with @eddylazzarin @DarenMatsuoka @ahall_research @rhhackett
Welcome to web3 with a16z. I’m Robert Hackett.
Today we’re talking about one of the most familiar — and most misunderstood — mechanics in crypto: the airdrop.
We’ll explore the history of airdrops in and outside crypto, the challenges of incentive design, and learnings from airdrops to date. We’ll also answer questions like how do you avoid Sybil attacks and professional airdrop farming? Should your drop be big or small, one-time or ongoing? And what happens when AI agents enter the mix?
To break it all down, we’re joined by:
- a16z crypto’s Chief Technology Officer Eddy Lazzarin;
- a16z crypto Data Science Partner Daren Matsuoka; and
- a16z crypto Research Consultant Andrew Hall, who is also a Professor of Political Economics at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.
Whether you're planning a token launch, looking for token rewards, or just curious why airdrops have become such a powerful mechanism in crypto — this episode is for you.
Timestamps:
(0:00) introduction
(1:42) what is an airdrop?
(6:27) tokens vs traditional equity
(8:49) incentive design challenges
(15:18) origins from credit cards to crypto
(17:14) Optimism airdrop case study
(23:09) NFT market learnings
(28:32) Sybil resistance and verifying humanity
(33:04) Uniswap airdrop and beyond
(36:35) AI agents and the future of airdrops
(40:33) connection to performance reviews
(45:30) token vesting and volatility
(49:08) experimentation vs. best practices
(59:20) Batesian mimicry
Resources:
As a reminder, none of the content 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.
