web3 with a16z crypto

• Quantum Computing: What, When, Where, How

  with @danboneh @succinctJT @smc90This episode is all about quantum computing -- explaining what it is, how it works, what's hype vs. reality, and how to prepare for it/ what builders should do. Specifically, we cover: What quantum computing is and isn't, and what people are really talking about when they worry about a quantum computer that can break classic computing-based cryptography systems -- a cryptographically relevant post-quantum computer.When is it happening/ what are the "timelines" for quantum computing becoming a reality -- how many years away are we? -- and when are the U.S. government's deadlines/ NIST standards for post-quantum cryptography?How will different types of cryptography be affected, or not? What are different approaches and tradeoffs?Where does quantum computing and post-quantum crypto apply to blockchains -- which are not only more easily upgradable, but also by and large rely on signatures, not encryption, so may be more quantum-resistant in many ways (and not in others).As always, we tease apart the signal vs. the noise in recent "science-by-press release" corporate quantum-computing milestone announcements. We also help answer questions on when do builders need to plan their switch to a post-quantum crypto world, what pitfalls to avoid there (hint: bugs! software upgrades!). Finally, we briefly cover different approaches to post-quantum crypto; and also dig deeper on zero-knowledge/ succinct-proof systems and how they relate to post-quantum crypto. Our expert guests are: Dan Boneh, Stanford University professor and applied cryptography expert and pioneer; also Senior Research Advisor to a16z crypto;Justin Thaler, research partner at a16z, professor at Georgetown, and longtime expert and pioneer in interactive and ZK proof systems.SEE ALSO: Post-quantum blockchains by Valeria Nikolaenkomore resources + papers on topics mentioned:A Graduate Course in Applied Cryptography by Dan Boneh and Victor Shoup [see also]Proofs, Arguments, and Zero-Knowledge by Justin ThalerLatticeFold+: Faster, Simpler, Shorter Lattice-Based Folding for Succinct Proof Systems by Dan Boneh and Binyi ChenNeo: Lattice-based folding scheme for CCS over small fields and pay-per-bit commitments by Wilson Nguyen and Srinath Setty"Q-Day Clock" from Project Eleven -- public dashboard to visually track timeline for quantum computing to reach cryptographically relevant capabilities and break widely used encryption algorithmson hard forks for quantum emergenciesQuantum analysis of AES, Kyungbae Jang, Anubhab Baksi, Hyunji Kim, Gyeongju Song, Hwajeong Seo, Anupam ChattopadhyayThe Google Willow Thing by Scott AaronsonFAQs on Microsoft’s topological qubit thing by Scott AaronsonMicrosoft’s claim of a topological qubit faces tough questions, American Physical SocietyAs a reminder, none of this is investment, business, legal, or tax advice; please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information including a link to our investments.

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  1:15:13
• Your Guide to Tokens: Types, Design, Uses, More

