Epicenter - Learn About Blockchain, Ethereum, Bitcoin And Distributed Technologies

Web3’s decentralisation is currently limited to smart contracts as they can be verified on-chain. However, until scalability and UX become on par with that of Web2, the only realistic way for crypto to reach mass adoption is threw off-chain dApps. This creates the premise for a security bottleneck in the form of centralised APIs used for on-chain querying. Mel Project aims to expand on-chain security and decentralisation (consensus) to off-chain apps, basically achieving off-chain composability through trustless light clients. Earendil, the backbone of their ecosystem, designed to resist ISP-level censorship, is a decentralized anonymous communication and payment network that enables autonomous applications and true P2P protocols.Topics covered in this episode:Eric’s background and founding Mel ProjectWhy Ethereum came shortIs Infura a security bottleneck?Liberating markets (and the Internet)Light clients and how Mel Project tackles themUse casesSmart contracts on Mel ProjectScaling the ‘world computer’Mel Pr

One of the OG flag bearers for decentralisation, Gnosis initially set out to build a prediction market on Ethereum. However, unlike the vibrant ecosystem of today, the early Ethereum days were barren. As a result, Gnosis team decided to build out their own infrastructure and tooling to suit their needs. Before long, tools such as Gnosis Safe, Zodiac, etc. were quickly adopted by the entire industry. Nowadays, since the foundation has been tried and tested, Gnosis 3.0 aims to focus on improving consumer dApp UX in order to facilitate widespread adoption.Topics covered in this episode:Gnosis’ background and visionGnosis 3.0Gnosis DAOCapital allocation managementHow Gnosis Pay revolutionizes payment railsThe ‘Baguette Conundrum’: privacy & regulatory compliance for on-chain paymentsThe future of the EVM vs. modularityWould Gnosis shift to an L2 architecture?Episode links:Friederike Ernst on TwitterGnosis DAO on TwitterGnosis Chain on TwitterGnosis Pay on TwitterSafe on TwitterCoW Swap on TwitterSponsors:Gnos

We couldn’t miss EthCC 7, nor the chance to chat with Vitalik Buterin about Ethereum’s status quo as an L1 amidst the plethora of L2s competing for market share, and what challenges will most likely arise along the way (e.g. staking decentralisation).Tune in for a captivating discussion on the importance of decentralisation as a last stand of human empowerment in the current geopolitical context and how it could positively impact AI's trajectory. Topics covered in this episode:Types of Ethereum ‘hardnesses’ (sic)The L1 status quoStaking decentralisation & block buildingNon-financial crypto applicationsAccount abstraction & interoperabilitySolana & Bitcoin ecosystemsDeSci, biotech & longevityGeopoliticsEthereum nation state?The impact of AIDo not go gentle into that good nightEpisode links:Vitalik Buterin on TwitterEthCC on TwitterEthereum on TwitterSponsors:Gnosis: Gnosis builds decentralized infrastructure for the Ethereum ecosystem, since 2015. This year marks the launch of Gnosis Pay— the w

One of the bluechip DeFi projects and backbone of Ethereum liquidity markets, Aave has recently announced their V4 upgrade proposal, which aims (among others) to unify crosschain liquidity.We were joined by Stani Kulechov, founder & CEO of Aave, to discuss the DeFi (r)evolution since ETH Lend to Aave V4, expanding to non-EVM chains and potentially even building a self-sovereign chain. Topics covered in this episode:The evolution of AaveAave V3 risk management & MakerDAO feudAave V4Unified liquidity layer & risk pricingGHO stablecoinHow the unified liquidity layer improves UXRWA & liquidation strategies in Aave V4Expanding to non-EVM networksBuilding a self-sovereign chainAave’s role in the future of DeFiHow stablecoins will evolveDeFi institutional adoptionFuture roadmapEpisode links:Stani Kulechov on TwitterAave on TwitterLens Protocol on TwitterSponsors:Gnosis: Gnosis builds decentralized infrastructure for the Ethereum ecosystem, since 2015. This year marks the launch of Gnosis Pay— the wor

It is one thing to invest in early stage companies, but to do so in a nascent industry that constantly reinvents and rediscovers itself is a whole different venture. Richard Muirhead co-founded Fabric Ventures in 2012 around the thesis of supporting the Open Economy. While at first this meant investing in Bitcoin-related projects, once Ethereum was announced, a new horizon unveiled, filled with tremendous potential. Since then, the Open Economy thesis was adapted to match technological breakthroughs, and it is now centered around artificial intelligence, distributed computing and self sovereignty (over both fungible, as well non-fungible assets).Topics covered in this episode:Richard’s background and how he founded a crypto VCFabric Ventures’ thesisHow the AI thesis evolvedUser-generated AIOn-chain autonomous agentsUpcoming DeFi innovationsWeb3 trends that took Richard by surpriseMissed opportunitiesThe impact of crypto liquidity & market cycles on VC investingHow to vet projects in early investment phase

