Messari's Unqualified Opinions

Drones, not satellites, might power the next generation of maps and spatial AI. In this episode of Fully Diluted, Messari’s Dylan Bane sits down with Alec Wilson, COO of Spexi and founding contributor to LayerDrone, to break down how their DePIN-powered drone network is creating a standardized, ultra–high-resolution imagery layer of the Earth.They cover:- Why drone imagery (1–3 cm per pixel) can beat both satellites and planes- How Spexi software and LayerDrone’s web3 incentives coordinate thousands of pilots into a single data network- Lessons from paying contributors in fiat first — and why they’re adding a token model now- Real-world demand from Amazon, Uber, Niantic, Esri, and governments for better geospatial data- The challenges of B2B sales, crypto optics, and being “too early” with frontier tech- What to expect from LayerDrone’s upcoming TGE, mainnet launch, and global expansion00:00 – Introductions07:48 – Why Token Model11:38 – DePIN Learnings16:26 – Growth & Demand26:57 – Future Plans30:46 – Expansion Regions31:20 – How People Can Join31:54 – ConclusionHosted by Dylan Bane of MessariSubscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, deepin, and real-world infra.Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCryptoFollow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415eFollow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979____This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

Join us for another episode of Fully Diluted with Messari Analysts Matthew Nay, Sam Ruskin, Qorban Ferrell, and Jake Koch-Gallup.This week, we explore Jake's insightful analysis of RAILGUN, a cutting-edge ZK privacy tool for EVM networks, and discuss its valuation and market impact. We also cover the resurgence of meme coins, the rise of equity perps, and the macro trends driving the metals market. Tune in for a deep dive into the world of privacy tech, market dynamics, and the future of decentralized finance. Don't miss out on this engaging conversation!00:00:00 -- Introduction and Episode Overview00:01:48 -- Privacy & Railgun00:05:51 -- Privacy Wallets00:18:26 -- Privacy Coins Market00:23:28 -- Equity Perps00:29:39 -- Market Fragmentation00:33:22 -- Robinhood & TradFi00:36:40 -- Meme Coins Outlook00:46:12 -- Onchain Activity00:48:09 -- ConclusionFollow Messari on Twitter: / messaricrypto Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpw...Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast...____This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

Prediction markets may be the first real breakout product for consumer crypto—and they’re only getting started.

In this episode of Messari’s 2026 Theses consumer series, we’re joined by Tulip King and Baba, two former Messari analysts, to unpack where consumer crypto actually goes next. The conversation spans prediction markets as base infrastructure, why memecoins and NFTs needed a reset, how wallets become the new distribution layer, and whether crypto social finally has a real unlock.

We connect these themes directly to Messari’s newly published 2026 Crypto Theses, exploring what adoption looks like when users stop caring about rails and start caring about products—and why wallets, prediction markets, and AI copilots may define the next consumer cycle.

1:47 Prediction Markets

14:49 Meme Coins & NFTs

22:35 Crypto Wallets

33:49 Social & Creator Crypto

46:40 Consumer Crypto 2026

Hosted by Chris Davis of Messari

Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, DePIN, and real-world infra.

Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415e

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979

____

This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

Perps are leveling up from a crypto-native niche into a global trading primitive—and equity perps may be the breakout narrative of 2026.

In this year-in-review episode of Messari: Unqualified Opinions, Messari Research Analysts Sam and Qorban are joined by Messari alumni Sunny and Kunal to unpack 2025’s biggest DeFi themes: Hyperliquid’s rise, the equity perp inflection, the maturation (and looming skepticism) around prediction markets, how political markets could evolve, and why yield-bearing stablecoins may accelerate as rates compress.

This conversation connects directly to Messari’s newly published 2026 Crypto Theses report—covering the structural tailwinds behind perps + equities, stablecoin adoption, onchain market structure, and the next wave of DeFi product-market fit.

