| Ticker | Direction | Speaker | Thesis | Time |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| LONG |
Kain Warwick
Founder, Synthetix / Infinex |
AI Agents are beginning to pay each other autonomously (e.g., Stripe integration, on-chain payments). Agents don't sleep and don't care about user interfaces; they care about programmatic liquidity. This creates a massive velocity of money for assets used as "gas" or "currency" between agents. Crypto rails are permissionless, making them the default rail for agent commerce over restrictive banking APIs. LONG. The intersection of AI and Crypto payments is the primary narrative for the next cycle. Agents may prefer stablecoins (USDC) over volatile assets, reducing value accrual to speculative tokens. | 28:32 | |
| LONG |
Luca Netz
CEO, Pudgy Penguins (Igloo Inc.) |
LayerZero is launching a blockchain ("Zero") capable of running on a Raspberry Pi while claiming higher performance than Solana, backed by Citadel. The next crypto cycle will be driven by AI Agents executing quadrillions of micro-transactions. Agents require extreme throughput and near-zero cost. If Zero delivers "Solana performance with Ethereum decentralization" (via lightweight hardware), it captures the AI Agent volume that Solana is currently priced for. LONG. It is a "new tech" play targeting the hottest narrative (AI Agents) with deep-pocketed backers (Citadel). Execution risk; "Ghost chain" syndrome if developers don't migrate from Solana/EVM. | — | |
| WATCH |
Luca Netz
CEO, Pudgy Penguins (Igloo Inc.) |
LayerZero's new chain targets the exact same value proposition as Solana (high speed, low cost) but with lighter hardware requirements. Solana's moat is its performance. If a new chain (Zero) offers better performance with lower hardware barriers (decentralization), capital may rotate out of SOL into the newer, higher-beta infrastructure play. WATCH. Monitor if AI Agent projects deploy on Zero instead of Solana. Solana's network effects and liquidity are deeply entrenched; "better tech" often fails against "better distribution." | — | |
| NEUTRAL |
Kain Warwick
Founder, Synthetix / Infinex |
Base (Coinbase's L2) removed social features (Farcaster integration) from its main app to refocus entirely on trading and financial utility. This is a "safe" corporate pivot to maximize short-term revenue (trading fees) rather than betting on a speculative social future. While financially prudent for quarterly earnings, it sacrifices the potential "super app" moat that social integration offered. NEUTRAL. Good for short-term financials, bad for long-term innovation/dominance. Competitors like Binance or Solana capture the "consumer crypto" market while Coinbase retreats to pure finance. | 48:59 | |
| LONG |
Kain Warwick
Founder, Synthetix / Infinex |
BlackRock launched a $2.2B tokenized treasury fund tradable on Uniswap via Uniswap X and explicitly acquired UNI tokens. Historically, institutions avoided DeFi governance tokens due to compliance fears. BlackRock buying UNI signals a regime shift where "blue chip" DeFi tokens become investable institutional assets, creating a new class of "Token Sinks" where large players buy and hold rather than farm and dump. LONG. Institutional accumulation creates a price floor and legitimizes the asset class. Regulatory crackdown on DeFi interfaces or KYC friction limiting volume. | 20:22 |