Welcome to the AI Rollup, from the Limitless Podcast. David, Ejaaz, and Josh break down the week’s most important AI headlines, from OpenAI’s $3B Windsurf acquisition and Google’s full-stack AI play, to Visa and Mastercard preparing for agentic commerce. We explore the state of robotics, major interpretability challenges, and why the race to AGI may outpace our ability to understand it. Plus: AI ASMR, glow-up GPT, and why autonomous agents still kinda suck. Stay curious, this one’s stacked. ----...
May 08, 2025•1 hr 21 min
In this episode of the Bankless Roundtable, hosts BreadGuy, John Charbonneau, and Andy8052 tackle pivotal issues in the crypto world. They explore the disconnect between institutional bullishness and community despair, with Bread highlighting the plight of altcoin holders amid Bitcoin's dominance. The conversation turns to a scandal involving a token loan, revealing manipulation that undermines trust in the industry. Later, they discuss the upcoming Ethereum Pectra upgrade, emphasizing its poten...
May 07, 2025•1 hr 21 min
Ethereum Foundation's new Co-Executive Directors, Tomasz Stanczak and Hsiao-Wei Wang, join Bankless to outline their vision for the future of Ethereum. We explore their backgrounds, the changing leadership at EF, and the roadmap ahead—from accelerating L1 scaling and improving UX to making Ethereum more dynamic and product-focused. This episode offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at how Ethereum plans to stay resilient, decentralized, and mission-aligned in a fast-changing world. ------ 📣SPOTI...
May 05, 2025•1 hr 18 min
This week, Ryan and David dive into crypto’s dramatic new re-prioritization (pivot?) as Ethereum is shifting rapidly, prioritizing Layer 1 scaling in a move that has sparked intense community debate. Meanwhile, macro turmoil hits crypto with a looming tariff-driven recession and signs of American capital flight shaking global markets. Bitcoin tightens its grip on Washington, cementing itself as digital gold in the eyes of the Trump administration, and Worldcoin launches a U.S. rollout amid risin...
May 02, 2025•1 hr 3 min
This week on the AI Rollup, David, Ejaaz and Josh ride OpenAI’s latest roller-coaster. The release of o3 is making waves for its native multi-modality while 4o gets a “genius-but-sycophantic” update and a rumored social network is in the works. They unpack the Reddit mind-hack experiment, an open-sourced natural-language coding agent, a 40-point jump in AI IQ, and more before asking: is it ethically okay for AI to cheat? David: https://x.com/TrustlessState Ejaaz: https://x.com/cryptopunk7213 Jos...
May 01, 2025•1 hr 28 min
Jon Charbonneau, Bread, and Andy8052 join David to break down Ethereum’s bold pivot back to Layer 1 and what it means for the future of crypto. They also dive into the implications of scaling the L1 over rollups, the looming death of longtail L2s, and the shifting meta around value accrual, memecoins, and onchain activity. The crew also debates ETH’s monetary identity, HyperLiquid’s EVM ambitions, and whether Ethereum can reassert itself as crypto’s dominant tech and cultural platform. Jon Charb...
Apr 30, 2025•1 hr 5 min
Can Crypto disrupt the IP Market? In this episode, we dive deep with Jason Zhao, co-founder of Story Protocol, on how their new token launch could unlock the $70 trillion intellectual property market. We explore the bold vision of making IP liquid, programmable, and globally accessible — and how crypto-native creators, DAOs, and even major studios could reshape how stories are owned and built. This might just be crypto's most ambitious attempt at disrupting the media yet. ------ 📣SPOTIFY PREMIU...
Apr 29, 2025•56 min
Ethereum has achieved groundbreaking technological success, but has it failed to properly define ETH the asset? In this episode, Frax founder Sam Kazemian joins us to discuss what he believes is Ethereum’s biggest mistake: confusing the ETH asset with Ethereum the technology. Sam argues that post-EIP-1559 and Proof of Stake, ETH unintentionally shifted toward a discounted cash flow (DCF) valuation model, undermining its potential as a commodity-like store of value. We explore how the Ethereum co...
