Deeply Intents

In this episode of Deeply Intents I chat with Markus Schmitt, Founder of Propeller Heads. We dive into PropAMMs: what they are and how they are changing the market microstructure on Ethereum. In addition we unpack the Propeller stack of Tycho, Fynd, and Turbine which will enable a trustless trading experience on Ethereum main-net.  Timestamps (00:00) - Setting the stage (01:11) - What is a PropAMM...

In this episode of Deeply Intents I chat with Quintus from Flashbots. We discuss the current transaction supply chain and how PropAMMs fit in. Quintus provides fresh insights and a wealth of technical understanding around this new market micro structure. In particular, the ways in which the working processes of PropAMMs affect determinants of transaction costs, prices, quotes, volume, and trading...

It already happened, propAMMs won, you just didn't notice. In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Katia Banina, CEO at Bebop . We discuss prop AMMs on Ethereum, how they compare to RFQ systems, and pushing the limits of DeFi innovation with PopAMM (Block Oracle Priced AMM). Timestamps (00:00) - Cat stories (02:19) - BopAMM (06:28) - Request for stream (RFS) (09:41) - RFQ & RFS both have th...

In this episode of Deeply Intents I chat with Will Quist of Slow Ventures and Dan Gray from Odin. This episode pulls apart the current discourse on venture investing looking at an investor's and researcher's perspectives. In particular we grapple with existential questions like;  - Do exits even matter?  - Are Megafunds the future of venture?  - Is the current venture environment limiting innovati...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, we chat with Keone Hon co-founder & GM at Monad Foundation. Keone spent a decade at Jump Trading building algorithmic trading systems before co-founding Monad. We get into what actually transfers from HFT to crypto, why the Monad team rolled their own database, and Keone's bigger thesis on crypto as humanity's universal asset layer.                  We open with...

Zaki Manian In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Zaki Manian [Cosmos co-founder, Bootstrap board member, and Zcash contributor]. We start with Zaki's AI-native development workflow: he's running 7-8 projects simultaneously using Claude, Codex, and Gemini in parallel, burning through 500M tokens a day. He breaks down which model is best for what and why most developers he's hired in his c...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Gwart, host of The Gwart Show. We kick off with Gwart's knack for shitposting and the art of playing the anon game, then get into reflections on this cycle, including whether VC coins are actually dead or just suffering from massive token overhang. From there, we spend time on the craft of podcasting before pivoting to the big picture: the Ethereum ro...

Why are crypto options still so underdeveloped? In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Nick Foster, Co-founder of Derive (fka Lyra). We start by unpacking why options are worth pursuing in crypto and what drove Variant's recent investment in Derive. From there, we dig into Derive's institutional focus, how they think about the competitive options landscape, and what "10/10" means for the p...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Alex Watts (ThogardPvP) from Fastlane. We begin the episode by discussing the concept of kingmaking in crypto ecosystems - why its important and the risks associated with king entrenching. Next we shift the conversation to the Monad central bank thesis as in the Monad Foundation using its treasury of MON to control yield via staking. Thereafter we shi...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Alex Watts (ThogardPvP), Co-founder and CEO of Fastlane. We start by breaking down Fastlane's recent deal with Chainlink for their product Atlas—ThogardPvP walks through how it was structured and who actually got paid (spoiler: no one got rich). From there, we get into the emerging trend of acquihires and licensing deals in crypto and why they might b...

Is interop finally solved? In this episode of Deeply Intents I chat with Isaac Sheff (Senior Research Scientist) and Christopher Goes (o-founder) of Heliax about the Anoma protocol and explore how Anoma thinks about interop. In particular we discuss Isaac's research on Controllers [the authoritative state machine that orders transactions for a resource, preventing double-spends]. We begin the epis...

Why does crypto keep throwing money at attention instead of products? In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Dino, Co-founder of Fluent. We kick off with Dino's background and why he's learned never to bet against developer ingenuity, then get into the weeds on crypto fundraising strategies including what works, what doesn't, and where discipline matters. From there, we dissect crypto's ob...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Dan Gray from Credistick. We cover a ton of ground on what venture capital actually is, how it works, and where the space is headed. We kick off by breaking down the basics of VC and the ripple effects of the low interest rate environment after the financial crisis, then move into megafund strategies (sometimes called smart beta). From there, we dig i...

