FILL OUT THE SURVEY BY CLICKING HERE Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Carl Dong, founder of Obscura VPN and former Bitcoin Core developer at Chain Code Labs, joins us to talk about his transition from Bitcoin development to building privacy infrastructure. We discuss his work on reproducible builds, supply chain security, the funding dynamics of Bitcoin development, and why he created the first multi-hop VPN that eliminates single points of trust. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsl...
Jul 13, 2025•1 hr 1 min
FILL OUT THE SURVEY BY CLICKING HERE Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Robert Chang, crypto trader and prolific Twitter shitposter, joins us to talk about his wild ride through crypto's highs and lows - from being a Luna lunatic to losing everything on Hyperliquid, navigating AI agent metas, getting rugged by VCs stealing his ideas, and why internet capital markets might just be elaborate poker chips with better marketing. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com ...
Jul 06, 2025•1 hr 12 min
FILL OUT THE SURVEY BY CLICKING HERE Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Doug Colkitt, co-founder of Fogo and Ambient Finance joins us to talk about building the fastest Solana-based blockchain for trading. Doug explains why order books are winning over AMMs, how Fogo's 21-validator set enables 40ms blocks, and why verifiability matters more than full decentralization for perp DEXs. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:13 Doug history ...
Jun 29, 2025•1 hr 2 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Liam from Through (formerly Fire Dancer engineer) joins us to talk about building a high-performance L1 blockchain from scratch. We dive into why Solana has structural limitations, his leaderless consensus design, proof-of-burn mechanisms, and why economic security is overrated. Plus takes on trading, Fire Dancer's progress, and the future of DeFi. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com NOTES: • Fire Dancer has ~10% of Solana ne...
Jun 22, 2025•1 hr 5 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Bitcoiner Post Capone joins us to talk about the risks of OP_CAT activation, MEV extraction concerns on Bitcoin, how increased expressivity could lead to mining centralization, the promise of scaling solutions like Arc and Spark, and why constrained covenants like CTV might be a better path forward than unlimited expressivity. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Timestamps: 00:00 Start 00:27 Who is Post Capone? 03:05 OP_CAT 0...
Jun 15, 2025•1 hr 6 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Wilson Huang from DRW Cumberland joins us to talk about the explosive growth of Bitcoin options markets, why crypto volatility attracts both miners and hedge funds, how ETFs are reshaping institutional adoption, and why traditional finance principles are finally making sense in digital assets. We dive deep into market structure, OTC trading, and the future of crypto derivatives. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Notes: • Bi...
Jun 02, 2025•54 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Smac, partner at Compound VC, joins us to talk about why stablecoins have become the dominant crypto narrative despite being "boring fintech," DePIN opportunities in energy and water networks, venture capital market structure issues with massive fund sizes, the lack of creativity in crypto development, and why most social crypto apps are features not companies. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Follow our guest on Twitter: ...
May 25, 2025•1 hr 2 min
Welcome to The Gwart Show! Today, Ethereum bull Ryan Berckmans joins us to dissect Ethereum's current strategy and why he believes it remains on the right path despite recent challenges. Ryan explains the "hub and spokes" L1+L2 model, arguing that communication failures—not technical problems—damaged ETH sentiment. He breaks down why L2 growth combined with L1 scaling will drive Ethereum toward becoming a multi-trillion dollar asset, how blob fees will generate significant revenue, and why Solan...
May 18, 2025•58 min
Welcome to The Gwart Show! Today, Noah Goldberg of Theia Research, joins us to dive deep into the world of liquid token markets. Noah breaks down why the "token premium" is unsustainable, how his firm evaluates fundamental value in DeFi applications, and why the market structure creates perverse incentives. He explains why on-chain finance hasn't supplanted traditional finance as quickly as many expected, discusses problems with market making in crypto, and offers insight into how crypto can bui...
May 11, 2025•1 hr 14 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Santisa @Tiza4ThePeople from Lucidity joins us to discuss market neutral strategies in DeFi. He breaks down how his fund extracts alpha from stablecoin pairs and incentive programs while maintaining a risk-neutral position. We dive into the sophistication behind monitoring protocols, identifying opportunities through on-chain analysis, and why DeFi tokens rarely represent true equity value. Santisa explains why his fund immediately dumps governance tokens, ...
May 04, 2025•58 min
Welcome back to the Gwart Show! We got Round II of the Crypto VC debate with Gwart and Haseeb. Are tokens actually worth anything? Do VCs provide real signal value? What's the right benchmark for success? The conversation gets spicy as they examine Dragonfly's portfolio performance, discuss whether tokens truly capture value, and question if early-stage crypto investments can ever live up to their promises. With occasional moderation from Tarun, this debate exposes the tension between VC optimis...