In a world constantly torn by social division amplified by polarizing scissor statements throughout social media, Taiwan conducted a social experiment aimed at strengthening social unity while also embracing diversity. Plurality details how Taiwan’s Digital Minister Audrey Tang and her collaborators achieved inclusive, technology-fueled growth that harnessed digital tools to provide an antidote to information chaos and warfare. The open-source book is living proof that present global challenges can be solved through democratic solutions that embody a decentralised ethos.We were joined by Audrey Tang and Glen Weyl, co-authors of Plurality, to discuss the social dynamics they studied and how technology can be used to unite rather than divide.Topics covered in this episode:How Audrey & Glen met and Plurality’s genesisAudrey’s journey from civic hacker to Taiwan’s Digital Affairs MinisterHow democracy is perceived around the worldEstablishing a co-creating mentalityScissor statements and how to avoid division

As more and more L2s launch promising to scale Ethereum, they end up competing for the same market share, userbase and liquidity. Apart from this harsh reality, crosschain interactions should be as seamless as possible in order to bridge different L2 ecosystems. Polygon envisions a scalable future in which various zero knowledge rollups post their proofs on an aggregation layer before settling on Ethereum, thus lowering latency and transaction costs as crosschain interactions take place expeditiously, without involving the L1 mainnet.We were joined by Sandeep Nailwal & Brendan Farmer, to discuss Polygon’s aggregation layer and how it aims to solve the current fragmentation of Ethereum L2 scaling solutions.Topics covered in this episode:Polygon’s ZK expansion and the acquisition of Mir ProtocolPolygon’s aggregation layerBlock building between different L2sShared sequencing & asynchronous sequencingSecurity guarantees of the aggregation layerSequencer decentralisation & censorship resistanceChains u

In a world where a handful of (centralised) entities hold the majority of staked Ethereum (either directly or via delegation), the network’s decentralisation and security might be in peril. While there are multiple proposals being discussed to address this pressing matter, from reducing issuance after a certain breakpoint (~30% of total ETH being staked) to introducing more severe slashing for colluding entities, education and guidance remain paramount. EthStaker is a community led project whose goal is to guide, educate, support and offer resources for stakers, in order to lower the barrier of entry for solo stakers.We were joined by Superphiz & Nixorokish, to discuss the current Ethereum staking landscape and what challenges need to be addressed to ensure the network’s decentralisation and security.Topics covered in this episode:Superphiz’ & Nixorokish’ backgroundsEthereum staking evolutionStaking optionsLiquid stakingCentralization risksIncentivizing solo stakingLowering ETH issuance proposal &

One could argue that psychedelic research has experienced a similar journey as crypto, in the sense that decentralised communities bound together to fund research where centralised entities refuse to do so. One of the greatest hurdles in modern science is access to research funding, and DeSci aims to provide a solution through decentralised crowdfunding. In addition, IP rights are incontestably attributed with the help of blockchain technology, as they cannot be altered at a later date. However, as the human mind is unique and moulded by each individual’s life story, establishing a causal relationship between consumption and their beneficial or detrimental effects can be extremely biased.We were joined by Dima Buterin & Paul Kohlhaas, to discuss the vast subject of psychedelics (especially in relationship to trauma), how research has progressed and how decentralisation pushes the field forward (DeSci).Topics covered in this episode:Dima’s & Paul’s backgroundsDiscovering psychedelicsDealing with trauma

The approval of Ethereum spot ETFs sent shockwaves through the industry as policymakers pivoted abruptly from threatening to veto FIT21 bill, to a pro-crypto discourse. One could say their hand was forced by the imminent US elections, but Ethereum is now officially classified as a commodity, nonetheless. As the regulatory hurdle seems, for the time being, surpassed, one should not forget the values promoted by the crypto movement from the get-go: decentralisation and permissionlessness. However, everyday users tend to overlook these aspects in favour of a more streamlined user experience. As technology evolves and scaling solutions mature, better UI & UX represent crucial goals in the race for end user adoption.Topics covered in this episode:Crypto regulations: FIT21 & Tornado Cash trialEthereum spot ETFIs Ethereum a commodity or a security?Scaling solutions & end user adoptionThe importance of decentralisationHow Web3 lowers barriers of (permissionless) competitionRegulatory and legal hurdlesEduc

