Talking Tokens

In this episode of Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn Melinek speaks with Amanda Cassatt, founder of Serotonin and the former CMO of Consensys, who played a foundational role in bringing Ethereum to market. Amanda shares how she entered the early Ethereum ecosystem, what it was like working alongside early builders, and how those experiences shaped her thinking on storytelling, distribution, and product-market fit for crypto projects today.They discuss the evolution of L1s, why a general-purpose chain like Ethereum would struggle to launch in today’s market, and how new L1s must differentiate through niches or built-in distribution. Amanda also talks through privacy tech, credible neutrality, and why marketing should feel like the “no-makeup, makeup look” to help people discover products naturally rather than forcing narratives.The conversation expands into institutional adoption, the influence of enterprises on Ethereum’s early growth, the certification and /corporatization of crypto, and how narratives get shaped (and reshaped) as the space matures. Amanda also shares her views on AI, digital homogenization, cultural flattening, and how individuals can preserve independence thought in a hive-mind world.Timestamps (00:00) - Why Ethereum is unique & why a general-purpose L1 would struggle today (00:40) - Amanda’s view on AI extraction vs “nuclear button” fears (01:26) - How Amanda entered Ethereum in 2015 and joined Consensys (02:37) - Bringing Ethereum, MetaMask, Infura & early tooling to market (03:57) - Why new L1s now require niches, advantages, or built-in distribution (05:25) - Cypherpunk values, privacy pools & modular privacy concepts (07:52) - Why most users shouldn’t need to understand backend tech (09:56) - How Serotonin thinks about marketing: matching tech to real user desire (12:56) - The “no-makeup, makeup look” & why good marketing shouldn’t feel forced (15:49) - Institutional adoption: the Enterprise Ethereum Alliance & early inflection points (18:24) - Narrative chasing vs conviction: why rebranding with every hype cycle fails (20:27) - How stablecoins changed product-market fit expectations for blockchains (26:24) - Crypto’s corporatization vs preserving credible neutrality and openness (32:08) - AI, homogenization & how to keep independent thought (38:57) - Amanda’s final advice: the only test is whether you lived the life you wanted You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you like the show, please let us know by leaving a review!Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141Follow us on X Jacquelyn: https://twitter.com/jacqmelinek Talking Tokens: https://twitter.com/_TalkingTokensFollow us on Instagram Talking Tokens: https://www.instagram.com/_talkingtokens/Note that this podcast is for informational purposes only and any views shared by anyone on the show are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have a direct or indirect financial interest in content mentioned in this episode.

In this episode of Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn Melinek speaks with Azeem Khan, Co-Founder of Miden, a new privacy-focused blockchain designed to bring configurable, institution-ready privacy to onchain activity.Azeem breaks down why public blockchains are far more open than people realize, how institutions think about visibility and copy-trading risk, and why privacy has become a prerequisite for real global adoption. He also discusses his founder journey from biotech and the entertainment industry to early crypto startups and how those experiences shape his approach to building trust, credibility, and long-term adoption. He also dives into his unexpected path through the music and entertainment industry, sharing how he worked on large-scale concerts and shows involving artists like Kanye West, Jay-Z, and other major performers. They also cover regional differences in crypto appetite, why many enterprises still hesitate, how Miden wants to fit into the broader Ethereum ecosystem, and why the next wave of blockchain users will arrive through distribution partners rather than retail onboarding.They also explore real-world use cases, emerging-market adoption, stablecoins, RWAs, and how privacy can evolve beyond the “North Korea vs transparency” framing that has dominated the industry.TimestampsHere’s the Spotify-style timestamp list for this episode:(00:00) - Intro (01:03) - Azeem’s story through biotech, Boston Marathon and his first startup (03:05) - Getting into crypto in 2012–2013 (04:11) - Early entrepreneurship, family story, and identity (05:20) - Why institutions need privacy to come onchain (07:02) - Why privacy tech didn’t exist during Bitcoin/Ethereum’s early years (08:43) - Balancing transparency and privacy (10:00) - Copy-trading, wallet visibility & risk (12:04) - Misunderstandings about privacy-focused blockchains (13:40) - Why full transparency is unrealistic for real-world finance (15:09) - How Miden works: architecture, ZK lineage & Polygon ties (17:17) - Engaging the Ethereum ecosystem & enterprise teams (18:30) - Why institutional adoption lags: talent, liquidity, decision-making (20:57) - U.S. vs Middle East vs Asia (23:06) - Credibility, integrity & building long-term trust (25:15) - Enterprise pipelines, warm intros & outbound strategy (27:12) - Bringing blockchain to the masses through distribution partners (28:35) - Why most chains still fail emerging-market use cases (30:53) - Speculation vs real utility: shifting the industry mindset (32:33) - Creating success stories to unlock global adoption (34:32) - Privacy hype cycles & how long it lasts (35:22) - Parallels between entertainment, branding & crypto (38:50) - Celebrity stories, crypto, and why most don’t understand the tech (40:59) - Fan engagement isn’t solved: why previous attempts failed (42:46) - RWAs, risk-based stablecoins, yield clarity (46:45) - Final advice: conviction, long-term thinking & ignoring noise You can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you like the show, please let us know by leaving a review!Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141Follow us on X Jacquelyn: https://twitter.com/jacqmelinek Talking Tokens: https://twitter.com/_TalkingTokensFollow us on Instagram Talking Tokens: https://www.instagram.com/_talkingtokens/Note that this podcast is for informational purposes only. Any views shared by anyone on the show are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have a direct or indirect financial interest in content mentioned.