Apr 27, 2025•1 hr 47 min
Welcome back to the Gwart Show! Today we have Haseeb Qureshi and Tarun Chitra about whether VC-funded tokens are vaporware or valuable investments. They tackle fundamental questions about crypto market structure, token valuation models, and the long-term economics of L1 blockchains. Is there a carrying capacity for tokens? Are smart contract platforms overvalued? Will L1s converge to their utility value or maintain monetary premiums? Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedi...
Apr 20, 2025•56 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Jarry Xiao, co-founder and engineering lead at Ellipsis Labs, joins to chat tradfi to crypto infrastructure. Jarry dives deep into Phoenix, their central limit order book on Solana, and introduces Atlas - their purpose-built blockchain for financial applications. The conversation touches blockchain trading challenges, the economics of validator networks, and why truly effective trading systems require opinionated design. Follow our guest on Twitter! https:/...
Apr 13, 2025•1 hr 9 min
Welcome to The Gwart Show! Today, @rajivpoc from @hiFramework joins us. We discuss the L1 trade narrative (“not cooked”), the influx of talented builders entering crypto, and dynamics between VCs and retail investors. Rajiv offers perspectives on Hyperliquid's success, the future of memecoins, and why Bitcoin-based financial products represent a massive opportunity. He also shares his optimistic outlook on washing away "grift" from the space while supporting serious builders with real business m...
Apr 06, 2025•1 hr 11 min
Welcome to The Gwart Show! Today, we are joined by Guy, the founder of Ethena, one of crypto's fastest-growing stablecoin projects, which reached $6 billion faster than any dollar-pegged asset in history. We discuss how Ethena's synthetic dollar works by capturing funding rates from perpetual futures markets, why they've embraced centralized exchanges while maintaining neutrality, and their ambitious new Converge blockchain. The conversation explores stablecoin competition, the limitations of de...
Mar 30, 2025•1 hr 12 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today, Andrew Bailey–fellow at the Bitcoin Policy Institute– joins Gwart to discuss Bitcoin's role as resistance money, the philosophical implications of cryptocurrency, and why simplicity might trump utility in digital assets. Follow our guest on Twitter: @resistancemoney TOPICS -Bitcoin as Resistance Money -Philosophy in Cryptocurrency -Stablecoins vs Bitcoin -Ethical Money Creation -Future of Financial Freedom CHAPTERS 00:00 Start 01:07 Andrew bio 01:55 Why phi...
Mar 23, 2025•1 hr 26 min
Welcome to The Gwart Show! Today, Willem from Botanix Labs joins us to discuss their pioneering "spider chain" approach for Bitcoin's second layer. Unlike traditional rollups, Botanix creates a decentralized network of multi-sig validators to bring EVM capabilities to Bitcoin while maintaining censorship resistance. Willem explains why decentralization matters for DeFi applications, how their validator system works with Bitcoin staking, and why they've chosen a different path than rollups. With ...
Mar 09, 2025•48 min
Welcome to The Gwart Show! Today, Alex Gladstein, Chief Strategy Officer at the Human Rights Foundation, joins us to discuss how Bitcoin functions as essential "money dictators can't stop" for human rights activists worldwide. With nearly 18 years at HRF, Alex shares fascinating stories of Bitcoin adoption in authoritarian regimes, his journey from skeptic to advocate, and why Bitcoin—not general "crypto"—provides the unique properties needed for financial freedom in oppressive environments. He ...
Mar 02, 2025•1 hr 7 min
Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Welcome back to The Great Show! Today, we finish the second half of our chat with Felipe Montealegre from Theia Research on traditional private equity valuation methods and crypto investing. We explore fundamental analysis in DeFi, token valuations, shareholder rights, and the evolution of crypto markets. Felipe shares insights on identifying quality revenue streams, evaluating moats, and building sustainable value in the crypto...
Feb 23, 2025•1 hr 7 min
Welcome back to The Great Show! Today, Felipe Montealegre from Theia Research joins to discuss traditional private equity valuation methods and crypto investing. We explore fundamental analysis in DeFi, token valuations, shareholder rights, and the evolution of crypto markets. Felipe shares insights on identifying quality revenue streams, evaluating moats, and building sustainable value in the crypto ecosystem. Subscribe to the newsletter! https://newsletter.blockspacemedia.com Topic: 3. PE vs C...
Feb 16, 2025•54 min
Welcome to The Gwart Show! Today, Jacob Phillips, founder of Lombard Finance, joins us to talk Bitcoin staking. From Babylon protocol's approach to Bitcoin security to Lombard's role in creating liquid staking derivatives, we chat about Bitcoin as a productive asset. Plus thoughts on technical infrastructure, market dynamics, and Bitcoin staking in DeFi. TOPICS • Bitcoin Staking Mechanisms • Babylon Protocol Overview • Liquid Staking Derivatives • DeFi Integration • Security Models • Cross-chain...
