Empire

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, we discuss the highly contentious launch of Aptos, a new L1 blockchain marketing 160K+ TPS. We debate the bull vs bear case for Aptos and ask, "Do we need another L1 blockchain?".

We then discuss SBF's new article on crypto regulation, why data availability matters, Binance voting on behalf of users, AI in crypto and more!

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(10:55) Aptos L1, Bull vs Bear

(17:33) SBF & Crypto Regulation

(29:44) Binance Voting on Uniswap With User Tokens

(37:51) What Is Celestia And Data Availability?

(45:54) AI Is Coming For Crypto

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Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel

Follow Garrett: https://twitter.com/G_C_Harp

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j

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Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/

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Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at http://empirepodcast.link/circle that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is.

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Resources

Michelle on Empire

https://spoti.fi/3MQDWVz

Possible Digital Asset Industry Standards (SBF article)

https://www.ftxpolicy.com/posts/possible-digital-asset-industry-standards

Dan Smith's tweet thread on Binance & Uniswap

https://bit.ly/3Dc8y0C

Westie's tweet thread on Eigen Layer

https://twitter.com/blockworksres/status/1582379353492496384

The Singularity Is Near (book)

https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/83518.The_Singularity_is_Near

How To Create A Mind (book)

https://bit.ly/3yXEUtm

AI Superpowers (book)

https://bit.ly/3VDTss1

Storyworthy (book)

https://bit.ly/3CIf0Lm

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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire, Jason and Santi are joined by Meltem Demirors to discuss the creation and monetization of culture. We explore how culture is already monetized today, just indirectly, and that crypto-based market microstructure will be the catalyst for the fusion of a new culture-meets-capital paradigm.

Where is the market shifting today, and what are the biggest opportunities ahead? Trust me, this is a must-listen if you are interested in NFTs, financial markets or the creation of culture.

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:29) Crypto Is A Market Structure Story

(06:09) Everything Is Perception & Speculation

(12:38) Arbitraging Culture

(21:47) Where's The Utility? Culture Is Utility

(30:22) Circle Ad

(32:05) Why NFT Communities Don’t Scale

(36:31) IP, Mimetic Transmission and Community

(42:22) Boomer ETH NFTs & Lower Price Points

(45:47) The Biggest Opportunities?

(57:49) Culture Is Not Emergent, It’s Manufactured

(1:08:34) Read Sci-Fi, Here’s Why

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Follow Meltem: https://twitter.com/Melt_Dem

Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j

Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7

Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw

Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/

--

Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at http://empirepodcast.link/circle that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is.

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Resources

Reminiscences of a Stock Operator

https://amzn.to/3rTNWUw

A Survey of NFT Licenses: Facts & Fictions (Galaxy)

https://bit.ly/3MqIhid

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Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/

- -

Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason and Santi share their thoughts on the state of the market, the endless hacks in crypto and a few of the latest innovations.

Santi gives his unique private-market insights, Jason gives a behind-the-scenes look at Blockworks, and the duo discuss the biggest story of the week: the Binance and Mango Markets Exploit. We then discuss the 3 big ZK-rollup announcements (scaling season?), Arbitrum's acquisition, and more!

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(02:16) What's Changed At Blockworks During The Bear?

(06:53) State of Venture, Macro And Crypto Markets

(21:39) Does Everything Need A Token?

(26:14) Hacks, Exploits And More Hacks (Binance, Mango)

(39:43) Yuga Labs & Regulation By Enforcement

(48:08) ZK Tech Is Here

(51:56) Arbitrum Acquires Prysmatic Labs

(55:36) Coinbase News, Stephane Resigns, PayPal & More

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Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j

Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 

Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw

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Referenced in the show:

Cosmos podcast

https://spoti.fi/3S3W9zP

GCR's "inside job" tweet

https://twitter.com/GCRClassic/status/1579837794675216384

Rebecca & Jake regulation podcast

https://spoti.fi/3rSZMOw

Scroll's zkEVM podcast

https://spoti.fi/3rTXO0w

Polygon deep dive by Blockworks Research

https://bit.ly/3S3Wti1

Starkware podcast

https://spoti.fi/3Vqu88v

Influence Empire (book)

https://bit.ly/3T9CLTc

David Marcus tweet criticizing PayPal

https://twitter.com/davidmarcus/status/1578795041719750663

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Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is. Learn more at: http://empirepodcast.link/circle

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Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ 

- - 

Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Michelle Bailhe Fradin, Partner at Sequoia for a wide ranging discussion on venture capital in crypto.

Michelle shares her thoughts on the fat protocol thesis, how infrastructure development is necessary for application growth, changing business models during a bear market and what the biggest opportunities for growth are in this environment. To hear all of this and more, you'll have to tune in!

