

Crypto Day | Brian Armstrong, Balaji, Chris Dixon, Katie Haun & More
Guest
Brandon Millman
Guest
Shehzan Maredia

Guest
Dan Romero
Guest
Mert Mumtaz
Guest
Soona Amhaz

Guest
Brian Armstrong

Guest
Dylan Abruscato

Guest
Luca Netz
Guest
Konstantin Richter
Guest
Tom Schmidt

Guest
Ben Pasternak

Guest
Kyle Samani
Guest
Katie Haun

Guest
Chris Dixon

Guest
Balaji Srinivasan
Brian Armstrong, co-founder and CEO of Coinbase, leads a star-studded lineup featuring Balaji Srinivasan, former CTO of Coinbase, and Katie Haun, CEO of Haun Ventures. They dive into the transformative power of stablecoins in finance and the evolving landscape of decentralized networks, discussing the future of cryptocurrency investment. Balaji sheds light on educational shifts in tech, while Chris Dixon shares insights on empowering crypto creators. The conversation is electrifying, hinting at a future where crypto reshapes our world.
04:40:30
Network School’s Meritocratic Model
- Network School is a global meritocracy attracting internet-first builders worldwide.
- It supports continuous education beyond traditional degrees, aligning with tech and crypto interests.
From Shaky Start to Success
- Pump.fun grew explosively after launching a minimal MVP despite poor initial user experience.
- Focused on distribution and iterating the marketplace to connect creators and traders.
Prioritize Continuous Education
- Education should be continuous, not front-loaded in four years.
- Allocate time and budget for lifelong learning and maintain skills up to date.
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Intro
00:00 • 2min
Reimagining Education and Cryptocurrency
01:46 • 25min
Empowering Crypto Creators: The PumpFun Journey
26:40 • 11min
Shifting to Solana: Tokenization and Growth
37:35 • 19min
Navigating Regulatory Challenges: Insights from Founders and Investors
56:57 • 2min
Navigating the Crypto Landscape
59:08 • 27min
Innovations in Crypto Security and Regulation
01:26:01 • 10min
Navigating the Crypto Landscape
01:35:54 • 20min
Crypto Trends and Sponsor Moments
01:56:20 • 2min
The Future of Stablecoins in Finance
01:58:22 • 15min
Revival and Resilience in the Crypto Industry
02:13:37 • 3min
The Evolution of Crypto in Finance
02:16:43 • 10min
Navigating the Future of Stable Coins and Pudgy Penguins
02:26:20 • 5min
Navigating Community Engagement in NFTs
02:31:32 • 13min
Reflections on Crypto and The Evolution of Interactive Gaming
02:44:04 • 3min
Blockchain Gaming: Navigating Challenges and Innovations
02:47:18 • 11min
The Evolution of a Cryptocurrency Exchange: From Startup to Public Company
02:58:24 • 4min
Navigating Challenges in Cryptocurrency
03:02:30 • 27min
Exploring Early-Stage Crypto Investment and Real-World Applications
03:29:01 • 6min
Navigating the Crypto Investment Landscape
03:34:48 • 10min
Exploring Infrastructure and High-Frequency Trading in Crypto
03:44:31 • 3min
Emerging Dynamics in Crypto
03:47:50 • 9min
A Chaotic Day in Cryptocurrency
03:56:38 • 3min
Innovations in Decentralized Social Networking
03:59:12 • 4min
The Future of Consumer Cryptocurrency and Stable Coin Integration
04:02:49 • 3min
Decentralized Funding and Social Networks
04:05:35 • 12min
Revolutionizing Bitcoin Loans: Security and Affordability in Crypto Lending
04:17:10 • 4min
Lava: Revolutionizing Bitcoin Loans
04:21:24 • 4min
Navigating Competition in the Cryptocurrency Landscape
04:24:56 • 2min
Navigating the Crypto Wallet Landscape
04:27:17 • 11min
The Resilient Crypto Scene in San Francisco
04:38:05 • 2min

