Following a string of major DeFi exploits, we unpack what’s driving the recent rise in hacks across crypto. a16z crypto GP Eddy Lazzarin and security engineer Matt Gleason join host Robert Hackett to take a closer look. Their argument: AI is not introducing entirely new vulnerabilities. It is making existing weaknesses easier to identify and exploit. The question is whether defenders can evolve as quickly as attackers. They also cover: - why “AI-powered hacking” is difficult to measure - how geo...
May 13, 2026•35 min•Ep. 117
We're announcing a16z crypto's Fund 5: $2.2B in committed capital to back the startups and founders who are building the next era of crypto. All four GPs sat down to talk through where crypto is right now, what's changed, and where it may be headed next. Chris Dixon, Ali Yahya, Guy Wuollet, and Eddy Lazzarin join Robert Hackett to cover... 00:00 Open 01:31 Why raise Crypto Fund 5 now 02:10 The GENIUS Act and what regulatory clarity unlocks for builders 04:32 Why stablecoins are crypto's WhatsApp...
May 05, 2026•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 116
Agents can now do almost anything a human can do with a computer. So what happens when they start spending money on your behalf? Sam Ragsdale (founder and CEO of Merit Systems, a startup building infrastructure for the agentic economy) joins a16z crypto's Eddy Lazzarin, Noah Levine, and Robert Hackett on the open agentic commerce stack, and why the internet's business model is about to get rewired. 00:00 – Intro 01:33 – Two flavors of agentic commerce 04:30 – What is an agent, actually? 12:57 – ...
Apr 27, 2026•57 min•Ep. 114
A few big companies control most of the infrastructure behind AI. Most people experience AI through a wide range of different apps that actually depend on a deeply centralized stack of data and compute. In this conversation, Ben Fielding and Harry Grieve — cofounders of decentralized machine learning protocol Gensyn — explain why this matters, and what it would take to rebuild AI as open infrastructure instead. From unused global compute to the philosophical implications of machine intelligence,...
Apr 22, 2026•17 min•Ep. 113
The internet already has a bot problem — and it's just getting worse. a16z's Ben Horowitz and Erik Torenberg speak with Alex Blania of Tools for Humanity. World is building the largest real human network, a proof-of-human layer for the AI era. They cover the technical challenge of proving human uniqueness at scale using iris biometrics, the privacy architecture behind World ID, and why platforms from social networks to dating apps to video conferencing will soon require proof of human verificati...
Apr 17, 2026•42 min•Ep. 112
What if the future of lending doesn’t need banks at all? Paul Frambot, cofounder and CEO of Morpho, explains what it means to build lending infrastructure without banks, and why DeFi’s real breakthrough isn’t “risk-free” loans, but open, onchain markets that make lending more transparent, competitive, and efficient. In this conversation, Paul breaks down the biggest misconception in DeFi lending, how to think about risk onchain, why institutions are learning faster than expected, and where banks...
Apr 08, 2026•18 min•Ep. 111
What if opening a trading account was as easy as downloading an app? Lucas Bruder, CEO of Jito — a Solana-based liquid staking protocol — breaks down why he thinks all of finance is moving onchain, and what his small team is doing to make that happen. During the 2022-2023 bear market, Jito was getting pitched constantly to jump ship to other chains. Lucas explains why they turned everything down, doubled down on Solana, and chewed a lot of glass. We also cover how Jito acts like a Cloudflare for...
Apr 03, 2026•18 min•Ep. 110
Should we push AI forward as fast as possible, or be more careful about how it develops? Two competing views are emerging: e/acc (effective accelerationism): go faster, progress is the only path forward d/acc (defensive / decentralized acceleration): accelerate, but carefully, or risk losing control In this episode of the a16z crypto show, Vitalik Buterin (Ethereum founder) and Guillaume Verdon aka "Beff Jezos" (Extropic founder & CEO,) join Eddy Lazzarin (a16z crypto CTO) and Shaw Walters (...
Mar 25, 2026•1 hr 38 min•Ep. 109
What does the future of the creator economy actually look like? The economics of content creation are changing, what happens to copyright in a world of abundant generated content, and why human taste, curation, and connection may matter even more going forward. In this episode, host Robert Hackett talks with Justin (CEO, Bond) and Michael Blau(Head of Product, Bond) about the changing relationship between creators, audiences, platforms, and technology. They unpack how today’s platforms shape cre...
Mar 17, 2026•37 min•Ep. 108
Four years ago, artist Emily Yang aka pplpleasr began a creative journey that would help break new ground at the intersection of art, technology, and community. In this episode, we sit down with Emily — founder of Shibuya — to talk about her evolution from illustrator to Emmy-winning storyteller. Emily shares how Shibuya is pioneering “permissionless creativity,” using crypto rails to fund, build, and co-create original IP with global communities. Her breakout project, White Rabbit, became the f...