Apr 28, 2025•1 hr 14 min
This week, the one, the only, Ryan Sean Adams makes his return to the Weekly Rollup and crypto, after a 90-day crypto detox to find a radically changed landscape. Ryan and David break down crypto’s shifting cycle, what Ryan missed, and Bitcoin’s dramatic decoupling from equities as it earns a strategic reserve in the U.S. Treasury. Meanwhile, Ethereum faces an existential pivot as it tries to reclaim lost ground against Bitcoin and Solana. Plus, Zora sparks heated debate with “content coins” ami...
Apr 25, 2025•1 hr 19 min
In this episode, we unpack Paradigm’s groundbreaking 2025 report, “TradFi Tomorrow: DeFi and the Rise of Extensible Finance,” with Paradigm’s Dan Robinson and Justin Slaughter. We explore the stunning stat that 66% of traditional financial institutions are actively engaged with DeFi—and what that really means. From tokenization and stablecoins to regulatory clarity and decentralized exchanges, this conversation dives deep into how Wall Street is already integrating with crypto. ------ 📣SPOTIFY ...
Apr 24, 2025•51 min
Jon Charbonneau and Bread join David Hoffman to unpack Ethereum’s pivotal moment—facing tough choices to re-focus on its Layer 1. They break down Ethereum’s shift back toward prioritizing L1 growth, the delicate dance between Layer 1 and Layer 2 strategies, and why Ethereum must reclaim DeFi as its core strength. The conversation also explores the nuanced dynamics between Ethereum’s cultural vision and technical roadmap, how Layer 2s fit into Ethereum’s evolving ecosystem, and what this strategi...
Apr 23, 2025•1 hr 28 min
Ethereum Foundation researchers Dankrad Feist and Ansgar Dietrichs join David Hoffman and Michael Ippolito to discuss Ethereum’s identity crisis—and how it’s turning the ship around. They break down Ethereum’s cultural and organizational challenges, the pivot toward L1 growth, and the evolving role of the Ethereum Foundation under new leadership. The conversation covers the future of base and native rollups, L2 alignment, and why Ethereum’s unique values still matter in a competitive landscape. ...
Apr 21, 2025•1 hr 20 min
This week, Bread joins David to unpack Ethereum’s surprising pivot back to Layer 1, as insiders push for a more pragmatic roadmap and faster block times. MegaETH’s 10ms testnet drops jaws and breaks dApps, while WalletConnect shocks the industry with a late-stage token launch. Meanwhile, Base stirs chaos with its “content coins,” OHM crashes $6B in hours, and Solana’s token wars heat up. Is Ethereum finally finding its focus — or just reacting to the noise? It’s a jam-packed Weekly Rollup you do...
Apr 18, 2025•1 hr 5 min
OpenAI just rocked the week with a groundbreaking memory update, sparking debate over whether “soul data” is the real moat in AI. Google fires back with its Agent‑to‑Agent protocol and a Cursor‑killer. We riff on 1,000 AI agents unleashed in Minecraft, labs turning pets into humans, and how Dolphin AI somehow beat GTA 6 to market. Buckle up as David, Ejaaz, and Josh roll through the top five stories shaping the AI‑crypto frontier and what they mean for builders, traders, and the future of intell...
Apr 17, 2025•1 hr 12 min
Donald Trump is attempting something no leader has done before—unwind the global economic order. In this episode, Financial Times columnist and CNN analyst Rana Foroohar joins us to unpack Trump’s economic strategy, the unraveling of Bretton Woods, and whether America is becoming an emerging market. From soaring bond yields to declining dollar strength, we explore what markets are signaling, how business leaders are reacting, and why this may mark the end of the neoliberal era. ------ 📣SPOTIFY ...
