Building companies in the AI era

with @zcabrams @psneville @rhackett

In this episode, Robert Hackett sits down with Sean Neville, cofounder of Circle and co-creator of the USDC stablecoin, and Zach Abrams, founder of Bridge (now part of Stripe), for a deep dive into the real story behind stablecoins, finding product-market fit, and the future of payments infrastructure.

They explore the earliest days of USDC — when stablecoins were far from obvious and regulatory frameworks didn’t exist. Sean shares how his conviction in “money running at internet speed” helped shape a multibillion-dollar asset. Zach recounts Bridge’s pivot from NFTs to stablecoin infrastructure — and how his business has changed since joining Stripe.

Together, they break down:

• Why stablecoins are having their moment now
• What counts as product-market fit (and why founders rarely “feel” it)
• The challenges of building crypto and AI products within heavily regulated environments
• Why new base-layer chains like Arc, Tempo, and others may be needed
• How decentralization, liquidity moats, and interoperability will define the next decade of blockchain adoption
• What the future of programmable money and AI-driven financial workflows looks like

Whether you’re a founder, a crypto-curious builder, or someone trying to understand where global payments are headed, this conversation — originally recorded live at our recent a16z crypto Founders Summit — offers insights from two operators at the center of an industry-defining transformation.

Guests:
• Sean Neville — Cofounder, Circle; CEO and cofounder, Catena
• Zach Abrams — Founder and CEO, Bridge (acquired by Stripe)

Highlights:

01:26 — Origins of USDC

02:44 — Why stablecoins are having their moment now

04:14 — Circle’s early product experiments

06:19— Surviving crypto cycles

07:35 — Bridge: From NFT payments to stablecoins

08:58 — What product-market fit actually feels like

20:02 — Inevitability and the founder vs. employer mindset

20:58 — Why Bridge joined Stripe

26:18 — How AI changes company building

29:38 — What students should study now

30:27 — Why new payment chains (Tempo & Arc)?

35:55 — Decentralization as imperative

Follow a16z crypto on...

• X: https://x.com/a16zcrypto
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/a16zcrypto/posts/
• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7pMZvsNXEnb0CYcPiDQywE
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/web3-with-a16z-crypto/id1622312549
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@a16zcrypto

📩 Subscribe for more industry reports, trend updates, news analysis, builder guides, and other resources: https://a16zcrypto.substack.com/subscribe/ 

🎙️ Like, subscribe, comment, share the show: https://a16zcrypto.com/posts/podcast/ 

***

As always, none of the following should be taken as investment, business, legal, or tax advice. Please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information, including a link to a list of our investments.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.