content editor @0xblockwire, prev. @realvision, @abc. following ethereum, defi & whatever's happening onchain.
New York, NY
Joined June 2015
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the great news is that pretty much all of this is totally preventable
ethereum and ETH are rapidly growing to global ubiquity. this doesn't change that one bit
future defi solutions won't make these amateur errors (they'll eventually seem like amateur errors... already do to many experts)
attacker supremacy from AI won't last, it's working through a backlog of exploits. the limit result will be much permanently more secure protocols and eth's neutrality and capital gravity well will be more valuable than ever
if you have ETH lent in aave, imo you should get out right now by using onchain limit orders to sell to whale loopers who are actively buying aETH unwind leverage. you can take as little as a 1.1% haircut based on ongoing txns in mid 6-figs, which is much lower than some estimates of final socialized losses.
why can ETH lenders take only a 1.1% haircut now? because loopers want to avoid liquidation from high rates caused by 100% utilization. on the bad debt side, loopers actually win from socialized losses because their debt token (aETH) is the one taking the haircut, so they'd owe less in ETH terms.
the most remarkable thing in this crisis is clearly that billions of dollars in backbone eth lending on aave were in fact exposed to signer risk in a 3rd party bridge... effectively some random downstream fellow was actually an aave admin.
aave additionally has negligently low borrow rates during 100% utilization, leading to extremely dangerous illiquidity. what if ethusd crashed for any reason... eg. if stocks were open and a politician said the wrong thing, btc goes down 5%, eth goes down 8%... this can lead to broader contagion and bad debt.
protocols and their teams like fluid (who've had low level dynamic withdrawal rate limits in protocol from day 1 so can't be insta drained) and spark (who seem to have excellent scientific gov and no exposure for eth lenders to 3rd party bridge admins) deserve respect and attention for doing what they knew was right and possible even before the ecosystem had a forcing function to care about it. same goes with other kinds of security practices that are still fringe, maybe including formal verification and ipfs hashes for frontends
nearly 24h since the attack, the lack of material updates from affected protocols, including kelp, layerzero, and aave, suggests to me the ongoing severity of the situation. many factors are in play, there's probably no great solution, somebody is going to lose big
is just the bridged rsETH (that argubly took bridge risk intentionally) fully on the hook for the bridge failure, and L1 rsETH should be unaffected? however L1 rsETH *was* affected due to gov choices in aave. does aave's junior debt program, umbrella, take the full wipeout? however umbrella's terms & conditions say they have no bridge risk, which aave gov effectively violated without umbrella holders realizing it. does layerzero bear responsibility for allowing their users to be subject to terrible admin config in one of their ecosystem bridges? i'm probably missing aspects here, it's very messy.
Just Use Aave is dead... nobody is going to Just Use Anything anymore
the future of this industry is to do the smart obvious stuff even when it's unpopular, like withdrawal rate limits, better interest rate gov, avoiding toxic market share steroids like degen bridge looping affordances.
and for 10x better user recognition and higher standards around protocol hygiene and security differentiation. degen stuff is fun and amazing but only when you understand the true risks
in sum, if you are lending ETH in aave, get out now at a ~1.1-1.5% haircut by selling to loopers actively unwinding because when the dust settles, a material haircut for Aave v3 ETH lenders is a possibility
ethereum and ETH are growing well to global ubiquity and will be massive net beneficiaries of our industry successfully navigating this crisis season of backlogs of exploits discovered by AI and preventably poor practices in defi architecture/gov. trillions await
i’m more convinced than ever that ALL foundation and unaccountable non-profit governance eventually goes off of the rails or gets captured by misguided people (including and perhaps especially if funded via perpetual protocol rewards in the case of crypto)
power hungry and/or misguided moralistic actors will always eventually get control and completely fuck it up
so i think of you are giving money for charitable purposes, it makes sense to avoid foundations and instead give the money to charities who will spend it more immediately and directly on whichever causes you care about
it was Elon. that was the moment
for better or worse, he broke the flood gate
tech leaned liberal before that, but credibly played well with both parties
The defense industry long ago made a decision to be mostly apolitical, with a slight right lean.
For some reason a portion of tech decided to strongly throw their lot in with the right, culturally and otherwise.
This was dumb. US politics change like the tides and the work of the tech industry is too important for civilization for us to get tied in with the far right. We should stop wearing suits and talking about the fall of the west. We should stop trying to be based. We should get back to work.
guys, none of this shit matters
they're just goin to keep printing ungodly amounts of money
stock market declined 22% after "liberation day". right now, we're down like 7%
buy crypto
!
We discovered a sophisticated recording device that was hidden inside one of our offices. We used our models to understand the device and where it had come from, identifying that a specific employee had planted it a few days earlier. We referred the matter to the FBI, and we’re grateful to the agents and prosecutors who moved quickly to make an arrest. The FBI’s investigation is ongoing and we will continue to support their work.
At this time, we have no indications of this individual inappropriately accessing or exfiltrating model weights, source code, or customer data. The employee was terminated.