  with @eddylazzarin @skominers @milesjennings @rhhackettToday we're diving deep into *the* defining concept in crypto: tokens. We're moving beyond conventional categories — like “governance tokens” or “utility tokens” or even “memecoins” — to present a full taxonomy that details what tokens are, what they aren’t, and what they're capable of becoming.Questions we'll explore include: What is a token? Is it a form of money? A piece of data? Something else? How many types of tokens are there — and who is in control of each? And how should we think about their actual economic, legal, and technical characteristics? We'll also dig into different token designs and their uses; where tokens derive value from; how they jibe with securities laws; and much more.In this conversation, you’ll hear from several experts on the a16z crypto team who have developed a new 7-part framework for classifying tokens, which you can find linked below. Joining us are the coauthors: Chief Technology Officer Eddy Lazzarin, General Counsel and Head of Policy Miles Jennings, and Research Partner Scott Kominers, who is also a Professor at Harvard Business School where he teaches courses on market design and entrepreneurship. Check out the resources below for a flowchart that we’ll also be referencing throughout this episode and that will be helpful as we wend our way through the token idea maze.Timestamps:(0:00) Introduction(3:28) The Evolution of Token Terminology(6:19) Classifying Tokens: Economic, Legal, and Technical Dimensions(8:37) Moving Beyond “Governance Tokens”(12:05) Inherent Value: The Memecoin Debate(15:35) Company-Controlled Tokens: Risks and Realities(31:33) Arcade Tokens: Stability and Utility(46:00) The Power of Blockchain Interoperability(49:34) Shared Rewards and Loyalty Programs(59:19) Asset-Backed Tokens and Their Mechanisms(1:08:23) Collectible Tokens and Their Uniqueness(1:14:31) Network Tokens: The Future of Decentralized Marketplaces(1:31:03) Regulatory Challenges and "Lawyer Tokens" (1:36:57) Final Thoughts and Future ProspectsResources referenced in this episode:7 canonical tokens, defined [see flowchart] by Miles Jennings, Scott Duke Kominers, and Eddy Lazzarin (a16z crypto newsletter, March 2025)Defining tokens by Miles Jennings, Scott Duke Kominers, and Eddy Lazzarin (a16z crypto, March 2025)Network tokens vs. company-backed tokens by Miles Jennings, Scott Duke Kominers, and Eddy Lazzarin (a16z crypto, March 2025)Defining decentralization: It comes down to control by Miles Jennings (a16z crypto, February 2025)Read Write Own: Building the Next Era of the Internet by Chris Dixon (Penguin Random House, January 2024)The Everything Token: How NFTs and Web3 Will Transform the Way We Buy, Sell, and Create by Steve Kaczynski and Scott Duke Kominers (Penguin Random House, January 2024)As a reminder, none of the content should be taken as investment, business, legal, or tax advice; please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information, including a link to a list of our investments.

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  1:41:36
• AI and the End of Apps (with NEAR)

  with @ilblackdragon @rhhackettWelcome to web3 with a16z. I’m your host, Robert Hackett.In this episode, we're diving deep into one of the most intriguing intersections in tech today: AI and crypto.To help us unpack it, we're joined by Illia Polosukhin — co-founder of the crypto protocol NEAR and co-author of the groundbreaking 2017 "transformers" paper that kicked off the current AI boom. Ilia has been early to some of the biggest recent tech trends, and today he brings us a rare, panoramic view of the tech industry’s cutting edge.Together we explore what the phrase “user-owned AI” really means; why the so-called agentic internet — that is, a world where your AI assistant talks directly to services on your behalf — might replace the very notion of websites and apps as we know them; and much more.Timestamps:(0:00) Introduction(3:40) Centralization and Challenges of AI(6:17) "User-Owned" AI(12:14) Confidential Computing and AI(17:51) The Birth of Transformers(22:33) NEAR AI and Crowdsourcing(27:56) AI Agents and Future Applications(31:04) The End of Websites and Applications(34:08) Dead Internet Theory & Distinguishing Humans(41:49) Open Source vs. Open Weight Models(43:48) Geopolitical Implications of AI(46:55) NEAR Protocol and Blockchain Scaling(59:29) The Role of Humans in an AI WorldResources:Attention is all you need by Vaswani et al. (Conference on Neural Information Processing Systems 2017)As a reminder, none of the content should be taken as investment, business, legal, or tax advice; please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information, including a link to a list of our investments.

