The Crypto Conversation

Plutus and Obsidian are the co-founders of Byzantion, the #1 NFT Marketplace on Stacks. Users can buy, sell, auction, and discover Bitcoin-Secured NFTs on the Byznation Universal Marketplace. Why you should listen Stacks is a layer-1 blockchain that connects to bitcoin and brings smart contracts to it and decentralized apps to it. Because Stacks enables smart contracts, it gives the ability to create NFTs and gives them the security of the bitcoin network. Provenance is key when it comes to art and the way to prove provenance for NFTs is through entries on the blockchain. To trust that a piece's provenance remains intact, you must tie it to the most secure blockchain you can, which is what Stacks does. The Stacks ecosystem is home to a passionate fast-growing community of builders and marketplaces such as Byzantion, a marketplace where users can collect NFTs such as Crash Punks and Megapont Apes. Supporting links Byzantion Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

TommyD is an award-winning multi-platinum selling music producer, songwriter, artist, DJ, and creator of 808 Whisky. He is the founder of TokenTraxx is a British tech company that uses Web3 tools to innovate how we all engage with music. Why you should listen TokenTraxx is built by musicians for the music community, providing a whole new way to create, curate and collect music. Token||Traxx provides a powerful opportunity for Creators to engage on every level with fans using NFT technology, whilst creating a whole new income stream. Those who have a good ear for music can become Curators and can earn from their ability to spot untapped potential by building brilliant playlists. And as you would expect from a music NFT market place; Collectors can search tracks, artists, and genres to build their NFT libraries which they can showcase to the community or trade on the open market. The TRAXX token sale is scheduled for the 14th March 2022. It will also provide holders with benefits and be used as an incentive for a platform use rewards program. Supporting links TokenTraxx Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Aera Force is a Venture DAO focused on web3 x climate projects. The DAO is made up of climate investors, founders, scientists and civic leaders investing in accelerating towards a regenerative world through web3. Why you should listen Aera Force is a Venture DAO focused on web3 x climate projects. Aera Force is a learning experiment co-founded by Gotham Labs, New York-based creator of the DreamDAO and Auckland-born global climate venture fund Aera VC founded by Derek Handley. The DAO is made up of climate investors, founders, scientists and civic leaders investing in accelerating us towards a regenerative world through web3. They're raising a 2000ETH fund and community to engage the world on our mission to back iconic ideas and teams building a brighter future. Aera Force is investing in new web3 frameworks, protocols and concepts to accelerate a regenerative future. Aera Force has teamed up with Kenneth Alexander to create 200 unique pieces for the Investment Ticket NFTs. The NFTs incorporate SolarPunk art – a movement which envisions how the future might look if we lived in harmony with nature in a sustainable and egalitarian world. Supporting links Aera Force Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Sandy Carter is SVP at digital identity platform Unstoppable Domains. The Unstoppable domain names are minted as NFTs and allow users to replace awkward cryptocurrency addresses with a single human-readable name that simplifies crypto transfers. The domains can also host decentralized websites, act as a chat ID and more. NFT Domains are user owned and controlled, and have no renewal fees. Why you should listen Unstoppable Domains is on a mission to return the power of the internet to people. To accomplish this, they are creating NFT domains that put users back in control of their data. These aren't just traditional domains, these are domains with superpowers. Supporting links Unstoppable Domains Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Andy Pickering is here with a weekly crypto market update where we look through the volatile world of Crypto Twitter to tease out the most important narratives and data points. Bitcoin is back to $42,000 and Ukraine is deploying a potent mix of crypto donations and an NFT drop in its war effort, with assistance from Elon Musk. Supporting links: Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