📘 Read the full (free) Crypto Theses 2026 report: https://messari.io/report/the-crypto-theses-2026

Hosted by Sam Ruskin of Messari

Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, DePIN, and real-world infra.

Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415e

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979

____

This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

In this episode, Dylan, Sami and Seth break down why crypto + AI isn’t just a moral counterweight to Big Tech—it’s a faster innovation engine. They explain how BitTensor’s subnet model turns AI development into an open, incentive-driven competition (similar to how Bitcoin relentlessly optimized SHA-256), and why 2025’s biggest shifts—open-source catching up, reinforcement learning’s rise, and massive data center capex—set the stage for decentralized AI to find real product-market fit. The conversation also digs into value accrual, why buybacks can be a trap, and which crypto-AI sectors could surprise people in 2026 (agents, privacy, robotics, and GPU financing).

📘 Read the full (free) Crypto Theses 2026 report: https://messari.io/report/the-crypto-theses-2026

0:00 AI & DePIN Trends

10:28 Training Subnets

14:07 Investing Approach

20:25 Revenue Growth

22:35 Token Strategy

40:26 Compute & Infra

41:59 Future Outlook

Hosted by Chris Davis of Messari

Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, DePIN, and real-world infra.

Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415e

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979

____

This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

In this episode, Sami and Seth break down why crypto + AI isn’t just a moral counterweight to Big Tech—it’s a faster innovation engine. They explain how BitTensor’s subnet model turns AI development into an open, incentive-driven competition (similar to how Bitcoin relentlessly optimized SHA-256), and why 2025’s biggest shifts—open-source catching up, reinforcement learning’s rise, and massive data center capex—set the stage for decentralized AI to find real product-market fit. The conversation also digs into value accrual, why buybacks can be a trap, and which crypto-AI sectors could surprise people in 2026 (agents, privacy, robotics, and GPU financing).

📘 Read the full (free) Crypto Theses 2026 report: https://messari.io/report/the-crypto-theses-2026

0:00 AI & DePIN Trends

10:28 Training Subnet

14:07 Investing Approach

20:25 Revenue Growth

22:35 Token Strategy

40:26 Compute & Infra

41:59 Future Outlook

Hosted by Chris Davis of Messari

Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, DePIN, and real-world infra.

Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415e

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979

____

This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

Messari’s Theses 2026 multi-chain roundtable breaks down who’s really winning the L1 / L2 wars and what that means for the next cycle.

The Enterprise team dives into:

- How Ethereum clawed back from peak despair in 2025

- Why Arbitrum and Base are pulling away from the L2 pack

- What a Robinhood L2 could mean for every existing rollup

- MegaETH’s token + native stablecoin experiments

- Jeremy’s new Disruption Factor framework for ranking L2s

- Solana’s push to become the “onchain NASDAQ”

- Hot takes for 2026: Starknet, Monad, native stablecoins, and more

Watch alongside Messari Crypto Theses 2026 for the full data-driven breakdown of L1, L2, and multichain trends.

📘 Read the full report: https://messari.io/report/the-crypto-theses-2026

0:00 Ethereum Outlook

5:41 Ethereum Scaling

7:17 Ethereum Narrative

16:45 Robinhood Chain

25:09 Base & L2s

35:33 L2 Research

41:18 Solana Outlook

51:12 L1 Innovation

Hosted by Patryk Krasnicki of Messari

Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, DePIN, and real-world infra.

Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415e

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979

____

This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

In this episode of the Messari Thesis Podcast, the Enterprise research team recaps the wild year that was 2025 and lays out their highest-conviction bets for 2026.

We dig into why Bitcoin has clearly separated from the rest of the market, how Hyperliquid and a handful of standout apps stole the spotlight, and why long-tail L1s are running out of room. The team debates whether institutions really break the four-year cycle, how the stablecoin and yield meta evolves as rates fall, and where DeFi banks, RWAs, and prediction markets actually fit.