We take protecting our technology, data, and people seriously, and as a matter of national importance. Our security program is designed to protect against a wide range of threat actors, from insider risks to cybercriminals to nation states, and this case is an example of how AI can help address these sophisticated security threats.
Not exactly a light topic for a short clip! 😂
@sachi_morikawa and @michaelh_0g get into DA throughput, broadcast bottlenecks, and why decentralized storage matters for AI at scale.
Some pretty technical stuff from @0G_labs on @0xBlockwire.
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Thea Høghgaard retweeted
What if the next major breakthrough in AI isn't about intelligence itself, but proving that intelligence can be trusted?
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They discuss DC’s role in developing the ZKML community, how cryptographic proofs can verify AI computations without repeating the entire process, and why this technology could become essential infrastructure for decentralized intelligence.
The conversation also highlights innovations from Modulus Labs, Giza, and EZKL, alongside emerging research into proof of inference and scalable AI verification.
A deep dive into the convergence of cryptography and artificial intelligence, and the technologies bringing verifiability, accountability, and trust to the next generation of AI.
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In Web3, your reputation isn't defined by your background, but by the ideas you share and the things you build.
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They discuss DC’s journey from the 2021 DeFi research community to becoming a builder, the inspiration behind his pseudonym, and how choosing a name can become a powerful commitment to personal growth.
A conversation on digital identity, reputation, and why Web3 creates opportunities for talent and ideas to stand on their own, beyond traditional credentials.
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What makes Web3 one of the most dynamic and accessible environments for research and innovation?
@diksha_nanduri sits down with DC Builder (@dcbuilder) to explore the unique culture of crypto research, where open collaboration, public discussions, and direct access to protocol contributors are accelerating innovation.
They discuss how Ethereum Improvement Proposals (EIPs), community forums, and technical debates create an ecosystem where researchers can actively contribute to shaping decentralized infrastructure, regardless of institutional background.
A closer look at how open research, permissionless collaboration, and community-driven innovation are redefining the way breakthrough ideas emerge and evolve across Web3.
Thea Høghgaard retweeted
What if proving you're human becomes one of the most important foundations of the next generation of the internet?
This week, we sit down with DC Builder (@dcbuilder), Research Engineer at World Network (@worldnetwork), to explore the future of decentralized identity, digital privacy, and the infrastructure powering a more human-centric internet.
We discuss Worldcoin’s vision for global identity and financial inclusion, the challenges of verifying personhood at scale, and how zero-knowledge technology, Semaphore, and privacy-preserving systems could redefine digital trust.
The conversation also dives into the emerging frontier of ZKML, the convergence of AI and crypto, and the growing role of verifiable intelligence in decentralized ecosystems.
A deep dive into the technologies shaping a future where identity, privacy, and trust can coexist in the digital world.
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From studying central banking to mining Ethereum in an MIT dorm room — an unexpected entry into the world of crypto.
@kenzi_morikawa sits down with Anna Kazlauskas (@annakaz), Founder of @Vana, to explore the early experiences that shaped her journey into blockchain and decentralized technology.
Anna reflects on her fascination with monetary policy, discovering MIT’s early Bitcoin community, and how exposure to a new generation of decentralized systems transformed her perspective on the future of finance.
A look back at the curiosity, unconventional ideas, and pivotal moments that sparked a journey from traditional economics into Web3.
Thea Høghgaard retweeted
Sometimes the most valuable lessons come from opportunities you didn't realize mattered until years later.
@kenzi_morikawa sits down with Anna Kazlauskas (@annakaz), Founder of @Vana, to reflect on the unexpected moments that shape a founder’s journey.
Anna shares the story of missing Gary Gensler’s class during her university years and why that seemingly small decision became a lasting regret.
A conversation about missed opportunities, hindsight, and the early experiences that influence how founders see the world.
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Decentralized AI is evolving at an unprecedented pace, creating new opportunities for builders while constantly redefining what’s possible.
@diksha_nanduri sits down with Anna Kazlauskas (@annakaz), Founder of @vana, to explore the accelerating evolution of decentralized AI and what it means for founders building at the technological frontier.
They discuss how rapid innovation, emerging capabilities, and increasingly powerful tools are transforming the development landscape, while creating new challenges for teams trying to keep pace with an industry that never slows down.
A conversation on the opportunities, pressures, and realities of building in one of technology’s fastest-moving sectors.
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What if the future of AI is built on data owned and controlled by the people who create it?
This week, we sit down with Anna Kazlauskas (@annakaz), Founder of @Vana, to explore the future of decentralized AI, data ownership, and the emerging infrastructure for a user-controlled digital economy.
We discuss Anna’s journey from traditional finance to Web3, Vana’s approach to giving individuals control over their data, and why tokenomics could play a fundamental role in building sustainable AI ecosystems.
The conversation also dives into the realities of building a startup, from assembling mission-driven teams to navigating shifting market narratives, alongside the growing value of private data and the potential of Data DAOs.
A closer look at how decentralized data infrastructure could reshape AI development, digital ownership, and the future of the data economy.