David Puth is CEO, and Kim Hamilton Duffy is Director of Identity and Standards at Centre, an open-source technology project launched by founding members Circle and Coinbase. Centre has launched a set of decentralized identity protocols designed to give users direct control over how, when, and where their personal information is shared when doing business in the crypto economy. Why you should listen: Verite is a set of open-source identity protocols, built to enable trust, transparency and interoperability within the crypto ecosystem. Verite's flexible architecture interacts with the increasingly open and interoperable world in which we live. Users will be able to custody their own credentials and maintain their privacy by sharing only the information necessary to verify a particular claim. Verite will enable the privacy-preserving issuance and validation of Know Your Customer (KYC) credentials, allowing users and organizations to validate their identity across the crypto ecosystem. Centre Consortium founding member Circle and launch partner Block, and a number of other leading crypto-focused companies have already announced their intention to develop products using Verite standard credentials. Supporting links: Centre Verite Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Zeb Rice is a Co-Founder and Partner at King River Capital, in Surrey Hills, Sydney where he leads investments in companies that are redefining key sectors of the economy across the US and Australia. His current focus areas include Web3 infrastructure, software as a service, eCommerce, and digital health. Why you should listen: King River invests in high-growth technology businesses that are solving critical problems in large markets. The fund invests in both equity and digital assets where they see compelling Web2 and Web3 opportunities. King River Capital has a new fund focused on Web3 opportunities, with plans to buy into fast-growing cryptocurrency related projects. "The next waves of innovation aren't traditional and the way they're funded isn't traditional either," says Zeb. King River Capital's current investments include the fast growing coms and social platform Discord, home to countless crypto communities, and Immutable, the Aussie start-up that is scaling Ethereum. Supporting links: King River Capital Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Robbie Heeger is President and CEO of Endaoment, the first fully on-chain 501(c)(3) tax-exempt public charity providing a wide range of philanthropic financial services. Crypto investors and orgs can use Endaoment to donate crypto to nearly any US nonprofit. Why you should listen: Endaoment accepts more than 150 different crypto assets as donations. Endaoment has experienced massive growth over the past year, including more than 100x growth in donations received and grants distributed. Its growth exemplifies a larger trend in crypto philanthropy in 2021, during which time cryptocurrency charity donations increased by nearly 600%. Supporting links: Endaoment Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Matthew Savare, a partner at the law firm Lowenstein Sandler, joins Andy to explore the important legal issues surrounding the use of someone's likeness in an NFT. Why you should listen: The state of the law regarding name, image, and likeness issues ("NIL" or right of publicity) was once described as a "haystack in a hurricane." For creators, developers, and brands seeking to incorporate any of these elements into their NFTs, the current state of affairs is even more chaotic and confusing. Matt joins Andy to explore the important legal issues surrounding the use of someone's likeness in an NFT. Supporting links: Haystack in a Hurricane Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Andy Pickering is here with a weekly crypto market update where we look through the volatile world of Crypto Twitter to tease out the most important narratives and data points. Bitcoin is back down to $38,500 as negative news headlines continue to impact the markets. The Queen and Justin Bieber both have COVID and Russia appears set to invade the Ukraine. Supporting links: Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Richerd is a professional NFT Degen, a smART contract artist, and the co-founder of Manifold. Manifold enables web3 creators to have true creative ownership, preserve on-chain provenance, and interoperate with all major NFT marketplaces. Why you should listen: Manifold Creator includes a powerful extension framework that allows creators to install blockchain "apps" into their creator contract. This allows creators to create products beyond just visual and audio NFTs and support features beyond just minting. Manifold Studio combines the power of a Manifold Creator Contract with a seamless user interface to mint your own NFTs with zero coding required. Manifold Studio allows creators to mint original high-quality NFTs while retaining true ownership and provenance of their work. Manifold is advocating for what's called creative sovereignty, the idea that as a creator, you have full ownership over your creative output. Supporting links: Manifold Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Milana Valmont and Mateusz Grzelak are the co-founders of KIRA, a financial hub connecting decentralized Web3 applications. Why you should listen: KIRA is a decentralized network secured by both cryptocurrencies and real-world assets at stake thanks to its proprietary Multi-Bonded-Proof-of-Stake (MBPoS) consensus mechanism. Positioned within the Interchain and Web3 ecosystems KIRA makes it safer and easier to gain access to decentralized financial applications and unlock the economic potential of your capital to generate yield. As part of the Web3 stack, KIRA enables value settlement between dApps and the largest interconnected networks in the cryptocurrency ecosystem. Supporting links: Kira Network Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Fran Strajnar is the co-founder of Techemynt, the issuer of the NZDS, a New Zealand Dollar (NZD) Stable Coin backed 1:1 with physical New Zealand Dollars in a cash and cash equivalent treasury managed by a New Zealand registered financial services provider. Guest: Fran Strajnar Why you should listen: NZDS was launched in March 2021 by Techemynt, a registered New Zealand Financial Services provider, using the FiatToken framework developed by Centre that is the basis for USD-Coin (USDC). New Zealand's currency is a leader in adaptability, resilience, and market trustworthiness. NZD is the 10th most traded currency globally. The NZDS stable coin offers cryptocurrency users the stability and utility of the New Zealand Dollar with the versatility of a cryptocurrency. The NZDS can be used through a variety of Ethereum wallets including Metamask. Once added to an Ethereum wallet, the NZDS token can be used for making payments and interacting with a variety of applications on the Ethereum blockchain network. An example of a decentralized application where NZDS can be used is on DFX, a stablecoin exchange, and finance platform. High yield is available for liquidity providers. The NZDS/USDC pool on the Automated Market Maker-based decentralized exchange, DFX, offers liquidity providers APYs of 10-25%. This is impressive given the average rate for 1-5 year term deposits in New Zealand is ~3%. The pool currently has US$4.2 million worth of assets locked into it by the DFX community. Supporting links: Techemynt Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Andy Pickering is here with a weekly crypto market update where we look through the volatile world of Crypto Twitter to tease out the most important narratives and data points. Bitcoin is back above $44,500 and firmly in an uptrend for the first time since November. Plus, the strange circumstances surrounding the theft of 120,000 Bitcoin from Bitfinex back in 2016. Heather Morgan, one of the two people arrested after the DOJ recovered the Bitcoin is a rapper who describes herself as an expert in social engineering. Supporting links: Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Phil Ingram is CMO of Lepricon, a community-governed games platform working to accelerate the blockchain gaming revolution. Guest: Phil Ingram Why you should listen: Lepricon is a blockchain-driven ecosystem of DeFi, games, and NFTs delivered on their gas-free Ethereum compatible side chain, Leprichain. Lepricon believe that the world of video games, from AAA titles for PC and console to the casual games you play on your phone, will be the first killer on-ramp to blockchain for mainstream audiences. Lepricon's mission is to provide the technology and know-how that enables mainstream game developers to incorporate blockchain into their games to improve player utility and experience. Key takeaway: While blockchain gaming and 'Play to Earn', is all the rage, it has limitations and does not appeal to traditional gamers. The real opportunity is when the gaming industry adopts blockchain. This monumental change will lead to player-run economies with tens of millions of players, not tens of thousands. However, for this to happen, the technology has to develop to meet the needs of the consumer. It has to be about the game, not blockchain. It's the experience that matters, not the technology. Technologies that allow AAA game developers to incorporate blockchain utility into their games will need to move beyond the ideology of DeFi, and the complex interplay of wallets and expensive NFT sales that count as the onboarding process. Players should not notice the difference when getting into a new game for the first time from any game they have played before, just the extra things they can do in their new player-owned economy. Supporting links: Lepricon Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Alex Svanevik is CEO of Nansen, an analytics platform for smart contract blockchains. Nansen combines on-chain data with a database of millions of wallet addresses. Nansen helps institutional and retail investors surface the signal from the noise. Guest: Alex Svanevik Why you should listen: Alex Svanevik is the CEO of Nansen. Nansen gives its users better understanding of the activity of different participants on a blockchain network. Using Nansen dashboards users can get unique insights into different sectors of the market such as DeFi and NFTs, such as what the smart money and biggest wallets are doing. Key takeaway: Blockchains represent radical transparency. Investors are able to get real-time direct access to what is happening in the markets, something that is not available in the traditional markets. This radical transparency has advantages and disadvantages. On the negative side, some entities would prefer to hide their movements, whether that be purchases, investments or trades, so there is a lack of privacy to some degree. On the positive side, this transparency creates a higher degree of trust, and we can see what other entities are doing on-chain. Supporting links: Nansen Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Alejandro Gutierrez is Co-Founder and Operations Lead at Defactor, an integration layer and suite of tools for traditional businesses to leverage Defi using the systems they already have in place. Why you should listen: Defactor is a bridge between decentralized and traditional finance. Defactor is an integration layer and suite of tools for traditional businesses to leverage Defi using the systems and processes which they already have in place. The platform enables asset originators to digitise their data and plug into the liquidity available through defi lending protocols. Defactor developed Springpad to help SMEs determine if DeFi is right for them. Springpad runs every quarter. Supporting links: Defactor Springpad Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Jessica Manins and Anton Mitchell are co-founders of Beyond a VR studio in Wellington, New Zealand. Beyond has worked with Weta Workshop, and now Flufworld, to create the Burrows, the 3D VR immersive environments for the Flufworld NFTs to live. Why you should listen: Concept designer Imery Watson (Lord of the Rings, Batman Begins, Sweeney Todd, and Guardians of the Galaxy) created the concepts for Flufworld Burrows. The Jessica and Anton and the Beyond team used a variety of tooling including the Unrreal Engine to evolve the concepts into 3D environments. iOS and Android apps will be released in February with the full VR experience to follow later this year. The top tier burrow is a collab with Snoop Dogg that features a nightclub and production studio. Supporting links: Beyond Burrows Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Paolo Ardoino is CTO at Bitfinex and Tether. Paolo and the team at Bitfinex Securities have worked with Blockstream and Nayib Bukele, President of El Salvador to create the Bitcoin Bond. This is a key component in El Salvador's Bitcoin strategy. Why you should listen: Bitfinex Securities is a unique way for the modern trader to access tokenized equities, bonds, and investment funds. iFinex Inc., the parent company of Bitfinex has entered into an agreement with the Government of El Salvador to create digitized financial instruments to promote the growth of the cryptocurrency sector in El Salvador. The $1 billion "Bitcoin Bond" will be issued on the Liquid Network. The $1 billion US raised will be split between a $500M allocation of bitcoin (BTC) and a $500M infrastructure spend for building out energy and Bitcoin mining infrastructure in El Salvador. Plus hear Paolo's favorite science-fiction, his opinions on the importance of the Lightning Network, and whether other nation states are poised to follow El Salvador's lead. Supporting links: Bitfinex Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Evan Cheng is co-founder at Mysten Labs. Mysten is building the foundational infrastructure to accelerate Web 3.0 adoption. The founding team recently left their positions at Facebook (Meta), where they developed Diem, Novi – Facebook's digital wallet, as well as highly composable blockchain language, Move. Why you should listen: It's early, but Web3 has arrived. Innovators are reimagining new kinds of products, services, and business models. The opportunities to leverage programmable assets and open, decentralized infrastructure are endless. But first, infrastructures must get out of the way, and developer tooling needs to be modernized. Mysten Labs is built to accelerate the adoption of web3. Under the assertion that true asset self-sovereignty will be the foundation of economics in the Metaverse, Mysten plans to unveil a new blockchain design allowing users to move NFTs across digital worlds while maintaining their functionality and history. In December, they drew $36M in funding from a16z and Coinbase Ventures. Supporting links: Mysten Labs Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Luis Molina is co-founder at Superalgos, a trading bots platform that aims to empower a decentralized trading community like WallStreetBets - but being able to mobilize within a couple of minutes. Why you should listen: Superalgos allows Algo traders to design, test, and deploy strategies using the #1 trading bots platform on GitHub.com. The Superalgos platform integrates crypto trading automation in a visual scripting environment accessible to all and optimized for developers. The leading design principles are maximum power and flexibility. The software is free and open-source, running on your premises so that you have complete control, no third-party risks, and no limitations. Superalgos is pioneering Decentralized Trading with an open network designed for dominance! The ecosystem's design of incentives turns Superalgos into an ever-evolving technology infrastructure capturing ever-increasing amounts of talent. Supporting links: Superalgos Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