The massive success of the recently approved spot Bitcoin ETF showed tremendous interest from large institutional players. Even despite negative takes in public appearances, behind the curtain, more and more ‘smart money’ accumulate $BTC, either directly or through ETF shares. The same is to be expected for Ethereum, yet uncertainty still looms due to its proof-of-stake consensus model and, ultimately, staking yield. While crypto natives quickly embraced both ETH staking as well as liquid staking, institutions could not justify the higher risk profile and lack of regulatory compliance. Alluvial and Liquid Collective seek to change this and provide ultrasound infrastructure for enterprise-grade security in liquid staking. Topics covered in this episode:Mara’s backgroundETH 2.0 and the current staking landscapeLiquid CollectiveETH ETF and staking concernsThe risks of adjusting staking emissionsRestaking and new opportunitiesInstitutional staking and risk optimizationEpisode links:Mara Schmiedt on TwitterAlluvia

5 years, 20 Grants, 3715 projects crowd-funded and over $60M raised towards public goods funding, from 4.2M unique donations. Gitcoin’s headline numbers are indicative of the massive success their quadratic funding (QF) and public goods funding models (PGF) have seen over the years. With Gitcoin 2.0, crowd-funding is further decentralised, Allo Protocol being open-source and permissionless: any ecosystem treasury can create their own Gitcoin Grants program to help their community fund what matters to them.Topics covered in this episode:Kevin’s background and Gitcoin’s journey so farThe utility of Gitcoin PassportGitcoin Grants sybil protection dilemmaPublic goods & capital allocationQuadratic funding (QF) & retroactive public goods funding (RPGF)New allocation models introduced by Gitcoin 2.0$GTC token utility & decentralising Allo ProtocolThe current landscape of DAOsEpisode links:Kevin Owocki on TwitterGitcoin on TwitterGitcoin Governance ForumsSponsors:Gnosis: Gnosis builds decentralized infras

The initial scaling roadmap for Ethereum featured execution layer sharding. However, the rapid advancements of layer 2 scaling solutions in general, and zero knowledge proofs in particular, caused a restructuring of the original plan. The reason was that rollups would have required less changes made to Ethereum’s base layer, hence lower risks. On the other hand, Near Protocol was designed from the ground up as a sharded system, capable of withstanding billions of transactions simultaneously, without sacrificing decentralisation or security.Topics covered in this episode:Illia’s & Alex’s backgroundsSharding and blockchain scalabilityChallenges of building a sharded blockchainNear namespaceShard security & validator samplingStateless validation and data availabilityState witnesses and chunk producersBlock productionShards vs. RollupsHow Near could further improveLeaderless chunk productionChain abstractionEpisode links:Illia Polosukhin on TwitterAlex Skidanov on TwitterNear Protocol on TwitterSponsors:G

Long regarded as an impending black swan, Tether has successfully weathered out the contagion and bank runs caused by Luna’s collapse in the depths of the 2022-2023 bearmarket. Since then, a large portion of Tether’s reserves has been shifted to treasury bills, which are the closest dollar proxy, positioning Tether among the top 20 holders of T-bills, worldwide. However, navigating the Tether FUD was not the first rodeo for Paolo Ardoino, as he has also previously led Bitfinex, which successfully recovered after a $72M hack, back in 2016. The worldwide adoption of USDT, especially in emerging markets and developing economies, serves as a testament to Tether’s commitment to create a product with tangible real-life applications.Topics covered in this episode:Paolo’s backgroundHow Bitfinex succeededDEX vs. CEX UXEntrepreneurship and company cultureFounding Tether and its use casesExpanding Tether’s cross-chain supportTether’s reserves and long-term visionStablecoin wars: BUSD & USDCDecentralized stablecoins

What started out as a plan to build prediction markets, Gnosis ended up building crucial Ethereum infrastructure and tooling. Safe is one of its many successes, which originated during the 2017 ICO mania, as a solution for managing the raised capital securely, via a multi-sig. Even back then, the multi-sig model was quickly adopted by the entire industry, as a gold standard for asset security. Smart accounts and ERC-4337 represent the next step towards mass-adoption, through achieving a Web2-like UX.Topics covered in this episode:Lukas’ background and how Safe was foundedBitcoin vs. Ethereum multi-sigsSmart accounts & ERC-4337Safe’s design phylosohpySafe CORE, SDK & APISafe wallet UXExpanding cross-chain supportSafe account recoveryOpSecSafe’s smart contract securityGnosis ecosystem evolutionEpisode links:Lucas Schor on TwitterSafe on TwitterGnosis DAO on TwitterGnosis Chain on TwitterGnosis Pay on TwitterSponsors:Gnosis: Gnosis builds decentralized infrastructure for the Ethereum ecosystem, since 201