Apr 15, 2025•46 min
Stablecoins are no longer a niche crypto curiosity—they're a full-blown financial revolution. In this episode, Rob Hadick, General Partner at Dragonfly, joins us to unpack the emerging stablecoin tech stack and why cross-border payments, savings, and financial infrastructure are being rebuilt from the ground up. From Circle and Tether to next-gen orchestration layers and stablecoin-native blockchains, we explore why this $200 trillion global opportunity is only 5% unlocked—and who stands to win ...
Apr 14, 2025•1 hr 5 min
This week, Haseeb Qureshi joins us to break down Trump’s explosive new tariffs that rocked global markets and triggered a full-blown trade war with China. Stocks whipsawed, recession odds spiked, and the world scrambled to the negotiation table — except China. Was it 3D chess or policy chaos? Plus, we explore the ripple effects on crypto markets, investor sentiment, and what this all means for the future of U.S. economic leadership. It's a jam-packed Weekly Rollup you don't want to miss. Follow ...
Apr 11, 2025•1 hr 4 min
Welcome to the AI Rollup, your weekly ride through the fast-paced world of artificial intelligence! This week, we’re joined by frontier tech enthusiast Josh Kale to unpack the drama around Meta’s controversial launch of Llama 4, scrutinized for potentially overstating its capabilities. We dive into “AI 2027,” a provocative roadmap predicting espionage, geopolitical turmoil, and runaway intelligence, and explore Shopify’s bold move making AI usage mandatory for employees. Plus, we cover Claude Ed...
Apr 10, 2025•1 hr 13 min
We’ve got the team behind Etherealize on the show today—Vivek Raman and Danny Ryan—to discuss their mission to onboard institutions, governments, and capital markets to Ethereum. We explore how Ethereum is “open for business” with L2 scaling, modular architecture, and a maturing regulatory landscape. The Etherealize team breaks down their dual structure—a for-profit consulting and product arm alongside a nonprofit focused on R&D and policy—to drive institutional adoption. ------ 📣SPOTIFY PR...
Apr 07, 2025•59 min
This week, Alex Thorn joins us to unpack Trump's shocking tariff announcement that sent markets plunging and investors scrambling. Circle files for its IPO, revealing surprising financials, while the FDIC gives banks the crypto green light. CoreWeave debuts with a blockbuster IPO, and Eric Trump dives deeper into Bitcoin mining. We cover all this chaos and more in this week’s Weekly Rollup. Follow Alex on X & check out his Galaxy Brains podcast: https://x.com/intangiblecoins https://www.gala...
Apr 03, 2025•1 hr 6 min
AI heats up, markets shake, and the internet gets Ghbilified. OpenAI hits 1M users in 60 minutes, CoreWeave IPO rocks NASDAQ, and XAI acquires X. A new “world’s best” model quietly drops—did Google just take the lead? Cursor raises at a $9.6B valuation as “vibecoding” enters the mainstream. Welcome back to another week of the AI Rollup. ------ 📣CRYPTO TAX CALCULATOR | TAXES MADE EASY https://bankless.cc/Cryptotaxcalculator ------ 🪙FRAX | SELF SUFFICIENT DeFi https://bankless.cc/Frax 🦄UNISWAP ...
Apr 03, 2025•1 hr 8 min
Felipe Montealegre, co-founder of Thea Capital, joins us to unpack a new vision for global finance—what he calls the Internet Financial System. Felipe makes the case that today's financial world still runs on siloed, permissioned databases—slow, expensive, and riddled with gatekeepers. But blockchains and smart contracts offer something radically different: a unified, open system where capital can move efficiently across borders and property rights are stronger than ever. This episode is a must-...
Apr 02, 2025
Robinhood CEO Vlad Tenev returns to Bankless for a wide-ranging conversation on the future of tokenization, crypto regulation, and Robinhood’s evolving product suite. Vlad lays out a bold vision for bringing tokenized assets like SpaceX and OpenAI equity to retail investors, discusses the role of prediction markets as "truth machines," and introduces Robinhood's latest products: Strategies, Cortex, and Banking. This one’s a big glimpse into where TradFi and DeFi collide. ------ 📣SPOTIFY PREMIUM...