Read Write Own
Building the Next Era of the Internet
Chris Dixon
In 'Read Write Own,' Chris Dixon argues that the dream of an open, decentralized internet can be saved through blockchain technology. He describes the internet's evolution through three eras: the 'read' era, where early networks democratized information; the 'read-write' era, where corporate networks democratized publishing; and the current 'read-write-own' era, or web3, where blockchain networks grant power and economic benefits to user communities. Dixon provides a clear and compelling vision for a better internet, distinguishing blockchain's potential from cryptocurrency speculation and offering a playbook for navigating and building the future of the internet.

Network State
Balaji Srinivasan

The PayPal wars
Battles with Ebay, the Media, the Mafia, and the Rest of Planet Earth
Eric Jackson
This book offers a lively, blow-by-blow account of PayPal's death-defying beginnings and ferocious battles. It details how Elon Musk and Peter Thiel joined forces, the attempts by organized crime to ransack PayPal, and the fierce opposition from government bureaucrats and regulators. The book highlights the company's struggles, including its brink of insolvency and the eventual turnaround by Thiel and his team. It also warns about the hostile modern business environment and the threats posed by regulators, lawyers, and lobbyists to American entrepreneurship.
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- (01:07) - Balaji Srinivasan is an American entrepreneur and investor known for his roles as former CTO of Coinbase and general partner at Andreessen Horowitz. He co-founded several companies, including Counsyl, Earn.com, and Teleport, and authored The Network State, a book on building decentralized digital communities. Srinivasan holds multiple degrees from Stanford University and is an active angel investor in technology and crypto startups.
- (27:00) - Alon. @a1lon9 is the co-founder of Pump.fun, a Solana-based platform that enables users to create and trade meme coins instantly. Launched in January 2024, Pump.fun has facilitated the creation of over 6 million tokens and generated significant revenue through transaction fees. They have been a vocal figure in the crypto community, advocating for the democratization of token creation while addressing criticisms regarding the platform's role in speculative trading.
- (42:07) - Katie Haun is the founder and CEO of Haun Ventures, a $1.5 billion crypto-focused venture capital firm. A former federal prosecutor, she led high-profile investigations into the Mt. Gox hack and Silk Road case, and created the DOJ’s first cryptocurrency task force. Haun previously served as a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz and was the first independent board member at Coinbase.
- (59:11) - Chris Dixon. Chris is a general partner at Andreessen Horowitz and founder of a16z crypto, overseeing over $7 billion in Web3 investments. He previously co-founded SiteAdvisor (acquired by McAfee) and Hunch (acquired by eBay), and was an early investor in companies like Coinbase and Oculus. Dixon authored Read Write Own (2024), a book advocating for a decentralized internet.
- (01:29:16) - Kyle Samani. Kyle is the co-founder and managing partner of Multicoin Capital, a thesis-driven investment firm specializing in cryptocurrencies, tokens, and blockchain projects. Before Multicoin, he founded Pristine, a health IT startup acquired by Upskill. Samani holds degrees in Finance and Management from NYU Stern and is recognized for his technical analysis and thought leadership in the crypto space.
- (01:42:52) - Ben Pasternak. Ben is an Australian tech entrepreneur who gained early recognition for creating the viral game Impossible Rush and later co-founding the social apps Flogg and Monkey. At 15, he became one of the youngest tech founders to secure venture capital funding. He used to be the CEO of SIMULATE, a food technology company known for its plant-based chicken nugget alternative, NUGGS, which has raised over $57 million from investors including Alexis Ohanian and Jay-Z.
