as a rural midwest minister to coding in the halls of the some of the biggest tech companies in Silicon Valley, and then striking out to build tech startups of his own. His vision for Native is wild and ambitious, and we can’t wait for you to learn all about it! If you enjoy this conversation, please Like, Comment & Subscribe — it really helps us grow our community. — TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 - Introduction: Positive-Sum Environments 1:15 - ZEROPOD Intro & Guest Introduction - Derek Brown 2:00 - Derek’s Fun Fact: Three Daughters, Same Birthday 3:09 - From Dupont Brat to Tech Builder 7:01 - Discovering Programming 7:06 - A word from our sponsor: Clanker.world 9:00 - The Journey to Tech: From Ministry to SV 18:12 - Tough Times & Family Resilience 24:00 - Getting Into Crypto: Bitcoin at $300 and Satoshi’s Whitepaper 31:01 - The Base vs. Solana Debate: Values & Coexistence 36:00 - The Origin of Clanker and Its Influence on Native 44:00 - What is Native? Sim City Meets Onchain Economies 51:00 - Dots Explained: AI Agents in the Digital City 58:00 - Tokenomics Deep Dive: Fees, Buybacks, and Sustainability 1:06:00 - The User Experience: MVP, Maps, and Gameplay 1:11:00 - Passports & Stamps: Proof of Humanity in Native 1:12:46 - Final Thoughts & How to Get Involved — Podcast recorded by Toady Hawk, edited by Toady Hawk, JackWyldes and Santhosh. Hosted by Toady Hawk. Music by Toady Hawk, SuperTightWoody & Suno AI. Ad spot by JackWyldes. Produced by Zero Rights Media. This content is zero rights reserved (cc0), please remix and reuse it in any way you like! #base #onchain #clanker #ai #ethereum #tokens
Pay it Forward with Mark Marsolais-Nahwegahbow
Most people use filtered water to make good cup of coffee… but in this episode, we learn how our entrepreneurial guest uses coffee to make clean water - particularly in service of remote reserves in Canada where some Indigenous communities lack proper water filtering systems. Mark Marsolais-Nahwegahbow, who is Ojibwe and a Band Member of Whitefish River First Nation, was frustrated that basic necessities were not being provided in his community, so he launched Birch Bark Coffee Co. with the goal of using proceeds from coffee sales to help fund clean water initiatives for First Nations people all over Canada. Community, culture, connection, and coffee are at the heart of his business. Today, he answers a few questions from Fred and Derek, gives advice for fellow entrepreneurs, and reveals the lessons he’s learned from starting and sustaining his cause-driven, pay-it-forward business.
The Tales of Web3 S3 with Alex (Episode 024)
Welcome to THE TALES OF WEB3 - Season Three! In this new season, we will continue to go behind the scenes with the most epic builders, exploring their mindsets, past decisions, what they've learned on the road, and the journeys that shaped who they are today. For the second episode of Season Three, we are excited to welcome Alex, co-founder & CEO of Nillion, to the podcast. Study Alex, study Nillion!