One of the most important hurdles to mass adoption is represented by blockchain scalability, which also hinders the real-life utility of its numerous applications. While there are different solutions being experimented with, one should not overlook the importance of security and decentralisation. Saga introduces the concept of chainlets, interoperable Cosmos-based sovereign blockchains that share the security of Saga’s mainnet validator set. The majority of their parameters are fully customisable, allowing developers to tweak them towards their own needs. Saga’s main focus is building their very own Web3 gaming ecosystem, providing game devs the scaling needed to unlock their full potential and creativity.Topics covered in this episode:Rebecca’s background and Saga overview‘Infinite’ horizontal scalabilitySaga chainlets and their focus on blockchain gamingSaga validators and fee modelBuilding a gaming ecosystem. UGCValidator & infrastructure challengesSaga mainnet rollout$SAGA token launch and airdropTake

Classical, monolithic blockchains are inherently limited in their throughput due to their single-thread execution architecture. Modern VMs attempt to solve this issue through parallelisation being implemented from the get-go. Movement Labs employs the Move-VM to build a ZK L2 rollups on Ethereum, thus also deriving its security. Through parallel execution threads, Movement achieves a theoretical TPS of 160,000 while also ensuring sub-cent transaction fees.Topics covered in this episode:Impressions from ETH DenverRushi’s backgroundMove vs. SolidityEVM compatibilityParallelisation vs. intent-based transactionsSecurity and parallel state transitionsTransitioning from EVM to newer VMsBerachain’s approach to EVM-compatibilityMovement Labs’ tech stackDecentralising the sequencerMovement’s M1 and M2 chainsCelestia DA and the Dencun upgradeRestakingBitcoin L2sIBC-compatibility and USDC on MovementEthereum x Cosmos convergencedApps on MoveEpisode links:Rushi Manche on TwitterMovement Labs on TwitterNebular Podcast 'Et

Market makers help create more efficient markets and liquid order books, by positioning themselves on the receiving end of a trade that other market participants are unwilling to fill. Quantitative analysis is crucial in determining their position and size. Wintermute defines itself as a tech-first company that also became one of the largest spot market making firms in Web3. From angel investing in Web2, to market making in Web3, Yoann Turpin (co-founder of Wintermute) has a vast experience in both tech products & financial markets. He shares what differentiates good traders and how he approaches investing, trading and market making.Topics covered in this episode:Yoann’s background and his interest in tradingThe ever-changing trading landscapeWintermute’s genesisTrading vs. Investing vs. Market MakingWhat defines a good traderOn-chain trading vs. CEX tradingHow Wintermute succeededWintermute culturersync blockbuilderLongterm predictionsAI impactMisc. Learning new languagesEpisode links:Yoann Turpin on Twi

Credit is a widely used term, which could essentially be summarised as “more capital so you can do whatever you want”. In DeFi, there are numerous ways of getting exposure to an asset in a leveraged manner: from looping to perpetuals and margin trading, the possibilities are endless (especially when you also account for synthetic versions). Gearbox Protocol aims to create a universal, composable, on-chain ‘credit layer’, through credit account abstraction. This approach simultaneously addresses three concerns: liquidity, security and, ultimately, user experience (UX).Topics covered in this episode:Mikael’s and Ivan’s backgroundsComposable leverage explainedLeveraged stakingGearbox credit accountManaging smart contract riskQuotas and rate limitsLeveraged restakingGovernance and safety parametersScaling GearboxFee structureEpisode links:Mikael Lazarev on TwitterIvan on TwitterGearbox Protocol on TwitterSponsors:Gnosis: Gnosis builds decentralized infrastructure for the Ethereum ecosystem, since 2015. This year

While large language models (LLMs) are rather passive from an economic perspective on their own, AI agents offer a preview of what truly autonomous AI applications can achieve. Fetch.ai aims to create a platform for economic interactions in the AI economy, where participants can provide many different kinds of stake, ranging from purely financial, in the form of cryptocurrency tokens, to utility based, in the form of data sets that LLMs can be trained on. It thus creates a supply chain that links different actors of the AI economy.We were joined by Humayun Sheikh, co-founder & CEO of Fetch.ai, to discuss AI economic models and how LLMs can be integrated by agentic systems as a foundation for autonomous AI apps.Topics covered in this episode:Humayun’s backgroundFounding Fetch.aiMulti-agent systemsAutonomous economic agentBuilding a Cosmos based blockchainIntegrating ML with agent economyScalability & interoperabilityUse cases & partnershipsAI x crypto projectsIncentivising developersAI alignment pr