In this episode of Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn Melinek speaks with David Phelps, Co-Founder of JokeRace, an onchain platform that wants to turn governance, incentives, and community engagement into lightweight, fun, and highly participatory experiences. David breaks down why governance has failed in most crypto communities, how JokeRace simplifies participation, and why real utility often comes from small, low-friction interactions rather than complex systems.They also discuss how communities can design better incentives, what JokeRace has learned from thousands of contests, and why the future of onchain engagement depends on experimentation, humor, and user-driven creativity. David also walks through his recent Base controversy, what he actually meant in his comments vs how it was interpreted online. He also talks about expectations placed on L2s, foundations, and application teams building in public.This episode is sponsored by Forgd. Thousands of Web3 projects leverage Forgd’s free tools to design smarter tokenomics, engage market makers on fair terms, plan listings strategically, and monitor liquidity after launch. Start using the Forgd platform for free, or sign up for white-glove advisory services, at Forgd.comTimestamps(00:00) - Intro (01:27) - Devconnect Buenos Aires and public-access events (02:08) - How someone buying substances introduced David to crypto (03:07) - Discovering programmable money and why it “changes everything” (04:13) - Bitcoin vs Ethereum and how Bitcoin creates value (07:04) - Stablecoins, USD dominance, and crypto’s internal contradictions (09:23) - Why DAOs failed and how that led to the creation of JokeRace (10:29) - Participation, incentives, and why governance must be fun (12:27) - Subjective prediction markets and competition inside JokeRace (15:32) - Tribalism, rivalry, and true community psychology (19:06) - Who actually uses JokeRace and how mainstream users onboard (21:36) - Governance failures, branding, and why DAOs aren’t entertaining (32:03) - The Base controversy: what David meant vs what people heard (35:09) - Why chains must be opinionated and focused, not “for everyone” (44:22) - Token launches, market makers, and structurally short deals (49:03) - David’s best advice on being online and embracing authenticity EssentialsYou can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you like the show, please let us know by leaving a review! Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141 Follow us on X Jacquelyn: https://twitter.com/jacqmelinek Talking Tokens: https://twitter.com/_TalkingTokens Follow us on Instagram Talking Tokens: https://www.instagram.com/_talkingtokens/ Note that this podcast is for informational purposes only and any views shared by anyone on the show are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have a direct or indirect financial interest in content mentioned in this episode.