Context S4: Hacking as an Artistic Practice w/ Addie Wagenknecht
Blake interviews Addie Wagenknecht brilliant artist, whose work has been exhibited at MoMA and collected by The Whitney, she's collaborated with everyone from CERN to Chanel. Blake asks about some of her specific art works as a way to dive into ideas around hacking and reappropriating technology into non typical use cases. Addie remind us that technology is not inherently liberating and it depends so much on how we use it and who controls it. They also speak about about how to apply feminist theory and practices when engaging with crypto technology as well covering fake Balenciaga bags, make up tutorials, meme coins and art history. This pod will jolt you out of your crypto bubble and definitely inspire some new ideas. This season is brought to you by $BONSAI, who is building on the forefront of Social x AI. Their memecoin launch pad is built for both agents and humans, so go to Uniswap to get $BONSAI today. Addie’s Twitter: https://x.com/wheresaddie Blake’s Twitter: https://x.com/blakefinucane Blake’s Context Club on Orb: https://orb.club/c/context Bonsai: https://x.com/bonsaitoken404 Boys Club Newsletter: https://boysclub.beehiiv.com/
"Winning Together" with Clanker Founders Proxy and Dish | ZEROPOD S2 E8
Welcome back to another episode of ZEROPOD. This week, Toady Hawk is joined by JackWyldes and they have a very interesting conversation with Proxy and Dish, the two indomitable founders of the little AI agent token launcher called Clanker which has taken the Base ecosystem by storm over the past couple months. This pod is structured a little differently than most, because we actually sat down with the clankers-in-chief on two separate occasions, a couple weeks apart. In between, the guys hosted a hackathon in Boston called Clankhack, where many builders from their burgeoning ecosystem gathered to build together for a weekend, and our own Jack was fortunate enough to attend and document the whole thing (more on this soon.) In any case, we have edited these 2 conversations into a single podcast for your enjoyment, with hinge in the middle separating the pre-clankhack and post-clank-hack eras. We had a blast digging in to get the raw clanker story for you and we hope you will enjoy this conversation as much as we did. So grab a tall glass of milk and a fresh can of spinach and strap in for the Clankpod! —- TIMESTAMPS: 0:00 - Introduction to Clanker: What is Clanker? Deploying meme coins made simple. 2:04 - ZEROPOD Intro 3:00 - Start of Part 1: Pre-Clankhack. Personal Stories of the Founders 6:00 - The Origin of Clanker 9:04 - Building Clanker in Five Days 12:02 - Launching and Scaling Clanker 15:02 - Clanker’s Value Proposition 18:33 - A message from our sponsors 20:00 - Reminiscing about launch day 22:00 - Create the job(s) you want 24:00 - “Farcaster is an incredible network” 26:00 - Tokens as a novel bootstrapping mechanism 29:00 - Dish got kicked off of Facebook 36:00 - The speculative power of ERC-20s vs NFTs 48:00 - Start of Part 2 (Post Clankhack) 49:00 - What is Clanker, exactly? 51:00 - How does it differ from other models 54:00 - The moat is the network 57:00 - What was Clankhack? 1:00:00 - The space needs more good content 1:03:00 - How can Zero Rights Help creators 1:05:00 - Being bombarded by VC term sheets 1:08:00 - “It shouldn’t be easy to make 16 million dollars” 1:10:00 - The future of Clankhack 1:17:00 - Comparison to UX on Solana 1:19:00 - “No more L2s” 1:21:00 - “If the leader of the free world can do it, so can you.” 1:24:00 - Wen $SNOWDEN on Base? 1:33:00 - Bit of a love fest tbh 1:38:00 - Chugging canned spinach for the plot 1:40:00 - Alpha? 1:42:00 - Outro — Podcast recorded by Toady Hawk and JackWyldes, edited by Toady Hawk, JackWyldes and Santhosh. Hosted by Toady Hawk and JackWyldes. Music by Toady Hawk, SuperTightWoody & Suno AI. Ad spot by JackWyldes. Produced by Zero Rights Media. This content is zero rights reserved (cc0), please remix and reuse it in any way you like! #base #onchain #clanker #ai #ethereum #tokens
"Keep it Gdupi, Stupi" with 'Degenerative Artist' Yon from Peaceful Groupies & GDUPI | ZEROPOD S2 E7