On our most recent episode, we offered regular listeners the chance to win a Crypto Coral Tribe NFT. Did you win? Listen to find out! Crypto Coral Tribe is a creative hub and NFT project leveraging art and tech to protect the natural world - the Crypto Coral Tribe invests 50% of all proceeds in a community-led Impact Fund driving marine and wildlife restoration. Supporting links: Crypto Coral Tribe Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

The Crypto Coral Tribe is a creative hub and NFT project leveraging art and tech to protect the natural world - the Crypto Coral Tribe invests 50% of all proceeds in a community-led Impact Fund. Why you should listen: The Crypto Coral Tribe aims to have a positive impact on the world by driving marine and wildlife restoration, and ethical art. NFTs are a perfect vehicle for driving change. NFTs allow verifiable collaboration on an unprecedented scale. The inspiration for the Crypto Coral Tribe art and mission stems from nature. The founders have grown up on coasts all over the world and have a deep connection with the ocean. The NFT collection will be on Solana due to its close-knit community and energy efficiency. Solana consumes approx 1,837 Joules of energy per TX; less than the environmental impact of two Google searches. At the heart of the project lies the Impact Fund, an environmental investment fund. The IF will be seeded with 50% of mint proceeds and all future revenues. The goal is to use blockchain technology to create a community-led fund that proposes, discusses, and votes on how the investments are made. By holding a Crypto Coral NFT you will have a voice in how the capital is allocated. The IF's first pledge is to plant 3,000 corals across 3 continents. Coral reefs are expected to decline by up to 90% over the next 20 years. This is an existential threat to our global ecology. Supporting links: Crypto Coral Tribe Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Kieran Nolan is a Melbourne-based educational technologist and blockchain expert. Based on the concept of a DAO, Kieran is building a decentralized autonomous education system (DAES) - a dynamic open-source curriculum and learning network with financial literacy at the core as the only didactic part of the system. Why you should listen: Kieran has extensive industry experience, specializing in education, technology, and blockchain application in Melbourne. He worked with students at Wooranna Park Primary School and taught them how to use blockchain tech to create their own encrypted digital currency. Under the supervision of Nolan, the students created a new currency called "WoorannaCoin." Financial literacy is not taught in schools but it is one of the most important skills to learn. This will be the only didactic aspect of the DAES. Nolan says that we need to teach our kids not only numeracy and literacy but also financial and digital literacy, as well as coding and networks. Supporting links: The School of Bitcoin Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

JP Richardson is the CEO and co-founder of Exodus, one of the crypto ecosystems' most popular crypto wallets with over 2.3 million users. The Exodus team prides itself on providing a beautiful, delightful experience for its users. Why you should listen: Exodus aims to help in the mission to onboard half of the planet into crypto by 2030. As well as providing a seamless, delightful wallet experience, Exodus users can stake their assets from within Exodus, access a variety of dapps, and even trade Solana NFTs on the Magic Eden marketplace. Supporting links: Exodus Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

After a gloomy start to 2022 that saw the crypto markets in the doldrums, high inflation figures helped fuel a minor rally in the markets today. Why you should listen: Andy looks at the most important data points and narratives driving the crypto news cycle this week. Inflation in the US jumped at its fastest pace in nearly 40 years, a 7% spike from a year earlier that is increasing household expenses, eating into wage gains, and heaping pressure on the Federal Reserve. Supporting links: Prime XBT Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

We're revisiting the best Crypto Conversation podcast episodes of 2021. Jules Urbach is the CEO of OTOY, a leading cloud graphics company that is pioneering technology to redefine content creation and delivery. The work of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry is being cataloged in a new digital archive by OTOY. Why you should listen: RNDR, whose partners include Amazon, Google, Apple, and HBO, developed a cutting-edge platform based on underlying OTOY technology that allows individuals to create graphics at the same level as Hollywood studios. RNDR is revolutionizing visual effects by using the cloud to democratize GPUs and other rendering resources and also seeks to provide energy-efficient solutions for creating NFTs. Jules' best friend from childhood is Rod Roddenberry. Jules is working on a new digital archive of Star Trek creator Gene Roddenberry's legacy. The Roddenberry Archive will feature the flagship Star Trek series, original films, and spinoffs in a variety of formats including digital and holographic renderings, documents, images, models, and blueprints. The archive will capture deep 3D asset metadata from assets, images, blueprints, and models using RNDR, OTOY's blockchain GPU computing network. In order to capture original studio and physical assets at the highest level of photographic fidelity, the archive will leverage OTOY's LightStage Academy-Award-winning facial scanning service, generating the first comprehensive lighting and reflectance data set for future archival use. Iconic artist Mike "Beeple" Winklemann is joining the Roddenberry Archive project as a creative consultant, and, alongside legendary painter and illustrator Alex Ross, will help commemorate the Roddenberry Archive and cross-link it to both the Alex Ross and Beeple RNDR Archives. Supporting links: OTOY Prime XBT Jules on Twitter Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

We're revisiting the best Crypto Conversation podcast episodes of 2021. Tom Bilyeu is the CEO of Impact Theory and one of the world's leading motivational speakers. Tom is committed to pulling people out of the matrix. A successful multi-business entrepreneur, Tom's goal is to impact culture at scale. He plans to do this by building the next Disney. Impact Theory produces comics, graphic novels, books, television, film, interview talk-shows and more. Tom is building an NFT universe that will leverage the unique properties of Manga, Anime and blockchain to take Impact Theory to the next level. Why you should listen: Impact Theory is a revolutionary studio that produces original content on themes of empowerment, by bringing together some of the most talented creators, writers, and artists. The studio was started by CEO Tom Bilyeu, one of the planet's most successful entrepreneurs. Impact Theory distributes content across digital platforms including the emerging NFT space. The studio has built a loyal audience in the millions with over one billion social media impressions, and its catalog of content has over hundreds of millions of views. Supporting links: Impact Theory Matthew Ball on the Metaverse Prime XBT Tom on Twitter Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

