
Base Layer
Base Layer will be providing insights from founders and investors in the base layer of cryptoassets. Simplifying complex projects and the technology being developed, from interoperability to relayers and more - who is building the future, why are they and how are they doing it.
Latest episodes

Mar 4, 2022 • 26min
Base Layer Episode 233: Matty Taylor from Solana Labs on the evolution & importance of hackathons in Solana
What a great show! Matty joins me to discuss how Solana has been able to grow with the use of some of the most exciting and involved hackathons in digital assets. We also discuss their use of "hacker houses" which aim to help developers learn key coding languages in Solana development. Lastly, we discuss Riptide, their newest hackathon that already has THOUSANDS of founders submitting their newest ideas.

Feb 10, 2022 • 25min
Base Layer 232: Michael Kong, CEO of Fantom Foundation on what's been driving interest in this Layer 1 blockchain
Michael joins us for a great dive in Fantom which, according to Michael, is a high-performance, scalable, and secure smart-contract platform. It is designed to overcome the limitations of previous-generation blockchain platforms. Lachesis, its revolutionary aBFT consensus mechanism, allows Fantom to be much faster and cheaper than older technologies, yet extremely secure. We learn why DeFi developers like Andre Cronje (known from Yearn Finance and other notable projects) have been spending time here building and much more.

Feb 2, 2022 • 18min
Base Layer Episode 231: Brian Flynn, Co-Founder of Rabbithole on building the resume of Web3
Brian joins me on Base Layer to discuss one of the most interesting projects in the digital asset ecosystem currently, Rabbithole. In this portal, one learns how to use varying functions in digital assets, from staking digital assets on DeFi platforms to buying your first ENS (Ethereum Name Service). A user goes on "quests," and as they do, they essentially build a reputation badge that can be used for entry into DAO's to show they are knowledgeable and capable participants. A must listen!

Jan 28, 2022 • 41min
Base Layer Episode 230: Sergey Nazarov, Co-Founder of Chainlink on Web3's path to dominance
Always great to have Sergey join me on the show to talk about Chainlink's role in various sectors, whether DeFi, Gaming, and in this case, Web3. This has been a topic of heated exchanges between those in digital assets and those defending Web2, such as the founder of Twitter. Sergey discusses how and why Web3 will evolve to become the dominant force, looking at historical perspectives as key indicators of future success. We also discuss the role out of CCIP (Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol) and this concept of the "truth machine".

Jan 20, 2022 • 29min
Base Layer Episode: 229 YGG SEA, the First sub-DAO of YGG, Bringing Players in Southeast Asia into the Metaverse
Three leading YGG SEA executives - Evan Spytma, CEO & Co-Founder, Irene Umar, Co-Founder and Indonesian Country Manager, and Daniel Wang, Chief Investment Officer join me for a conversation about their mission of creating one of the largest and most sustainable P2E virtual economies in the world. YGG SEA provides a bridge between games and players who do not have the means to purchase NFTs. Their investment philosophy is focused on scholars – they invest in games that are suitable for scholars, providing them with the opportunity to play these games and earn a living wage. Learn more in the episode!

Dec 28, 2021 • 32min
Base Layer Episode 228: Krystal Yang Founder of Ignite Tournaments on the World's First Play-to-Earn Mobile Esports Tournament Organization Platform
Krystal Yang joins me for a conversation about her journey to founding Ignite Tournaments, one of Arca Endeavor's investments. Ignite Tournaments is a tournament layer platform that sits above a native blockchain game deployed in mobile format. The platform combines esports tournament organization, streaming services with instantaneous payouts in crypto and NFTs, and provides play-to-earn functionality to any game. Come learn more about Ignite Tournaments and Krystal's accomplishments in the mobile gaming world!

Dec 10, 2021 • 23min
Episode 227: Fvckrender, from Lebron to Dior, what it's like for one of the most sought after NFT artists
It's been a while! A lot of shows coming out soon, so be on the lookout. Today we put out a show we recorded with Fvckrender, one of the most sought-after NFT artists today. Has worked with clients like Lil Nas X, Lebron James, Puma, Christian Dior, and Spotify, while being featured at Christie's and Sotheby's. We delve into his background as well, being self-taught, a high school dropout that used to be a waiter, and would work on digital art as a hobby to becoming iconic today. Enjoy!

Nov 11, 2021 • 36min
Base Layer Episode 226: Peter Ing, Founder of BlockchainSpace on enabling payments in the Play-to-Earn Ecosystem
Peter Ing joins me for a conversation about his past experiences and his journey to founding BlockchainSpace, one of Arca Endeavor’s investments. Blockchain Space is a gaming accounting and payments software firm that provides player management and in-game financing tools. Peter has 15 years of experience in FinTech and remittance firms, and has been a key ambassador of Axie Infinity for the last two years allowing him to build BlockchainSpace with key insights into the industry. Come learn more about it on the show!

Oct 29, 2021 • 26min
Base Layer Episode 225: Nick Emmons, Co-Founder of Upshot on Decentralized Sources of Truth
Nick joins me for a fascinating discussion on Upshot which is a question and answer protocol. It leverages a new field of mechanism design called peer prediction to incentivize people to answer questions honestly. Its purpose is to reliably and efficiently pair honest answers to questions. This enables and improves a number of exciting use cases such as efficient price discovery for esoteric assets, decentralized insurance, decentralized governance, content curation, and more. Find out more here.

Oct 15, 2021 • 25min
Base Layer 224: Carson Cook, Founder of Lattice on creating the Bloomberg Terminal for Digital Assets
Carson, a multi-time founder, joins us on Base Layer to discuss all the things they are building at Lattice, Arca Endeavor's second investment. Lattice brings the Bloomberg "RFQ" function (request for quote) to the world of digital asset trading, which is aiming to optimize price discovery and removal of human error. This should be a pivotal moment in the maturation of the asset class. Come learn more about it on the show!