- (01:58:03) - Tom Schmidt. Tom is a General Partner at Dragonfly Capital, focusing on early-stage Web3 and crypto investments. He previously led product at 0x and held product management roles at Facebook and Instagram. Schmidt holds B.S. and M.S. degrees in Computer Science from Stanford University and has advised companies like Audius and Betty Labs.
- (02:15:01) - Konstantin Richter. Konstantin is the founder and CEO of Blockdaemon, a leading blockchain infrastructure provider for node management, staking, and wallet services. Before founding Blockdaemon in 2017, he held roles at Deutsche Telekom and Nokia, and built several SaaS platforms with successful exits. Under his leadership, Blockdaemon has raised over $400 million, reaching a $3.25 billion valuation, and serves major financial institutions including JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, and Citi Ventures.
- (02:29:06) - Luca Netz. Luca (born Luca Schnetzler) is the CEO of Pudgy Penguins, an NFT brand he acquired for $2.5 million in April 2022. A former e-commerce entrepreneur, he revitalized the project by expanding into physical toys, selling over 1.5 million units through major retailers like Walmart and Target. Netz also launched the PENGU token on Solana and developed Pudgy World, aiming to establish Pudgy Penguins as a leading Web3-native IP brand.
- (02:44:27) - Dylan Abruscato. Dylan is the Emmy-nominated founder of Crypto: The Game (CTG), a viral crypto survival game blending elements of Survivor and Squid Game. Launched in 2023, CTG gained traction for its social gameplay and was acquired by Uniswap Labs in 2024. Prior to CTG, Abruscato held marketing roles at HQ Trivia, Uber, and Postmates, and began his career at Saturday Night Live.
- (02:59:10) - Brian Armstrong. Brian is the co-founder and CEO of Coinbase, the largest U.S.-based cryptocurrency exchange, which he launched in 2012 after working at Airbnb and Deloitte. A Rice University graduate with degrees in computer science and economics, he has also founded GiveCrypto.org and NewLimit, a biotech startup focused on extending human healthspan through epigenetic reprogramming. Under his leadership, Coinbase went public in 2021 and now serves over 100 million users globally.
- (03:30:22) - Soona Amhaz. Soona is the founder and managing partner of Volt Capital, a venture firm investing in early-stage crypto startups like Nansen, Magic Eden, and LayerZero. Prior to Volt, she co-founded Token Daily and worked at Alation, with a background in engineering from the University of Michigan. Recognized in Forbes 30 Under 30, Amhaz is known for her contrarian investment approach and active participation in the crypto community.
- (03:45:24) - Mert Mumtaz. Mert is the co-founder and CEO of Helius, a Solana infrastructure company providing developer tools like RPCs and APIs to streamline blockchain app development. Previously a software engineer at Coinbase, he identified inefficiencies in blockchain tooling and launched Helius in 2022 to address them. Known for his outspoken presence on Crypto X, Mumtaz is a prominent advocate for Solana, often engaging in technical debates and challenging misconceptions about the network.
- (03:59:29) - Dan Romero. Dan is the co-founder and CEO of Farcaster, a decentralized social protocol designed to give users control over their identity and data. Before founding Farcaster in 2020, he was Vice President of Operations at Coinbase, where he joined as employee #20 and helped scale the company through its early growth. Romero is also an active angel investor in startups like Linear, Eight Sleep, and TipTop.
- (04:16:36) - Shehzan Maredia. Shehzan is the founder, CEO, and CTO of Lava, a Bitcoin-native lending platform that enables users to borrow dollars while retaining full self-custody of their BTC. Previously, he worked as an engineer at Google and earned degrees in Electrical Engineering, Computer Science, and Math from Duke University. Under his leadership, Lava raised a Series A co-led by Khosla Ventures and Founders Fund, and introduced innovations like seedless self-custody, Discreet Log Contracts (DLCs), and Lava Free Pay for gasless blockchain transactions.
- (04:27:00) - Brandon Millman. Brandon is the co-founder and CEO of Phantom, a leading self-custodial crypto wallet initially built for Solana and now supporting Ethereum and Polygon. Before founding Phantom in 2021, ...