We're revisiting the best Crypto Conversation podcast episodes of 2021. Bobby Lee is the Founder of Ballet Crypto, co-founder of BTCChina, and he is the author of a superb new book called The Promise of Bitcoin: The Future of Money and How It Can Work for You. Why you should listen: With a software engineering and computer science background, Bobby Lee has always been technologically inclined. So when his brother Charlie Lee introduced Bobby to Bitcoin in 2011, he understood its significance immediately. After dedicating himself to Bitcoin for the last ten years, Bobby has written a book that tells his story and explains why Bitcoin's journey has only just begun. Key takeaway: Bobby says that understanding and projecting the value of Bitcoin can be daunting - while the path is never a straight line, Bitcoin continues to grow in interest and appreciate in value. While Bitcoin is still working out its kinks - corporations and governments are likely to become more interested in Bitcoin, and interested in acquiring it as an asset. Supporting links: Prime XBT Bobby Lee Ballet Crypto Bobby On Twitter Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

We're revisiting the best Crypto Conversation podcast episodes of 2021. Sergey Nazarov is the co-founder of Chainlink where he is spearheading the smart contract oracle revolution. In this podcast, Sergey lays out his current thinking on DeFi (Decentralized Finance), how it improves on CeFi, the role of oracles in decentralized finance, and the fast and slow cases on what is needed for DeFi to go mainstream. Sergey says "decentralized finance is the thing that people want. They just don't know that they want it yet." Why you should listen: Sergey says the recent Robinhood r/Wallstreetbets phenomenon has injected new realizations into society's collective consciousness. People are waking up to the realization that in the legacy financial system - they don't have full control of their financial assets and trading accounts. And they have seen that the ability of the average person to participate in a system that they were told was fair can be taken away by those who hold the power. Sergey says that in the financial world if enough people believe in something, it starts to occur. If enough people decide to buy GameStop stock, something happens. If enough people decide to shift from one platform to another, something significant happens. Social media, digital platforms, and decentralized blockchain applications make fast collective action possible in new ways. DeFi is the system that people want. Sergey thinks it is only a matter of time before this becomes self-evident and people begin to move to DeFi applications at scale. Key takeaway: Sergey says the increasing mainstream adoption of DeFi will happen through the search for yield and the transparency and control of one's assets. With fiat interest rates low and the returns of DeFi much higher, eventually, even the legacy financial system is likely to build interfaces that flow value into DeFi to capture yield. Everybody wants to at least maintain their wealth. And so any place where they can do that will become popular, and eventually, there will be a tipping point. Sergey says there is a slow case and a fast case for how this evolves. "The slow case for DeFi is what we're experiencing now, as unbelievable as that sounds going from something like 20 billion to 40 billion in assets in DeFi over the last month." This is the slow case as only about 2.6% of the crypto value that could be in DeFi, is in DeFi. The slow case will be accelerated by events such as Robinhood. "It's slow because there is friction to using DeFi, but it will slowly be accelerated through better and better user interfaces. Eventually, someone will figure out a way to just make it seamless for people to interact with DeFi, and the tipping point will be reached." The fast case is a rapid succession of failures in the traditional financial system. This will create a fear of counterparty risk and a newfound cynicism about the solvency of traditional financial institutions. This would lead a majority of people to seek alternatives even if there is still some friction in the DeFi user experience. Supporting links: Prime XBT Chainlink Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

We're revisiting the best Crypto Conversation podcast episodes of 2021. Anthony "The Mooch" Scaramucci is best known for his short-lived, but very entertaining tenure as the White House communications director under President Trump. Anthony has had a long career in investment banking and he is the founder of Skybridge Capital, a global investment fund that has just launched the Skybridge Bitcoin fund. Why you should listen: Anthony says investors have a Eureka moment when they begin to understand that Bitcoin is a monetary network. "Just like there is a retail network, Amazon, a social network, Facebook, like there is a search network, Google. Bitcoin is the monetary network, and that makes it potentially very valuable. Think about where Apple or Amazon or Google were ten years ago, maybe that is where Bitcoin is at today." Key takeaway: Anthony says that Bitcoin is the only thing in our society right now, where if the demand goes up, there's no increase in supply. "When people want Tesla shares, there's a sausage factory in the back of Tesla. They're printing out Tesla shares. Do people want dollars? They're printing out dollars. If oil prices are going up, we're drilling for oil everywhere to meet that demand and produce more oil, but that can't be done for Bitcoin. And so that's the Eureka moment." Anthony says that President Trump was out of control. "He was a full-on liar. He added a trillion dollars to the deficit and his legacy will be that he made our country weaker, sicker, and poorer. He had malpractice on the pandemic and then on the way out the door, he tried to undermine our democracy." Anthony says that Joe Biden, "whether you like him or not, what does he represent as a pillar of Democratic party politics? He represents centrism. He represents core bureaucratic competence. To me this was a seismic change for good. Do I love the excess regulation? I don't. Do I love ponderous government? I don't. But do I like competent people in positions? I do. And so I like Joe Biden." Supporting links: Prime XBT Skybridge Bitcoin Fund Anthony on Twitter Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

