In this episode, we sit down with Joe Kelly, co-founder and CEO of Unchained, to discuss his journey from his first ‘aha’ moment with bitcoin to building a company that prioritizes long term bitcoin security and self-custody. Joe reflects on Unchained’s evolution into a bitcoin-only company, his personal donation to the University of Austin’s bitcoin endowment, and Unchained’s new bitcoin donor-advised fund product. We explore the critical importance of self-custody, why new bitcoiners should care about self-custody, the challenges and opportunities for global bitcoin adoption, and Unchained’s future roadmap. Joe also shares his thoughts on the risks and potential of AI, phishing threats in the digital space, and the balance between security and user experience in bitcoin financial services.

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TIMESTAMPS:

0:00 Intro
1:18 ‘Aha’ moment, Dhruv’s influence
4:19 Founding Unchained, long-term vision
7:47 Bitcoin-only focus
10:27 University of Austin donation
13:18 Bitcoin donor-advised funds
15:23 Beyond bitcoin: family, consciousness
17:45 Favorite podcast
20:23 Why self-custody matters
26:01 Accelerating adoption
28:52 Phishing threats
32:20 Bitcoin ETFs
35:41 AI, identity verification
38:17 Unchained’s future
40:03 Roadmap, sustainability
41:30 Favorite products
44:44 ECB bitcoin paper
46:50 Contrarian views on money
49:05 Bitcoin’s biggest risk
50:44 Closing remarks

WHERE TO FOLLOW US:

→ Unchained Twitter: https://twitter.com/unchainedcom

→ Unchained LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/unchainedcom 

→ Unchained Newsletter: https://unchained.com/newsletter 

→ Joe Burnett’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/IIICapital

→ Joe Kelly’s Twitter: https://x.com/josephkelly