Apps Becoming Banks: Uber, Gojek, Starbucks

In this episode of Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn Melinek speaks with Nikil Viswanathan, Co-Founder & CEO of Alchemy, the infrastructure platform powering over 70% of top crypto applications and more than $150B in annual transaction volume. Nikil explains how Alchemy abstracted away the complexity of building onchain for millions of developers to create crypto products similar to mobile apps on iOS and web apps on AWS.

Nikil breaks down why developer adoption, not price action, is the true signal for crypto’s long-term trajectory, and why the next major wave will come from banks, fintechs, and global consumer apps integrating stablecoins and onchain payments. He shares insights from Alchemy’s work with JP Morgan, Robinhood, and web2 companies, explaining how stablecoins are becoming a new global monetary rail especially in emerging markets where inflation, capital controls, and unreliable banking systems limit economic access.

The conversation also dives into AI’s impact on software creation, the end of traditional coding careers, the rise of “makers” and why crypto and AI form a natural symbiosis. Nikil also unpacks tokenization, memecoins, DeFi’s return, hyperinflation abroad, and why stablecoins are a powerful export of the US dollar.

Timestamps(00:00) - Introducing Nikil and Alchemy powering over 70% of major crypto apps

(01:01) - Why crypto infrastructure is hard to explain and Alchemy’s simple analogy to AWS

(02:05) - The three major technology shifts: computers, internet and crypto and why each needs an OS layer

(03:10) - How crypto will scale to billions of users

(05:07) - Nikil’s philosophy of one life, one shot and optimizing for outsized global impact

(06:07) - Why founders underestimate infrastructure and how AWS, Apple and Microsoft shaped today’s world

(07:30) - Measuring crypto adoption by developer activity, not bull cycles and price volatility

(09:00) - How bear markets didn’t stop builders and traditional finance is now entering crypto at scale

(10:31) - Banks like JP Morgan replacing internal rails with blockchain for efficiency and savings

(12:45) - The innovator’s dilemma why banks fear disruption yet must adopt stablecoin rails

(14:31) - Apps with users can become a bank like Uber, DoorDash, Gojek and other consumer apps

(16:41) - Stablecoins and the Starbucks effect with consumers already use banking layers without realizing it

(18:41) - Tokenization beyond the hype and unlocking global access to the US financial system

(20:45) - Hyperinflation and how stablecoins can solve constraints that banks can’t

(23:43) - How dollar-denominated stablecoins are America’s greatest export since the Declaration of Independence

(25:57) - The rise of global QR payments and why the US financial system lags behind Asia

(28:56) - Why money movement is broken worldwide and the historical evolution toward digital currency

(32:27) - What stablecoin adoption truly looks like everywhere invisible to users native to apps

(34:58) - Categories people overlook

(38:49) - The global inflation crisis and why Bitcoin or stablecoins can become default stores of value

(43:07) - The future of AI and crypto: merging authenticity, financial autonomy and machine-to-machine commerce

(47:44) - How AI eliminates traditional coding and transforms developers into makers

(52:04) - Nikil’s life advice: most people misjudge risk and the safe path is actually riskier

Essentials

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