Mar 13, 2026•11 min•Ep. 107
A hot paper — "Some Simple Economics of AGI" — has been making the rounds, so we sat down with the author, covering: Automation vs. verification: the key economic split Why AI agents now feel like coworkers - What's happening to junior roles and the “codifier’s curse” The “AI sandwich” structure for firms The value of "meaning-makers," consensus, and status economies Why crypto may become essential infrastructure for identity, provenance, and trust Two possible futures: a hollow vs. augmented ec...
Mar 05, 2026•1 hr 6 min•Ep. 105
What does it actually mean to bring assets onchain — and why should investors care? In this episode, Cynthia Lo Bessette, Head of Digital Asset Management at Fidelity Investments, breaks down Fidelity’s roadmap for digital market adoption — from Bitcoin ETPs to tokenized money market funds — and explains why tokenization is about far more than just putting assets on a blockchain. We cover: The three phases of digital asset adoption: Hold, Use, Build Why tokenizing an asset must start with utilit...
Mar 04, 2026•16 min•Ep. 106
What happens when AI becomes the primary economic actor? In this conversation, Sean Neville (cofounder of Circle, architect of USDC, and now cofounder of Catena Labs) shares his vision for the next phase of the internet: an agent-native economy powered by programmable dollars and AI banks. As stablecoins put dollars on internet rails, a new question emerges: what happens when AI agents start earning, spending, lending, investing — and even managing our assets — on our behalf? From KYA (“Know You...
Mar 03, 2026•21 min•Ep. 104
Restaurants generated more than a trillion dollars in sales last year — but they don’t control the payment rails those dollars flow through. In this episode, Ben Leventhal (founder of Eater, Resy, and now Blackbird ) joins Robert Hackett to explain why that’s a problem, how loyalty and payments have failed independent restaurants, and where crypto fits into fixing it. Ben breaks down: Why most restaurant tech misses the point How Blackbird uses crypto without making restaurants think about crypt...
Feb 11, 2026•16 min•Ep. 103
with @zcabrams @rhackett What happens when money moves 10x — or 100x — faster than it does today? In this episode, Zach Abrams, cofounder and CEO of Bridge (now part of Stripe) , lays out a bold vision for the future of money: a world where stablecoins become the dominant payment rail, most transactions happen between non-human agents, and entirely new financial infrastructure is required to keep up. Zach explains why stablecoins are the next evolution of fintech, much like credit cards were dec...
Feb 02, 2026•20 min•Ep. 102
with @alive_eth @rhackett a16z crypto General Partner Ali Yahya explains why privacy — not performance — will determine the long-term winners in crypto, and how it creates powerful network effects. In conversation with a16z crypto show host Robert Hackett, Ali lays out how privacy creates lock-in and winner-take-most dynamics — without sacrificing decentralization. They also dive into the technologies making privacy possible today, from zero-knowledge proofs to trusted execution environments, an...
Jan 30, 2026•36 min•Ep. 101
with @PalmerLuckey @cdixon In this special episode — our 100th on the a16z crypto show! — Chris Dixon interviews Palmer Luckey (founder of Anduril; founder of Oculus VR and designer of the Oculus Rift) to talk about the future of technology, belief, and building. What does it take to build hardware at scale? Where are many of today’s tech bottlenecks? And what's the case for optimism about the future despite growing geopolitical turmoil, regulatory constraints, and other blockers to innovation? ...
Jan 23, 2026•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 100
with @ccatalini @rhackett Today we’re talking about who — if anyone — should own the rails of global money. Our guest is Christian Catalini, cofounder and chief strategy officer of the global payments startup Lightspark, and a former architect of Meta’s shuttered Libra project — one of the most ambitious attempts to create a corporate-backed digital currency. In this episode, we talk about… why Bitcoin is more than “digital gold,” what Christian learned from his time at Facebook, and why he beli...
Jan 14, 2026•17 min•Ep. 99
with @PrimordialAA @ rhackett In this episode, host Robert Hackett sits down with Bryan Pellegrino, cofounder and CEO of LayerZero, one of the core infrastructure projects that enables blockchains to talk to one another. We talk about why crypto went multichain, what it means for crypto to compete with legacy financial systems, and a lesson Bryan took firsthand from Elon Musk. We also get into Bryan’s background as a professional poker player, and how that has shaped his views on competition, co...
Jan 07, 2026•30 min•Ep. 98
with @LairdLife @GabbyReece @AriannaSimpson Today's episode features two people who’ve spent their careers performing at the highest levels in sport and business: big-wave surfing pioneer Laird Hamilton and former pro volleyball star Gabby Reece. They join a16z crypto General Partner Arianna Simpson for a conversation that explores what it takes to endure and excel over decades — how to get back up after setbacks, when to push versus change course, and how to build resilience and adaptability. T...