Mar 31, 2025•57 min
This week, Mike Ippolito joins us to break down crypto’s big flip as institutions rush into stablecoins—triggering excitement and anxiety alike. Hyperliquid faces drama after a high-stakes market manipulation attack, BlackRock's tokenized treasuries surge to nearly $2 billion, and the U.S. Treasury finally removes Tornado Cash from its sanctions list. Meanwhile, Robinhood enters banking, raising questions about DeFi’s future. We dive into all of this and so much more. Follow Mike on X & Chec...
Mar 28, 2025
Alon, co-founder of Pump.Fun, joins us to discuss the meteoric rise of their token launchpad platform, the controversial yet impactful role of memecoins in crypto, and the vision behind their newest product, PumpSwap. We dive deep into the cultural influence, sustainability mechanisms, and future possibilities for the memecoin launchpad ecosystem. Alon on X: https://x.com/a1lon9 ------ 📣SPOTIFY PREMIUM RSS FEED | USE CODE: SPOTIFY24 https://bankless.cc/spotify-premium ------ BANKLESS SPONSOR TO...
Mar 25, 2025
We’re joined by Tim Beiko, Ethereum Foundation coordinator, to break down Ethereum’s next major upgrades and the future of scaling. We explore the upcoming Petra hard fork, which introduces validator consolidation, increased blob space for rollups, and EIP-7702 for improved account abstraction. Tim also shares insights on Fusaka and Glacier Dam, Ethereum’s roadmap for scaling, and how Ethereum’s upgrade process is becoming more efficient. ------ 📣SPOTIFY PREMIUM RSS FEED | USE CODE: SPOTIFY24 h...
Mar 24, 2025
This week, Anthony Sassano joins us to unpack Solana’s most controversial governance vote yet, Ethereum’s major leadership overhaul, and crypto markets wrestling with macro chaos despite promising policy shifts. Kraken makes waves with a massive $1.5B acquisition—but will it move the needle? We dive into all of this and so much more. Follow Anthony on X: https://x.com/sassal0x ------ 📣 RONIN WALLET | YOUR WEB3 GAMING ECOSYSTEM https://bankless.cc/Ronin_Wallet ------ BANKLESS SPONSOR TOOLS: 🪙FR...
Mar 21, 2025
This week on the AI Rollup, we’re diving into hyper-realistic AI-generated podcast hosts, showcasing Hedera Studio’s cutting-edge character tech. Google drops Gemini 2.0 Flash, making AI image generation even more powerful with improved consistency and text integration. Meanwhile, China is pushing hard—Baidu’s latest model beats GPT-4.5 at half the cost, challenging OpenAI’s dominance. Plus, Sesame open-sources its voice model, and the crypto AI market sees brutal drawdowns. Despite the turbulen...
Mar 20, 2025
Native Rollups are the next big step toward scaling Ethereum securely. In this episode, Uma Roy (CEO of Succinct) and Justin Drake (Ethereum Foundation researcher) break down what Native Rollups are, how they leverage Ethereum’s core infrastructure for execution and validation, and why they're crucial for stronger security, better composability, and sustainable Ethereum growth. Tune in to understand the evolution of Ethereum’s rollup-centric roadmap and how Native Rollups could become a foundati...
Mar 17, 2025
This week, the U.S. establishes its long-awaited Strategic Bitcoin Reserve yet the charts barely move and questions remain about altcoins like ADA, XRP, and SOL. A high-profile White House Digital Summit draws big names but yields few concrete regulatory wins. Meanwhile, HyperLiquid got exploited? Not quite but we'll get into that this week and so much more. Follow Jordi on X: https://x.com/gametheorizing ------ 📣 RONIN WALLET | YOUR WEB3 GAMING ECOSYSTEM https://bankless.cc/Ronin_Wallet ------...
Mar 14, 2025