We're revisiting the best Crypto Conversation podcast episodes of 2021. In this episode, we talk to Jeff Zirlin, co-founder Axie Infinity, a Pokémon-inspired blockchain-based digital pet universe where players can earn tokens through gaming. Players can battle, collect, breed, and build a kingdom for their pets. Like CryptoKitties, Axies are non-fungible tokens (NFTs) represented as cryptographically unique characters that can't be replicated. And like Pokémon, they are born to battle. While Axie can be just a game, it has built a strong social network, passionate community, and emerging jobs platform due to the play to earn opportunities it is generating. Why you should listen: Jeff grew up playing games like Neopets, Pokémon, and World of Warcraft. "I played so much WOW that my parents sent me to boarding school," he says. "I've always been a collector. As I kid my dad and I would collect fossils and insects. And as a lifelong gamer, I'm a digital collector as well, so I was predisposed to be interested in blockchain gaming." The blockchain gaming play to earn revolution started to gain traction after it emerged that a large community of players in the Philippines was earning money playing Axie Infinity. Jeff says "Most game companies sell in-game resources, items, and upgrades. With Axie there's an in-game resource that you need to create more Axies and it's called the love potion. So most game developers would sell this love potion, and people would pay for it. In Axie we don't sell it ourselves, the only way that love potions can be created is by people playing the game. Players who have big Axie collections need the love potion to breed Axies and have to buy the token from a liquidity pool on UniSwap or from Binance. So players can earn a basic income and we've seen that with the rise in value of ETH, this can appreciate significantly." Key takeaway: The power of blockchain games is that they're becoming more than games. They're becoming places that we can live, work and play. The eventual vision is to create a Metaverse similar to Ready Player One where people spend the majority of their time. "We believe in a future where work and play become one," says Jeff. "And we believe in empowering our players and giving them economic opportunities." To do this the Axie team is committed to aligning the incentives of the Axie community. Players can earn the AXS governance token. The token economics were designed by Delphi Digital. Delphi Digital has invested a significant amount of capital in buying several extremely rare Mystic Axies. If Axie Infinity continues to gain traction Mystic Axies will grow in value in the future. Jeff says "We're seeing the rise of Mystic Axies and other NFTs as a true asset class. This trend accelerated when Delphi Digital picked up some of the rarest Axies in the game, like quadruple Mystics, triple Mystics. You can think of Mystics as rare and valuable skins. It makes sense that there's a lot of interest around NFTs and it makes sense because we live in a digital world." Supporting links: Axie Infinity Prime XBT Delphi Digital on Axie Jeff on Twitter Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

We're a few days out from Xmas and it's time for this week's crypto market sentiment report. Plus, Jack Dorsey is not a fan of Web3. Why not? Why you should listen: As we move into the Xmas period Bitcoin is holding steady at just under $50,000 with ETH just over $4,000. The market is in a cooling-off period for now. Meanwhile, on Crypto Twitter, Jack Dorsey and Elon Musk are ruffling feathers with their takes on Web3. Supporting links: Prime XBT Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Andrew Cordle is an American entrepreneur, wealth strategist, and in-demand speaker. Andrew is the founder and CEO of Money Is, a company and show dedicated to sharing the secrets of the wealthy 1% and sparking authentic conversations about money. Why you should listen: Andrew Cordle is an acclaimed author and international speaker, and host of the Money Is show where he hosts today's leaders and influencers in authentic conversations about money. He has interviewed hundreds of experts, including Kevin O'Leary, Gary Vaynerchuck, and Grant Cardone. Andrew also contributes as a partner in a multi-billion dollar enterprise; made up of twenty-three current companies. One of which is a real estate development with a portfolio of over 1.5 Billion. Passionate about the benefits of mentorship in business, he founded Power Room, a CEO mastermind where today's top thought leaders combine forces to help teach entrepreneurs how to achieve success. Andrew is an enthusiastic crypto investor and trader of NFTs. Supporting links: Prime XBT Andrew Cordle Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Aaron McDonald and Brooke Howard-Smith are leading the teams behind some of 2021's biggest NFT projects. Fluf World, Altered State Machine, Thingies, and now, Party Bears… a pack of loose unit DJs about to bring the party to the metaverse… Why you should listen: 2021 was the year NFTs went mainstream. Andy, Aaron, and Brooke reflect on a huge year and look at what happens next for Fluf World, Party Bears, and the wider web3 ecosystem. Supporting links: Prime XBT Party Bears Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Janine Grainger is the CEO and co-founder of Easy Crypto, a New Zealand-based digital currency retailer, and Vault International Bitcoin Fund (VIBF) a New Zealand-based Portfolio Investment Entity (PIE) Fund that provides investors with exposure to offshore listed Bitcoin funds and ETFs. Why you should listen: Vault Digital Funds Limited was founded in 2021 in partnership with Easy Crypto, New Zealand's largest cryptocurrency brokerage. The Vault International Bitcoin Fund (VIBF) is the first digital asset fund to be launched under the Vault Digital Funds registered scheme. VIBF is a New Zealand-based Portfolio Investment Entity (PIE) Fund that provides investors with exposure to offshore listed Bitcoin funds and ETFs, taxed under the FDR methodology. Investors can gain exposure to digital assets investing without the challenges of buying, storing, and safekeeping digital currencies directly. The Vault International Bitcoin Fund is a Multi-rate Portfolio Investment Entity (PIE) that will be taxed in accordance with the Fair Dividend Rate method. Given the PIE fund will own fund(s) listed on an offshore exchange, the underlying investment will be treated as a global equity for tax purposes. In effect, this means there is no capital gains tax on any gains made on the VIBF. There will be an annual "deemed" dividend of 5% per annum, and investors would pay a maximum of 28% of tax on that 5% dividend, so an effective maximum tax rate of 1.4%pa. Supporting links: Prime XBT Easy Crypto Vault Digital Funds Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Rekt Capital, a Forbes featured crypto technical analyst and trader returns to the Crypto Conversation. With Bitcoin dumping to $46,000 REKT and Andy discuss the current market conditions - is the bull market over? Why you should listen: December has failed to live up to the bulls' expectations with Bitcoin dropping to $46,000 and bear sentiment growing. With Bitcoin hashrate at an all-time high and the liquid BTC supply on exchanges dropping, is it too soon to get bearish? Rekt suggests we may have to enter a consolidation period before an eventual resumption of the BTC uptrend. Supporting links: Prime XBT Rekt Capital Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Pat Doyle is the co-founder of Pink Swan Trading, the holding company of Genesis Volatility and Degen Data. The former caters for sophisticated options traders while the latter provides analysis of NFT projects. Why you should listen: Genesis Volatility is an institutional-grade crypto analytics platform, providing live statistics, historical data, DeFi analytics, and API solutions for traders, investors, and speculators alike. Genesis provides detailed information to help identify opportunities and mitigate risk in the booming crypto options market. Degen Data is a data lab for NFT projects. The platform will be put up for sale in the medium term. The platform will come with an associated Crypto Punk. Supporting links: Prime XBT Genesis Volatility Degen Data Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