We also get into L1 vs L2 dynamics, Solana’s on-chain market structure experiments, the rise of yield-generating stablecoins, and the explosion of on-chain derivatives from equity perps to exotic real-world assets. Finally, everyone shares one spicy prediction for 2026—from a G20 nation adding Bitcoin to its strategic reserves to a single meme coin rising from the ashes.

00:00 2025 Winners & Losers

07:00 L1, L2 & Multichain

09:25 Institutions & Stablecoins

13:55 Yield & DeFi Banks

23:45 2026 Narratives

28:55 Regulation & Tokens

33:30 Equity Perps & TradFi

40:10 2026 Market Outlook

Hosted by Matthew Nay of Messari

Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, DePIN, and real-world infra.

Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415e

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979

____

This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

How much of “crypto AI” is still just narrative—and how much is finally real?

In this episode, Messari’s Enterprise team unpacks findings from Messari’s newly released State of AI Report and what they mean for decentralized AI, infra, and the broader market. Chris walks through why post-training, reinforcement learning, and test-time compute are pushing us into a new decentralized AI paradigm, from swarm-style inference networks like 42 Network to open source models that are finally seeing real, paid demand.

Read the Full State of AI 2025 for FREE: https://messari.io/report/state-of-ai

00:00 – Introductions

01:11 – State of AI & Crypto

08:28 – AI Agents & Micropayments

23:05 – New L1 & TG Analysis

36:10 – Market & Cycle Outlook

50:04 – Token Launch Advice

56:22 – On-Chain Activity

57:52 – Conclusion

Hosted by Matthew Nay of Messari

Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, DePIN, and real-world infra.

Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415e

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979

____

This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.

What if the smartest AI didn’t live in a hyperscale data center—but across millions of everyday devices?

In this episode, Chris Davis sits down with Ivan Nikitin, co-founder of Fortytwo, an AI network built on crypto rails that turns idle consumer hardware into a global swarm of specialized models. After a decade in traditional AI—training agents, conversational systems, and even a spatial reasoning foundation model—Ivan hit the hard wall of AI scalability: not enough compute, endlessly bigger data centers, and no sustainable path forward.

Fortytwo flips that script. Instead of one giant “god model,” it orchestrates small, specialized models into a swarm inference network. Each query is handled by a sub-swarm of experts that generate answers, peer-rank each other’s outputs, and aggregate the best result—creating a system that’s more robust to hallucinations, prompt injection, and noisy prompts (yes, including the “cat on the roof” test).

Messari’s State of AI Report calls decentralized inference “one of the most important emerging architectures in AI,” and this conversation offers a firsthand look into how that future might unfold.

Read the Full State of AI 2025 for FREE: https://messari.io/report/state-of-ai

00:00 – Introductions

03:05 – Crypto & Security

10:16 – Models & Swarm Performance

24:02 – Consumer Devices & Nodes

38:02 – Custom Model Training

43:16 – Demand & Pricing

53:31 – Future, Token & Data Use

59:00 – Conclusion

Hosted by Chris Davis of Messari

Subscribe for more conversations at the intersection of crypto, DePIN, and real-world infra.

Follow Messari on Twitter: https://twitter.com/MessariCrypto

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0uG5qpwFg67zTt0VQRTaZ7?si=13163cbebe01415e

Follow Unqualified Opinions on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/messaris-unqualified-opinions/id1455666979

____

This episode and its contents do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Messari, Inc. Hosts and guests may hold cryptocurrencies discussed in this content. This content is meant for informational purposes only. It is not meant to serve as investment advice. You should conduct your own research, and consult an independent financial, tax, or legal advisor before making any investment decisions. Nothing contained in this content is a recommendation or suggestion, directly or indirectly, to buy, sell, make, or hold any investment, loan, commodity, or security, or to undertake any investment or trading strategy with respect to any investment, loan, commodity, security, or any issuer. This content should not be construed as an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any security or commodity. Messari does not guarantee the sequence, accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information provided in this content.