In this episode of Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn Melinek speaks with Eunice Giarta, Co-Founder of Monad, a new blockchain that just launched on mainnet. Eunice explains Monad’s design philosophy, the team’s focus on distribution and decentralization, and why the public token sale with Coinbase represents a new approach to retail access.They also discuss Monad’s viral airdrop campaign, the team’s long-term vision for performance on EVM, and what the launch means for developers building DeFi, gaming, consumer apps, and new real-time experiences onchain.This episode is sponsored by Forgd. Thousands of Web3 projects leverage Forgd’s free tools to design smarter tokenomics, engage market makers on fair terms, plan listings strategically, and monitor liquidity after launch. Start using the Forgd platform for free, or sign up for white-glove advisory services, at Forgd.comTimestamps(00:00) - Why distribution and decentralization matter for Monad (00:17) - Introduction to Eunice Giarta & Monad’s launch week (01:42) - How the team prepared for mainnet and the Coinbase public sale (02:36) - Why Monad chose a public token sale model (03:10) - Day-1 validator distribution and network participation (04:18) - Rethinking token sales and reaching new audiences (05:39) - The viral airdrop: design, gamification, and community reaction (08:22) - Keeping new users engaged & building long-term community value (11:02) - Why launch another L1? Eunice’s differentiation argument (12:38) - Monad’s origin story and the idea of “Solana speed on EVM” (14:45) - How performance engineering shaped Monad’s architecture (17:21) - Competing or coexisting with Ethereum and Solana (19:47) - What will launch on Monad: DeFi, order books, gaming, betting (22:19) - Expected number of apps live at mainnet (22:57) - The roadmap for Monad (25:28) - How Monad changes design constraints for developers (27:11) - Expanding into payments, remittances & stablecoin infrastructure (29:57) - What healthy long-term ecosystem growth looks like (31:00) - Real-time settlement & long-term vision for blockchain (32:04) - Final advice from EuniceYou can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you like the show, please let us know by leaving a review! Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141 Follow us on X Jacquelyn: https://twitter.com/jacqmelinek Talking Tokens: https://twitter.com/_TalkingTokens Follow us on Instagram Talking Tokens: https://www.instagram.com/_talkingtokens/ Note that this podcast is for informational purposes only and any views shared by anyone on the show are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have a direct or indirect financial interest in content mentioned in this episode.

In a captivating discussion, John Nahas, Chief Business Officer at Ava Labs, dives into Avalanche's innovative scaling strategies and its multi-L1 approach. He highlights how dedicated chains can better serve institutional needs and the industry's struggle with clear on-chain applications. John explains the intricacies of token utility amidst regulatory scrutiny and why stablecoins are essential for adoption. He also sheds light on regional variances in blockchain execution, emphasizing Avalanche's commitment to increasing users and transactions while refining its narrative.

Ben Coverston, Founding Engineer at Temporal and cofounder of Harmonic, dives into the exciting advancements in Solana's blockchain. He discusses how Harmonic's open block-building system fosters a competitive marketplace for builders, making transactions faster and more efficient. Coverston shares insights on improving inclusion latency and the ambition of transforming Solana into an on-chain Nasdaq. He also reflects on lessons learned from Solana's early challenges and the potential for future growth, aiming for up to a million transactions per second while maintaining decentralization.

In this episode of Talking Tokenization, Jacquelyn Melinek sits down with Johann Kerbrat, SVP and GM of Crypto at Robinhood, and AJ Warner, Chief Strategy Officer at Offchain Labs, the team behind Arbitrum.The conversation explores how Robinhood is bringing U.S. equities onchain through tokenization, starting in Europe, and what that means for global investors. Johann explains how the initiative grew from Robinhood’s crypto division into a larger effort to make stocks, ETFs, and other financial assets tradeable onchain 24/7, while AJ discusses the infrastructure powering it on Arbitrum and how it connects to Ethereum for security.They discuss how tokenized equities can reduce settlement times, improve transparency, and unlock new use cases like lending pools and fractional investing. The two also touch on regulatory coordination, compliance frameworks, and when “tokenization” itself might disappear as everything financial moves to blockchain rails.Sponsored by Securitize, the proven leader in tokenized funds, equities, and private markets. Discover more at securitize.io.This episode is sponsored by Forgd. Thousands of Web3 projects leverage Forgd’s free tools to design smarter tokenomics, engage market makers on fair terms, plan listings strategically, and monitor liquidity after launch. Start using the Forgd platform for free, or sign up for white-glove advisory services, at Forgd.comTimestamps(00:00) - Intro (01:13) - What tokenization really means (02:27) - Stablecoins as crypto’s first large-scale tokenization success (03:20) - How Robinhood began exploring onchain equities (04:16) - Building for European users & why they started outside the U.S. (05:12) - Scaling from 2 assets to over 400 tokenized stocks and ETFs (06:18) - Robinhood plans for its own blockchain, “Robinhood Chain” (07:20) - AJ on Arbitrum’s role and the value of flexibility in blockchain design (09:00) - Supporting both public and private chains for compliance needs (10:13) - Why Ethereum remains the settlement layer of choice (11:35) - Making blockchain invisible to end users (12:46) - Lessons from stablecoins & how 24/7 trading changes market structure (14:10) - Regulatory challenges and why flexibility across jurisdictions matters (16:07) - Tokenized equities vs. other RWAs like real estate (17:18) - How users will benefit from instant settlement & fractional ownership (18:40) - Private market tokenization and the OpenAI, SpaceX model (20:23) - The path toward democratizing private equity access (22:00) - When tokenization becomes mainstream (and stops being a buzzword) (23:10) - Why Robinhood and Arbitrum see the next decade as onchain finance’s inflection point (25:42) - Final thoughts: collaboration, compliance, and scalabilityYou can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you like the show, please let us know by leaving a review!Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141Follow us on X Jacquelyn: https://twitter.com/jacqmelinek Talking Tokens: https://twitter.com/_TalkingTokensFollow us on Instagram Talking Tokens: https://www.instagram.com/_talkingtokens/Note that this podcast is for informational purposes only and any views shared by anyone on the show are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have a direct or indirect financial interest in content mentioned in this episode.