On Friday Bitcoin dropped 25% in one day, one of the steepest drops since March 2020. With the market sentiment now in extreme fear, is the bull market over? Why you should listen: The Bitcoin stock to flow model is in danger of being invalidated, $100K targets for December are off the table. There seems to be an increasing acceptance that clear bear and bull market cycles may be a thing of the past. As bitcoin matures into a mature, liquid asset, we may see diminishing returns eth faster bull and bear peaks and troughs. Supporting links: Prime XBT Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Bill Ottman is CEO and founder of Minds - an alternative social network with over 5M users. Minds is building an open-source and decentralized app that shares revenue and crypto with its community. Why you should listen: Minds is an alt-tech blockchain-based social network. Users can earn money or cryptocurrency for using Minds, and tokens can be used to boost their posts or crowdfund other users. The Minds token can be used to reward users for their engagement on the social network and to both promote and receive payment for content. Minds has been described as more privacy and free speech focused than mainstream social media networks. Bill Ottman is passionate about free speech and open source technology protocols. In September Minds announced that it had converted 25% of its balance sheet, or around $2.5 million, into cryptocurrencies. Supporting links: Prime XBT Minds Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Andras Kristof is CEO and founder of Ether Cards - a platform that provides tools for gamifying and supercharging your NFTs. Ether Cards are advanced NFT cards that allow the community to use the platform and its features with increased benefits. Why you should listen: Ether Cards is a limited-edition collection of dynamic NFT cards that activate discounts, enable access, unlock features, connect to physical items, and grant upgrades. They can even trigger changes based on real-world events using Chainlink oracles and VRF. The Ether Cards platform is a community-driven NFT framework. It enables every creator to maximize the value of their NFT asset or series by expanding the capability of any NFT Marketplace. It allows anyone to set up tickets, puzzles, bounties, and a dozen other different events for any NFT asset of their choice. Supporting links: Prime XBT Ether Cards Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Jake Sally is the COO of Jadu, an AR platform and narrative layer for Web3 and the metaverse. Jadu is pioneering the functionality of digital assets in AR and the physical world by converting 3D NFTs into playable avatars and objects that can interact with each other in an ever-expanding AR game world. Jadu is minting 5555 hoverboard NFTs in December. Why you should listen: Jadu's vision is to build unparalleled 3D utility for NFTs, partnering with key players in the crypto community to deliver a virtually native future where creation of content is democratized, decentralized, and creator-owned in a world where players can mobilize in Web 3 and build valuable communities. Jadu Hoverboards are NFTs that can be used to fly your avatars in the Metaverse and in Augmented Reality. Along with Jadu Jetpacks, they will also function as key transport mechanisms in Jadu's AR Mirroverse game next year. Jadu's NFT Hoverboards will include collaborations with Lewis Hamilton; GRIMES; Snoop Dogg; Mimi Onuoha and NFT curator, Trippy. These artists will work with Jadu to design and release 5555 Jadu Hoverboard NFTs which go on sale December 12 for a cost of 0.222 ETH. Supporting links: Jadu Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Bitcoin price action is subdued this week with Mt Gox jitters spooking the market. Blockstream has partnered with El Salvador to issue $1B in Volcano Bonds. It's this week's crypto market sentiment report. Why you should listen: Andy looks at the most important data points and narratives driving the crypto news cycle this week. The Mt Gox Trustee's pool of bitcoins (about 141,000 BTC) appears to be getting ready to be distributed. Blockstream has partnered with El Salvador to issue $1B in Volcano Bonds. Zhu Su says he has "abandoned" Ethereum due to the chain's failure to scale and is there a connection between ​​Snow Crash author Neal Stephenson and Satoshi Nakamoto. Supporting links: Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Artist Grace Ng is about to launch Crash Punks - an NFT collection on Stacks/Bitcoin. Crash Punks is inspired by sci-fi, anime, and Snow Crash, the iconic 1992 novel by Neal Stephenson. Snow Crash has been an inspiration for the Stacks and Bitcoin communities and is considered one of the greatest science fiction novels of all time. Why you should listen: Grace Ng is a tech entrepreneur, angel investor, neuro-artist, co-founder of Lean Startup Machine, and VP at the Stacks Accelerator. Grace is the creative force behind Crash Punks, an NFT collection of 10,000 unique art profile pictures on Bitcoin/Stacks. Crash Punks is inspired by the 1992 cyberpunk novel Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. Neal Town Stephenson is an American writer known for his works of speculative fiction. His novels have been categorized as science fiction, historical fiction, cyberpunk, postcyberpunk, and baroque. Stephenson's work explores mathematics, cryptography, linguistics, philosophy, currency, and the history of science. "Computers rely on the one and the zero to represent all things. This distinction between something and nothing-this pivotal separation between being and nonbeing-is quite fundamental and underlies many Creation myths," Neal Stephenson, Snow Crash Supporting links: Crash Punks Stacks Accelerator Is Neal Stephenson Satoshi Nakamoto? Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Cecil Pang and IIan Klein are co-founders at Open Art Source, a blockchain-supported marketplace where artists can sell their works. It provides the tools necessary for artists to showcase their works and for collectors to research their purchases. The Arties is an NFT collaboration between Open Art Source, Shaderverse, and NFT artist Spencer Terry. The project is funding the development of the Open Art Source platform, which brings a blockchain data layer to the physical art market. Why you should listen: The Arties is an NFT collaboration between Open Art Source, Shaderverse, and NFT artist Spencer Terry. Open Art Source and Shaderverse came together in the Stacks Accelerator. The Arties is the first 3D NFT project on Stacks, and they're attached to specific benefits on the Open Art Source platform. Shaderverse has developed AR 3D game-ready assets for each Artie in the collection, and these assets will be sent to Artie holders for Christmas/Chanukah. Arties are minting now on STX. Cecil Pang is an artist; a technologist, and a world-class computer scientist. With CS credentials from Stanford and Columbia and art credentials from Parsons School of Design, he's the perfect person to tackle the structural injustices of the art world. Supporting links: Arties Mint Arties Open Art Source Hyperspace Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Sam Zou and James Bayly head the team at SubQuery, a decentralized data aggregation, indexing, and querying layer between Layer-1 blockchains and decentralized applications. SubQuery is focused on the fast-growing Polkadot ecosystem. Why you should listen: The team had experienced first-hand the difficulties of testing, deploying, and managing blockchain infrastructure. The team founded OnFinality to solve key pain points around decentralized infrastructure management and automate the deployment of Polkadot/Substrate based networks to the cloud. In 2020, while helping key Polkadot parachain teams, the team listened to requests for a data indexing service to help the teams better understand their chain data. Additionally, these teams wanted this in place to ease the barriers to entry for their future development communities. After a period of research, the team formally established the SubQuery project at the end of 2020 through a Web3 Grant, delivered the first open source version in January, and announced the platform to the world in February 2021. It now has backing from Arrington Capital and Digital Currency Group. Supporting links: SubQuery Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Stacks 2.0 (formerly Blockstack) is a layer-1 blockchain that connects to Bitcoin and brings smart contracts, DeFi, NFTs, and decentralized apps to Bitcoin. Smart contracts and apps developed on the Stacks platform are natively integrated with the security, stability, and economic power of Bitcoin. Why you should listen: Trevor Owens is the managing director at Stacks Accelerator. The Stacks Accelerator works with the Stacks Foundation's Grants program to deliver flexible, fair, and efficient funding options. It invests $50K at a no-valuation cap into teams solving real-world problems on Stacks. Stacks 2.0 implements a new mining mechanism called Proof of Transfer (PoX). PoX is a consensus algorithm between two blockchains. It uses an established blockchain (in this case Bitcoin) to secure a new blockchain (Stacks). PoX connects to Bitcoin with a 1:1 block ratio, meaning anything that happens on the Stacks blockchain can be verified on the Bitcoin Blockchain. Instead of burning electricity on proof of work, PoX reuses already minted bitcoins as "proof of computation" and miners represent their cost of mining in bitcoins directly. Clarity is a new language for smart contracts on the Stacks 2.0 blockchain. The Clarity smart contract language optimizes for predictability and security. Stacks 2.0 anchors clarity smart contracts to Bitcoin making it possible for smart contracts to operate based on actions seen on the bitcoin blockchain. Crash Punks are a 10,000 collection of unique and generative art profile pictures as Bitcoin/Stacks NFTs, inspired by the novel Snow Crash by Neal Stephenson. It's the first major collection by entrepreneur and crypto artist Grace Ng and will be the community dedicated to all of her future artistic work related to AR/VR, 3D, visual art, music, and neuro-feedback art. Supporting links: Stacks Accelerator Crash Punks Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Nick, the lead developer at ENS, the Ethereum Naming Service joins Andy for a wide-ranging discussion on ENS, DAOs, Proof of Stake Vs Proof of Work, and why Cory Doctorow is wrong about NFTS. Why you should listen: ENS is a decentralized naming system for crypto addresses, wallets, websites, and more. ENS is moving towards decentralization and has passed ENS governance to the community through their new governance token, ENS. The token was distributed by an air drop to ENS users. Community members could apply to be ENS delegates and delegate their voting rights to others. Supporting links: ENS Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Markets are on the edge, torn in opposite directions by two big news events. Inflation hit 6.2% hitting earners and shoppers in their wallets. In response, Bitcoin was poised to smash through $69,420 before Evergrande headlines spoiled the party. Why you should listen: Bitcoin got tantalizingly close to the mythical $69,420 level today as investors continue to seek exposure to Bitcoin to hedge against inflation. However, news that Evergrande may default on its next interest loan payments sent all global markets into a spin. Supporting links: Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.

Shiba Inu (SHIB), a dog-based crypto memecoin, has defied all expectations to become the best-performing asset of 2021. In the last year, the token is up ~75,000,000%, and for the last month, it has felt like everybody wants a piece of it. What is the bull and bear case for Shiba Inu? Why you should listen: Brave New Coin analyst Aditya Das joins Andy to discuss the fascinating, controversial history of crypto's current Memecoin of the moment, Shiba Inu. Has SHIB topped out? Or are there more gains to come? Supporting links: Andy on Twitter Brave New Coin on Twitter Brave New Coin If you enjoyed the show please subscribe to the Crypto Conversation and give us a 5-star rating and a positive review in whatever podcast app you are using.