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Follow Michelle: https://twitter.com/michellebailhe

Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/

--

Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is.

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:05) Ask Not Wen Moon–Ask Why Moon

(04:34) The Fat Protocol Thesis

(12:58) The Myth of The Infrastructure Phase

(16:57) Where Is Sequoia Seeing Opportunity In Crypto?

(18:53) The State of Crypto VC Funding

(23:10) Circle Ad

(24:52) What Metrics Do VC's Track In Crypto?

(33:29) How Business Models Change In A Bear Market

(36:12) Rethinking Crypto Business Models

(38:19) How Active Is Sequoia In Governance?

(39:52) Michelle's Thesis On DAOs

(48:02) How The VC Landscape Is Changing

(53:33) Opportunities Outside of Crypto

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Referenced In The Show: 

Ask Not Wen Moon–Ask Why Moon: https://www.sequoiacap.com/article/ask-not-wen-moon-ask-why-moon/ 

Fat Protocols https://www.usv.com/writing/2016/08/fat-protocols/ 

The Myth of The Infrastructure Phase: https://www.usv.com/writing/2018/10/the-myth-of-the-infrastructure-phase/

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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, we discuss one area of the market many aren’t paying attention to, private order flow (POF). As well as POF, Sushiswap announced a new head chef, MakerDAO plans to invest $500M in US treasurys and many VCs are looking to gaming for the next big opportunity in crypto? To hear all this and more, you’ll have to tune in!

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Timestamps: 

(00:00) Introduction

(01:30) Sushiswap Brings In A New Head Chef

(15:38) Uniswap & The App-Chain Thesis

(28:15) Private Order Flow Is The New MEV

(40:30) The Biggest Winners In MEV

(43:00) Gaming: Crypto’s Biggest Opportunity

(1:02:30) MakerDAO To Invest $500M in US Treasurys & Corporate Bonds  

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Follow Vance

Follow Michael

Follow Jason

Follow Bell Curve

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Referenced In The Show: 

SushiSwap ‘Head Chef’ Election Settled by GoldenTree, Cumberland https://blockworks.co/sushiswap-election-settled-by-goldentree-cumberland/ 

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Core, from Ava Labs, is more than just a wallet. It’s a free, non-custodial browser extension that gives Avalanche users a more seamless and secure Web3 experience. Download Core today at https://www.core.app/

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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Mike, Jason, Michael, Vance and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire, Jason and Santi are joined by Eli Ben-Sasson and Uri Kolodny to discuss Starkware and the ZK-rollup future. This episode is an absolute masterclass on scaling Ethereum using zero-knowledge proofs and a fractal architecture.

We discuss the limits of L1 scaling, ZK vs Optimistic rollups, native L2 programming languages, Layer 3 applications and much more!

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Intro

(00:32) The Limits of L1 Scaling

(05:30) Optimistic vs ZK Rollups

(14:40) Why ZK Rollups Lag Optimistic Rollups in TVL

(19:10) Advantages of the Cairo Programming Language

(26:57) L1 Apps Building for an L2 World

(30:01) Circle Ad

(31:43) dYdX’s Move From Starkware to Cosmos

(37:15) MEV, Bitcoin and Cairo 1.0 Adoption

(46:23) Layer 3 Scaling

(57:38) What Comes Next

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Follow Eli: https://twitter.com/EliBenSasson

Follow Uri: https://twitter.com/ukolodny

Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j

Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7

Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw

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Resources

Vitalik's post on fractal scaling

https://vitalik.ca/general/2022/09/17/layer_3.html

Starkware

https://starkware.co/

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Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is.

- -

Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/

- -

Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, the Blockworks Research team takes over the pod! We start with a debate on the implications of ATOM 2.0 and USDC launching on Cosmos. Is ATOM no longer a meme coin? Does everything revolve around MEV? What opportunities does native USDC unlock for the Cosmos ecosystem?

We then discuss the feasibility of reversible on-chain transactions, the next NFT catalyst and how Polygon is a relentless business development machine. Tune in for all of this and more! And don't worry, Jason and Santi will be back next week.

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Timestamps:

(00:00 Introduction

(01:15) ATOM 2.0 & USDC Cosmos Announcement

(20:09) GMX MEV Opportunity Explained

(23:33) Politicians Continue to Fight Crypto

(26:37) Centre & USDC Dominance

(29:45) Reversible Transactions

(38:41) The Next NFT Catalyst

(42:22) Polygon’s Business Development 

(47:39) Blockworks Research

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Follow Matt: https://twitter.com/MattFiebach

Follow Dan: https://twitter.com/smyyguy

Follow Sam: https://twitter.com/swmartin19

Follow Garrett: https://twitter.com/G_C_Harp

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j

Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7 

Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw

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Referenced in the show:

Youssef Amrani's tweet on ATOM 2.0

https://bit.ly/3RwU1Re

Polka tweet on GMX MEV Opportunity

https://bit.ly/3LRO2VR

Blockworks Research Twitter

https://twitter.com/blockworksres

Blockworks Research Newsletter

https://blockworks.co/newsletter/daily-debrief-by-blockworks-research/

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Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ 

- - 

Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire, Jason and Santi are joined by Cooper Turley, aka Coopahtroopa, for a master class on music NFTs. We all listen to music every day, yet monetization for 99% of artists is abysmal. Coop explains how artists can leverage Web3 to maximize revenue, fan engagement and creativity.