In this episode of Talking Tokens, Jacquelyn Melinek sits down with Torab Torabi, CEO of Move Industries, the team behind Move Network, a new blockchain ecosystem built on the Move language.Torab opens up about the challenges of rebuilding after Movement Labs’ internal fallout, how the company restructured, and why the new chapter is focused on transparency, community, and global accessibility. He shares insights into how Move Industries handled its market-maker incident, is working on regaining developer trust, and how it retained over 90% of its team through the transition.The discussion also explores how Move Network aims to serve the “unbanked” through mobile-first design, why RWAs and TVL metrics often miss the point, and how the company’s developer-first philosophy and new “Move University” initiative are preparing the next generation of builders.This episode is sponsored by Forgd. Thousands of Web3 projects leverage Forgd’s free tools to design smarter tokenomics, engage market makers on fair terms, plan listings strategically, and monitor liquidity after launch. Start using the Forgd platform for free, or sign up for white-glove advisory services, at Forgd.comTimestamps(00:00) - Intro (01:02) - From Movement Labs to Move Industries: What really happened (02:18) - The market maker fallout and how the team responded (03:25) - Binance investigation, buybacks & rebuilding community trust (04:50) - The emotional toll & decision to stay through the crisis (06:15) - Team resilience: 90% retention through uncertainty (07:50) - Advice from investors and industry peers during turmoil (09:30) - Lessons learned on transparency and rebuilding credibility (10:46) - Why the team sees “Move Industries” as a true fresh start (12:04) - The People’s Chain: banking the unbanked through mobile access (14:26) - Torab’s personal story: from the Bay Area to blockchain (17:10) - Designing real-world crypto use cases for underserved regions (19:02) - Why crypto needs its “Apple Pay moment” (20:36) - Overcoming UX barriers and gas fee limitations (22:22) - Targeting 100M users through better mobile design (25:01) - Building for younger, financially native generations (27:04) - How Move Network is positioning as a sovereign Layer-1 (28:25) - Challenges of Move language adoption and developer shortage (30:03) - Launching Move University to train new developers (32:07) - Why RWAs are overhyped and what metrics actually matter (34:12) - Vanity metrics, TVL inflation & measuring real onchain activity (36:09) - The velocity of money as a better health indicator for chains (38:22) - Developer-first initiatives and global activation hubs (40:20) - Move Alliance and financial alignment within the ecosystem (42:10) - Defining success for Move Industries’ next era (44:00) - Building “crypto that doesn’t feel like crypto” (46:02) - Final advice: resilience, relationships, and long-term thinkingEssentialsYou can subscribe to the podcast on Spotify, Apple or YouTube. If you like the show, please let us know by leaving a review!Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/0LOgWxIQ0NnNUD5eXsSuoZ Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/talking-tokens/id1743669141Follow us on X Jacquelyn: https://twitter.com/jacqmelinek Talking Tokens: https://twitter.com/_TalkingTokensFollow us on Instagram Talking Tokens: https://www.instagram.com/_talkingtokens/Note that this podcast is for informational purposes only and any views shared by anyone on the show are opinions, not financial advice. The host or guests may have a direct or indirect financial interest in content mentioned in this episode.

Shane Molidor, founder and CEO of Forgd, shares his expertise in tokenomics and market dynamics. He discusses the staggering 70% failure rate of token launches, often due to poor liquidity and founders' misunderstandings of market-making. Shane advocates for transparency and better standards in the industry, urging projects to prioritize fundamentals over hype. He highlights how Forgd is changing the game with data-driven insights, fostering healthier market practices, and guiding founders through the complex capital markets landscape.

In this discussion, Qiao Wang, founding partner at Alliance DAO and an early-stage crypto investor, delves into the evolving landscape of crypto startups. He emphasizes how the focus is shifting to real-world utility, particularly with stablecoins and AI-driven tools. Qiao shares insights on the resurgence of U.S.-based founders and highlights emerging trends in B2B cross-border payments. He also addresses the importance of staying niche before expanding globally and the role of AI in ensuring better product design and market strategies.