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Lamina1: Building The Future of The Creator Economy

Oct 29, 2025

Neal Stephenson, award-winning sci-fi author and co-founder of Lamina1, delves into the future of the creator economy. He discusses how storytelling shapes tech predictions and the balance of optimism and pessimism in envisioning the metaverse. Neal critiques Web3's risks, including surveillance and re-centralization, while championing creators' rights and direct micropayments. He also highlights the launch of 'Artifact,' a game aimed at integrating blockchain seamlessly, emphasizing that true success lies in empowering creators rather than just monetizing experience.

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INSIGHT

Web’s Arc: Decentralize, Centralize, Then Reconsider

The web shifted from decentralized Web1 to centralized Web2 and now aims to move back toward decentralization with Web3.
Decentralization proponents mix idealism with commercialization, so outcomes depend on distinguishing motives.

INSIGHT

Measure Decentralization By Creator Outcomes

A core metric for a decentralized web is whether creators get fair pay and control of their data.
True decentralization should let creators reach fans directly and retain monetization and mailing lists.

ANECDOTE

Lamina One’s Origin In Metaverse Hype

Lamina One began when Neal noticed a flood of 'metaverse' hype after Facebook rebranded to Meta in 2021.
He saw game engines and shared asset economies as a place where blockchain capabilities like provenance and royalties fit naturally.

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Sci-fi titan Neal Stephenson, whose Snow Crash coined the term 'metaverse' and Cryptonomicon, which foreshadowed crypto in 1999, joins Friederike to discuss his "hard sci-fi" method: building immersive, consistent worlds, not prophecy. He's now co-founder of Lamina1, aiming to restore Web1's ethos and give creators IP sovereignty with direct micropayments, breaking free from Web2's "walled gardens."

Neal unpacks Web3's promise like "intent-casting" flipping ad models while citing its critical traps: abysmal UX, criminal stigma, and the "soul-crushing" risk of just upgrading incumbent systems.

Spotlighting Lamina 1's game "Artifact," he argues Web3's true success will be measured when the technology becomes invisible and safe, proving its value by restoring sovereignty to its users and creators, rather than through speculative hype.

Topics discussed in this episode:

(00:00) Introduction to Decentralization and Blockchain
(01:20) The Role of Storytelling in Technology Prediction
(03:48) The Balance of Optimism and Pessimism in Fiction
(06:27) Web3: Promises and Pitfalls
(08:36) The Evolution of the Web: From Decentralization to Centralization
(13:37) Metrics for a Decentralized Web
(15:55) Lamina One: A New Vision for the Metaverse
(23:44) Creating a Financial Layer for the Creator Economy
(25:08) Legal Implications of Smart Contracts
(27:38) The Strength of Smart Contracts
(31:04) Decentralization vs. Centralization in the Creator Economy
(36:21) The Decline of Centralized Platforms
(41:23) Financialization and the Creative Economy
(45:47) The Future of Web3 and User Experience
(51:17) Potential Failure Modes of Web3

Links mentioned in this episode:

Neal Stephenson, Co-founder Lamina1: https://x.com/nealstephenson
Lamina 1: https://lamina1.com/home

Sponsors:

Gnosis: Gnosis has been building core decentralized infrastructure for the Ethereum ecosystem since 2015. With the launch of Gnosis Pay last year, we introduced the world's first Decentralized Payment Network. Start leveraging its power today at gnosis.io

This episode is hosted by Friederike Ernst.