We explore how music NFTs work, why they have value, which artists should participate and how Web3 will revolutionize the music industry. Cooper is an absolute expert, you won't want to miss it!

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Timestamps:

(00:00) Intro

(02:00) Coop Records & Intro to Music NFTs

(06:50) The Evolution of Music Monetization

(11:30) How to Value Music NFTs

(14:41) Artists as CEOs & the Music NFT Market

(22:59) Circle Ad

(24:41) Should Every Artist Create Music NFTs?

(28:57) Do Music NFTs Need Utility?

(37:40) One-of-Ones vs Collections

(41:35) AI-Generated Music & Virtual Artists

(47:05) Monetization, Fan Data and the Innovator's Dilemma

(53:16) Incubating Artists, Creator Equity Tokens & Community

(1:00:01) Tokenized Media & Rapid Fire Questions

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Follow Cooper: https://twitter.com/Cooopahtroopa

Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j

Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7

Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw

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Resources

Relics by Monstercat

https://relics.xyz/

Hume

https://www.wearehume.com/

Coop's Substack

https://thisweekinmusicnfts.substack.com/

Coop Records

https://www.cooprecords.xyz/

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Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is.

- -

Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/

- -

Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire's Weekly Roundup, Jason is joined by 0xpibblez and Westie from Blockworks Research to discuss this week's biggest stories. We start with the $160M Wintermute hack, Nasdaq's new custody offering and why pibblez is staying away from algo stablecoin governance tokens.

We then discuss Arbitrum's white hat hacker, why the Cosmos ecosystem might start seeing more exploits, how DAOs should codify their cap tables and more!

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Timestamps

(00:00) Introduction

(00:38) Who The F*ck is Buying ETH Right Now?

(01:46) Wintermute $160M Vanity Address Hack

(14:36) Nasdaq's Crypto Custody Announcement

(17:31) New Draft Stablecoin Bill

(25:44) Avalanche Ad

(27:12) Arbitrum Vulnerability Exposed

(34:44) Rari Fuse Hack Payment

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Follow Pibblez: https://twitter.com/0xpibblez

Follow Westie: https://twitter.com/WestieCapital

Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j

Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7

Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw

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Referenced in the show:

Arbitrum white hat hacker (Riptide) blog

https://medium.com/@0xriptide/hackers-in-arbitrums-inbox-ca23272641a2

Riptide's tweet asking if Arbitrum would have been insolvent

https://twitter.com/0xriptide/status/1572269938580115456

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Core, from Ava Labs, is more than just a wallet. It’s a free, non-custodial browser extension that gives Avalanche users a more seamless and secure Web3 experience. Download Core today at https://www.core.app/

--

Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/

- -

Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.

In this episode of Empire, Jason and Santi are joined by Zaki Manian and Jack Zampolin to explore the past, present and future of the Cosmos ecosystem and tech stack.

What are the advantages of application-specific chains? How will IBC and Interchain security shape the future of cross-chain interactions? What is ATOM 2.0? We discuss these questions and more in this Cosmos deep dive.

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Follow Zaki: https://twitter.com/zmanian

Follow Jack: https://twitter.com/jackzampolin

Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz

Follow Santi: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel

Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod

Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j

Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7

Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw

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Timecodes:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:21) History of Cosmos & Tendermint

(18:18) App-Chain Thesis

(30:47) DyDx's Move to Cosmos

(40:57) Circle Ad

(42:39) Cosmos & ATOM Value Accrual

(50:29) ATOM 2.0 Alpha

(52:33) Asynchronous Composability, Flash Loans and New Innovations

(1:05:44) Expanding Cosmos, MEV and IBC Ethereum

(1:16:52) Pros and Cons of the Cosmos Developer Collective

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Circle’s USDC has quickly become one of the most trusted and widely used stablecoins because of its composability, stability and reserve transparency. As a seamless, trusted digital currency, USDC is a zero-to-one opportunity for the global financial system. Check out their Transparency Hub at circle.com/transparency that outlines everything from links to USDC weekly reserve reports, monthly attestations, and blog posts written by their executive team highlighting how and why USDC was built the way it is.

- -

Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/

- -

Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.