Welcome back to another episode of ZEROPOD, a zero copyright video podcast for people who enjoy Ethereum. Our guest this week on ZEROPOD, is from the artistic side of the onchain world— Yon, the self described “degenerative artist” behind The Peaceful Groupies, the Yon Experience and most recently, one of the first artcoins launched via the clanker AI agent on farcaster: Redacted Gdupi. On this episode, we talk about Yon’s youth in a small Argentinian town, how he moved to Europe and carved his own way as an artist, how he has been a constant early adopter of onchain techs and trends, and what’s next for him and $GDUPI. We hope you enjoy this conversation with an onchain CC0 art legend, and if you do, please remember to like and subscribe! Thank you to our partner sponsors at clanker.world for helping to make this content possible. Clanker is the easiest way to deploy a token on Base. — Timestamps • 0:00 - GDUPI Origins • 1:35 - Welcome to ZEROPOD, introducing Yon. • 2:59 - Yon’s upbringing in Chaco, Argentina • 3:55 - Early love for character design, video games, and art • 4:56 - Childhood gaming • 6:25 - Yon the Baller • 8:50 - The Paris Period • 11:00 - Saving money and finding time for art • 12:50 - Discovering clients through Reddit subreddits • 14:10 - Parental perceptions of an art career • 16:01 - “Every piece is a portrait of what I’m living in that moment.” • 17:03 - Introduction to crypto and saving in Ethereum • 19:00 - Early experiments with CS:GO skins and CryptoKitties • 21:00 -Discovering NFTs • 22:20 - A Word About Our Sponsors Clanker.World • 23:10 - Yon’s first NFT purchase was a Beeple • 25:00 - Minting on Rarible and building early collections • 26:50 - Experimenting with telegram auction houses • 28:00 - Creating Peaceful Groupies and generative art • 31:00 - The challenges of launching a hyped NFT collection • 32:40 - Mentorship from 9999 and learning about contracts • 35:00 - Joining Farcaster and exploring new creative outlets • 39:00 - The Reply Guys channel and community-driven art • 41:50 - The Reply Guys t-shirt and embracing CC0 licensing • 44:00 - Perspectives on piracy, creativity, and open art • 48:00 - Organizing minted collections and planning for the future • 51:00 - Reflections on the Yellow Collective’s first year • 54:00 - GDUPI: origins, meme culture, and experiments with Clanker • 57:40 - Thoughts on memecoins and tokenizing moments • 1:00:30 - The distribution powers of ERC-20 tokens. • 1:02:20 - Moving from Argentina to LA and the creative scene in the US • 1:04:00 - Planning for the future and growing the Yon ecosystem • 1:06:10 - What’s next for GDUPI, NFTs, and personalized 1/1 art • 1:07:00 - Yon turns the tables on Toady • 1:11:10 - Closing thoughts on creativity, 2025 plans, and the onchain journey — Podcast recorded by Toady Hawk, edited by Toady Hawk, JackWyldes and Santhosh. Hosted by Toady Hawk. Music by Toady Hawk, SuperTightWoody & Suno AI. Ad spot by JackWyldes. Produced by Zero Rights Media. Custom NFT thumbnail hand illustrated by Yon himself! This content is zero rights reserved (cc0), please remix and reuse it in any way you like! #base #onchain #groupies #art #clanker #artist
"Believe in Something" with 1confirmation Founder Nick Tomaino | ZEROPOD S2 E6
What do you get when you cross a middleschool sneakerhead, a Bitcoin pizza-esque 30 million dollar engagement ring, and a knack for spotting the next big thing onchain? You get Nick Tomaino, crypto OG and founder of iconic crypto venture fund 1confirmation. On this episode of ZEROPOD, host Toady Hawk digs in with Nick about working at Coinbase in the very early days, the passion for collecting that led him from copping kicks and rare books to NFTs and ERCs, and founding and running one of the most successful early investment funds in the space. Nick also talks candidly about his bull case for Degen, Farcaster and Ethereum (he thinks one of those will even one day flip Bitcoin), why Ethereum doesn’t need a Michael Saylor, and what he thinks is the best advice for new investors in the space: just believe in something. --- Timestamps: 0:00 – Intro: Find Something More to Believe In Nick shares advice for new traders and the importance of conviction beyond money. 