Why does onchain liquidity matter, and what would it take to build a DEX that actually competes with centralized venues? In this episode, I sit down with Ludwig Thouvenin, Co-founder & CEO at Sorella Labs, to unpack Angstrom and the case for rethinking DEX design from first principles. We start with what drew Ludwig to MEV and DEX design in the first place. From there, we discuss Brontes, Sorella'...

What would it actually take to make Ethereum's rollups composable like smart contracts on a single chain? In this episode, I sit down with Orest Tarasiuk, CTO at t1 Protocol, to unpack how t1 is tackling Ethereum's fragmentation problem with Real-Time Proofs and TEE-based infrastructure. We begin by discussing Orest's background as an entrepreneur across three startups, from digestive health apps...

What does real interoperability actually look like and why might the industry be solving the wrong problems? In this episode, I sit down with Noah Pravecek from ZKsync to explore the evolving landscape of L2 composability, enterprise adoption, and where crypto is actually headed. Noah shares lessons from his previous work on shared sequencing and synchronous composability, and how ZKsync's network...

Why is censorship resistance fundamental to Ethereum and what would it take to actually achieve it? In this episode, I sit down with soispoke from the Ethereum Foundation's Robust Incentives Group (RIG) to unpack FOCIL (Fork-Choice Enforced Inclusion Lists), a proposal aimed at making transaction censorship significantly harder. We start from first principles: what does censorship even mean in Eth...

In this episode of Deeply Intents I chat with Ceteris, Head of Research at Delphi. We start by discussing Ceteris' beginnings on crypto twitter, then dig into 4 year cycles—are they still real? From there we cover metas, onboarding, privacy, capital formation, and infrastructure. We also explore why Solana has performed well "this cycle," including social factors and upcoming upgrades. Later we ge...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Markus, founder of Tplus. We begin the episode by addressing the FUD around the recent Intel TDX attack. Next, we unpack Tplus by dissecting the high-level architecture. Thereafter we discuss how Tplus can benefit traders, solvers, MEV searchers, and block builders. Later Markus breaks down the events that led to the sell-off on 10/10/25. We finish th...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Mislav from Biconomy. We begin the episode by discussing the Biconomy Network’s one signature execution model. Next, we discuss the purpose of interoperability and chain abstraction. Thereafter, we dig our teeth into all things product, from gauging user feedback to building at the right level of abstraction to knowing who your team is. Next up, we un...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Jim Chang (0xJim), product guru from LI.FI. We begin the episode by answering the question, why do we need interop? Next we dive into the nuances of intent bridges, solvers, order flow auctions, MEV, and filler vaults. Thereafter, Jim explains the necessity of and philosophy behind Ethereum's Open Intents Framework (OIF). Directly after, we break down...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Trent Van Epps from the Ethereum Foundation. In particular, we discuss Trent's work as an organizer of Protocol Guild. We begin by discussing what Protocol Guild is, why  projects care, and membership. Next, we unpack the motivations for funding the Ethereum Commons, drawing lessons from Linux, and explore various funding mechanisms. Later, we break d...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with James Prestwich of Signet, the team behind Signet. This episode is a masterclass on rollups. To begin the episode, James breaks down exactly what a rollup is while taking us through their history that includes Bitcoin, roll_ups, Plasmas, minimum viable merged consensus, and sovereign rollups. Thereafter we unpack Signet, including no proving system as...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I chat with Peter Watts, founder of Relay Protocol. We begin the episode by discussing Peter's journey from music to Reservoir to Relay. Next, we spend time digging into Relay, its architecture, resource locks, vaults, DEX meta-aggregation, and MEV strategies. We finish out the episode by unpacking B2B distribution, reliability & SLAs, and product market fit. Tim...

In this episode of Deeply Intents, I speak with Jeremy Ornelas of Heliax, the company behind Anoma and Namada. We begin the conversation by discussing the history of Erlang and Elixir, as well as what makes Elixir a good fit for Anoma. Next, we break down the dominion of Anoma, broadly outlining the distributed operating system vision. Thereafter, we discuss Anoma's Controller system in detail, wh...