Dec 29, 2025•32 min•Ep. 97
with @smc90 @rhackett @stephbzinn @Tim_Org In a now-annual tradition, the a16z crypto editorial team discuss themes (and picks) from a16z crypto's latest reading lists , as well as books we keep re-reading, childhood favorites, classics, adaptations on adaptations — in book and movie form! — and much more. We cover: What genres are we reading now, how, and why? How is technology — from AI and ChatGPT to the internet and audio — changing reading? Why are certain themes in the zeitgeist right now?...
Dec 23, 2025•1 hr 20 min•Ep. 96
with @BChillman @jay_drainjr @rhackett Crypto wallets are no longer just wallets. They’re the front door to a decentralized internet. In this episode, Phantom CEO Brandon Millman joins a16z crypto Investment Partner Jay Drain and host Robert Hackett to unpack how crypto wallets are evolving into full-blown consumer finance platforms — and why they may be the most credible candidates to become the internet's next super apps. We explore Phantom’s journey from a Solana-first wallet to a multi-chain...
Dec 19, 2025•41 min•Ep. 95
with @zcabrams @psneville @rhackett In this episode, Robert Hackett sits down with Sean Neville, cofounder of Circle and co-creator of the USDC stablecoin, and Zach Abrams, founder of Bridge (now part of Stripe), for a deep dive into the real story behind stablecoins, finding product-market fit, and the future of payments infrastructure. They explore the earliest days of USDC — when stablecoins were far from obvious and regulatory frameworks didn’t exist. Sean shares how his conviction in “money...
Dec 10, 2025•38 min•Ep. 94
Every traditional financial institution faces the same dilemma: evolve or fall behind, build or buy. But when safety, predictability, and trust is paramount, how do traditional finance companies innovate? How do they place their innovation bets, and decide what to explore and not to explore? Fidelity Chairman and CEO Abigail P. Johnson shares an inside look into Fidelity’s decade of crypto experimentation -- from early Bitcoin mining to building foundational custody infrastructure to stablecoins...
Dec 04, 2025•42 min•Ep. 93
with @cdixon @illscience Welcome to web3 with a16z crypto . Today’s episode digs into the forces shaping the next generation of consumer software — from AI-driven tools to the new economics of apps. Joining is Chris Dixon, a16z crypto founder and managing partner and one of the firm’s original consumer investors. He sits down with a16z General Partner Anish Acharya to explore how exponential forces — like Moore’s Law, composability, and network effects — help determine which products ultimately ...
Nov 24, 2025•44 min•Ep. 92
with @mansourtarek_ @rhackett In this episode of web3 with a16z crypto, host Robert Hackett talks with Kalshi Cofounder and CEO Tarek Mansour about how prediction markets are enabling people to trade directly on real-world events — from elections to inflation — and what this means for the future of finance and forecasting. Tarek explains why prediction markets aren’t gambling, how regulation has been central to Kalshi’s success, and why the company is embracing crypto and stablecoins as key comp...
Nov 19, 2025•23 min•Ep. 91
with @DavidSacks @pmarca @bhorowitz @eriktorenberg Today’s episode features David Sacks, the Trump administration’s “AI and crypto czar," in conversation with a16z cofounders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz, and General Partner Erik Torenberg. They dig into: how the U.S. is approaching AI and crypto policy, the fight over open source software, the status of tech regulation and legislation (like the CLARITY Act for crypto), what’s at stake in the geopolitical race with China, and more This episo...
Nov 05, 2025•1 hr 18 min•Ep. 90
with @DarenMatsuoka @eddylazzarin Today, we’re bringing you something special: a presentation from our 2025 Founders Summit, which we just wrapped last week in beautiful Carlsbad, Calif. You’ll hear from Daren Matsuoka, our Head of Data and Fund Strategy, as he walks through the insights from this year’s State of Crypto report — our deep-dive into the data, themes, and signals shaping the industry right now. Stay through to the end for audience Q&A featuring our founders and to hear a16z cry...
Nov 01, 2025•38 min•Ep. 89
with @DarenMatsuoka @eddylazzarin @rhhackett Each year, the State of Crypto report analyzes the data — cutting through the noise — to track crypto’s evolution across markets, technology, policy, culture, and more. Now in its fourth edition, the 2025 State of Crypto report reveals how this once-fringe technology has hit recent all-time highs and gone mainstream — from stablecoins and tokenized assets to rapid adoption by major financial institutions. In this episode, we dig into the findings and ...
Oct 22, 2025•1 hr 37 min•Ep. 88
Prediction markets are a hot topic again — even cartoon characters are talking about them (South Park). But beyond the buzz, what is a prediction market, exactly? How do they work, how are they designed, and what makes them work? We answer all these questions and more in this deep-dive featuring experts Alex Tabarrok (professor of economics at George Mason University) and Scott Kominers (a16z crypto research partner and Harvard Business School professor), in conversation with Sonal Chokshi . Whi...
Sep 26, 2025•1 hr 43 min•Ep. 87