Feb 09, 2025•1 hr 1 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Peter van Valkenburgh breaks down Coin Center's legal battle against the DOJ's crackdown on privacy tools like Tornado Cash. From First Amendment rights to money transmission laws, we explore how these cases could alter development. Peter explains why software isn't money transmission and how these prosecutions threaten innovation in America. 🐦Follow our guests on Twitter: @valkenburgh @coincenter 📝Quick notes & topics: • Code as protected speech • DOJ vs pr...
Feb 02, 2025•1 hr 14 min
In this deep dive episode, Kevin Mills from Triton Liquid Fund joins us to examine the fundamental value of Ethereum through multiple analytical frameworks. Building on John Pfeifer's influential 2017 paper, Kevin explores cash flow models, equation of exchange, and the internet bond theory to assess ETH's true value. The conversation challenges popular narratives around monetary premium and questions traditional valuation approaches in crypto markets. Essential listening for anyone interested i...
Jan 26, 2025•1 hr 26 min
Happy Sunday and welcome back to The Gwart Show. Today we are joined by Jordi Alexander, founder of Selini Capital, discusses HyperLiquid's success, the future of AI in crypto, market making strategies, and shares insights on Ethereum's potential changes and Solana's surprising performance. Follow our guests on Twitter:@gametheorizing 00:00 Start 00:56 Jordi intro 01:23 Selini Capital 03:11 Prop shop vs VC money 04:35 What is HFT? 05:38 Which DeFi protocols for Selini Capital? 06:35 Volume of Hy...
Jan 19, 2025•44 min
Steve Lee from Spiral and Ren from Electric Capital join The Gwart Show to talk Bitcoin consensus! We cover how Bitcoin changes, stakeholder weight, and the future of protocol upgrades like covenants. Follow our guest on Twitter: @moneyball @0xren_cf Read our paper: https://bitcoin-cap.github.io/bcap/ 00:00 Start 01:00 Introductions 03:01 Partnering for the paper 04:25 Motivation to write paper 08:17 Reluctance to define a BTC consensus process 12:20 Defining the stakeholders 13:48 Consensus gam...
Jan 12, 2025•1 hr 20 min
Today we’re joined by Uma Roy of Succinct Labs to discuss ZK-VM technology, the upcoming prover network, and the alternative scaling paths. We got into rollup architectures, Bitcoin integration, and the landscape of ZK proofs in crypto. Follow our guest on Twitter: @pumatheuma 00:00 Start 00:53 Who is Uma? 01:16 What's a ZKVM? 03:07 Starkware vs Prover Network 04:20 How does it work? 05:28 Who plans to use this ZKVM? 07:50 Why does it take an hour? 10:01 What is the Prover Network? 14:15 ASICS f...
Jan 05, 2025•59 min
Eli Ben-Sasson, CEO of Starkware, joins The Gwart Show to discuss Ethereum L2s and Bitcoin scaling solutions. We go through rollup controversies, Starkware’s airdrop drama, and how we might actually scale protocols through ZK proofs and STARKs. Lastly, we touch on OP_CAT, which the Starkware team has been pushing behind the scenes. Follow our guest on Twitter: @EliBenSasson 00:00 Start 00:44 Guest introduction 01:25 What is Starkware working on? 03:15 Working on BTC vs ETH 06:27 Why did Bitcoin ...
Dec 29, 2024•1 hr 2 min
Charlotte, creator of Milady NFTs, discusses building a counter-cultural art movement, embracing controversy, fostering community through derivatives, and aiming for "thousand-year dynasty" influence across tech, politics, and culture while rejecting traditional VC-backed NFT models. Follow our guest on Twitter: @CharlotteFang77 00:00 Start 01:01 Who is Charlotte Fang? 01:29 Inspiration for Milady ? 04:39 Art style 10:24 Path to success? 17:43 Community engagement 21:37 Milady Cancel? 25:10 Mila...
Dec 22, 2024•1 hr 16 min
Welcome back to The Gwart Show! Today we are rejoined by Jon Charb of DBA. A fellow podcaster and SOL bag holder, Gwart digs into Jon’s recent blog post on Ethereum’s future, community alignment, value of ETH, and Bitcoin rollup development. Follow our guest on Twitter: @jon_charb 00:00 Start 00:41 ETH's North Star Blog Post 03:57 Is SOL a true competitor? 05:44 WTF is a settlement layer? 09:35 Main points of North Star post 16:08 Community alignment 19:21 Gas limit increase 22:30 L1 performance...
Dec 15, 2024•1 hr 6 min
Max is leaving Ethereum, and we have the details. On this Gwart Show special filmed at Pubkey in NYC, Max and Eugene join Gwart to go through Max’s decision to leave Ethereum dev shop Conensensys in favor of a Solana client which frankly we don’t know how to spell or pronounce. We go through Ethereum’s major problems basically one-by-one in this 1.5 hour show, finishing with a Holiday Special game of ‘cooked or not cooked’ narratives. Follow our guest on Twitter: @MaxResnick1 @0xshittrader 00:00...
Dec 10, 2024•1 hr 37 min