1:02 – Welcome to ZEROPOD: Meet Nick Tomaino Introduction to Nick’s background as an early Coinbase employee and founder of 1confirmation. 2:02 – Nick’s Sneaker-Collecting Days How basketball and sneaker culture shaped Nick’s early passion for collecting. 3:39 – The Collector Gene: Rare Books and Americana Nick’s family history of collecting and how it influenced his love for rare books and later NFTs. 6:42 – Crypto vs. Rare Books: Liquidity and the Future of Collectibles Nick compares the illiquidity of traditional collectibles to the fluidity of NFTs. 10:21 – College Days: Economics and a Focus on Making Money Why Nick studied economics and his early ambitions to optimize for financial success. 12:42 – Learning About Venture Capital How Fred Wilson’s blog inspired Nick’s interest in venture capital and crypto. 15:16 – Joining Coinbase: Early Days of Bitcoin Adoption Nick’s journey to Coinbase in 2013, hustling his way into the company, and working on business development. 20:03 – Starting 1confirmation: Supporting Early Crypto Projects Nick explains the genesis of 1confirmation and its focus on being the first check into game-changing projects. 22:00 – Why the Name 1confirmation? The blockchain-inspired reasoning behind the fund’s name. 23:49 – Opensea and CryptoKitties: Early Investments Nick’s experience with CryptoKitties and why he believed in Opensea’s potential. 26:47 – Degen: Why Social Tipping Matters The evolution of tipping mechanisms in crypto and their role in driving adoption. 30:36 – Thoughts on Farcaster and Decentralized Social Media Nick discusses Farcaster as the best decentralized social network and its role in enabling financial opportunities. 36:39 – Farcaster Projects: Clanker, Anoncast, and More Nick evaluates recent Farcaster projects and the importance of experimentation. 40:04 – The Value of In-Feed NFT Minting Nick shares why he believes microtransactions and NFT minting are the next big things for creators. 45:08 – Ethereum’s Strength and Long-Term Potential Why Nick believes Ethereum could flip Bitcoin and the importance of innovation over narratives. 49:12 – The Importance of Skin in the Game How crypto allows more people to have ownership and take risks with real consequences. 52:03 – The Future of Farcaster: Financial Opportunities Nick’s vision for how Farcaster can thrive by giving users more ways to make money. 53:03 – What’s Exciting in 2025? Pro-Crypto Policies and Innovation Nick shares his optimism about potential regulatory changes and new product developments. 56:00 – Advice for Newcomers: Conviction and Curiosity Final advice for those new to crypto: find something to believe in beyond making money. 58:14 – Wrap-Up: Believe in Something More Closing remarks and gratitude for the conversation. -- Podcast recorded by Toady Hawk, edited by Toady Hawk and Santhosh. Hosted by Toady Hawk. Music by Toady Hawk, SuperTightWoody & Suno AI. Produced by Zero Rights Media. This content is zero rights reserved (cc0), please remix and reuse it in any way you like!
Choreographing a stronger community with Clarence Ford
Clarence Ford started out as an athlete; first as a competitive hockey player, then transitioning to dance as a choreographer for the world-renowned Cirque du Soleil. After seeing the power of community-building first-hand within Cirque du Soleil, Clarence embarked on a journey of creating circus programming for underserved youth in Toronto. He launched a non-for-profit called Square Circle, with a mission to “help students develop communication, interpersonal, artistic, and physical skills in a safe, collaborative, and fun environment”. Through educational partnerships and community workshops, Clarence hopes to build out his business by tapping into as many youth groups as possible in Toronto and beyond. On this week’s episode, Clarence sits down with Fred and Derek to discuss new avenues to explore expansion and growth of Square Circle. They speak to building a solid foundation for his business - from considering a strategic board, to finding mentorship, and building community as a new entrepreneur. Finally, they discuss strategies on how to manage burn out while navigating multiple priorities to get your business off the ground.