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  1:02:18
• All About Airdrops

  with @eddylazzarin @DarenMatsuoka @ahall_research @rhhackettWelcome to web3 with a16z. I’m Robert Hackett.Today we’re talking about one of the most familiar — and most misunderstood — mechanics in crypto: the airdrop.We’ll explore the history of airdrops in and outside crypto, the challenges of incentive design, and learnings from airdrops to date. We’ll also answer questions like how do you avoid Sybil attacks and professional airdrop farming? Should your drop be big or small, one-time or ongoing? And what happens when AI agents enter the mix? To break it all down, we’re joined by:a16z crypto’s Chief Technology Officer Eddy Lazzarin;a16z crypto Data Science Partner Daren Matsuoka; anda16z crypto Research Consultant Andrew Hall, who is also a Professor of Political Economics at Stanford’s Graduate School of Business.Whether you're planning a token launch, looking for token rewards, or just curious why airdrops have become such a powerful mechanism in crypto — this episode is for you. Timestamps:(0:00) introduction(1:42) what is an airdrop?(6:27) tokens vs traditional equity(8:49) incentive design challenges(15:18) origins from credit cards to crypto(17:14) Optimism airdrop case study(23:09) NFT market learnings(28:32) Sybil resistance and verifying humanity(33:04) Uniswap airdrop and beyond(36:35) AI agents and the future of airdrops(40:33) connection to performance reviews(45:30) token vesting and volatility(49:08) experimentation vs. best practices(59:20) Batesian mimicryResources:Research into how airdrops can increase user retention [Optimism Collective forum; January 2025]Effects of Optimism airdrop 2 on governance participation [a16z crypto; June 2024]One From Many: Visa and the Rise of Chaordic Organization by Dee Hock [Berrett-Koehler Publishers; October 2005]How the '9-Box' talent review system can make or break your career [Forbes; March 2024]Batesian mimicry [American Museum of Natural History; July 2023]As a reminder, none of the content should be taken as investment, business, legal, or tax advice. Please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information, including a link to a list of our investments.

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  1:02:00
• Congestion Pricing? Economics, Theory, Reality

  with @mostrovs @skominers @rhhackettWelcome to web3 with a16z. I’m your host Robert Hackett, and today we’re talking about congestion pricing — an area of mechanism design that’s aimed at alleviating something everyone hates: traffic.Now you may have heard this term recently since New York adopted its own version of congestion pricing at the beginning of the year. This is the first program of its kind in the U.S. — and it’s got supporters and detractors. We’ll talk about that, and we’re also going to talk about much more. In the first part of today’s episode we’ll trace the history of the economic ideas that got us here. In the middle, we’ll dig deeper into the details of putting congestion pricing into practice, plus technological alternatives. And in the final part, we’ll explore parallels to — and implications for — crypto networks.Our guests are Michael Ostrovsky, a Stanford Economics Professor who specializes in this area and who has done research on congestion pricing in New York. We’re also joined by a16z crypto Research Partner Scott Kominers, who is a Professor of Business Administration at Harvard Business School where he teaches market design and entrepreneurship.Timestamps:(0:00) introduction(1:51) NYC proposal history(3:38) economic theory of congestion pricing(9:15) implementation: challenges and solutions(26:00) technological alternatives and drones(29:49) overnight delivery and other possibilities(35:20) carpooling and how to encourage it(39:34) congestion pricing and crypto(47:59) lessons for blockchainsResources:Michael Ostrovsky's paper on congestion pricing in New York City (from before the launch, foreseeing its issues): https://web.stanford.edu/~ost/papers/nyc.pdfMichael Ostrovsky's thread that went viral on X shortly after the debut of congestion pricing in New York, discussing the post-launch evidence, his team's data collection efforts, and the link between observed data and predictions in the above paper: https://x.com/mostrovs/status/1876798157595476420Two of Ostrovsky's earlier theoretical papers on the topic: (1) https://web.stanford.edu/~ost/papers/complementarity.pdf, (2) https://web.stanford.edu/~ost/papers/sdc.pdfEconomist William Vickrey's influential paper on congestion pricing: Vickrey, W. S. (1969). Congestion theory and transport investment. American Economic Review 59 (2), 251–260. https://matthewturner.org/ec2410/readings/Vickrey_AER_1969.pdfAs a reminder, none of the content should be taken as tax, business, legal, or investment advice. Please see a16z.com/disclosures for more important information, including a link to a list of our investments.

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  57:31

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