How I Source & How We Invest I get asked these questions a lot and figure putting this out in the open can help save everyone's time. 1. We only lead/co-lead and exclusively focus on the first round/pre-seed 2. I read all deal-related DM on here on X & LinkedIn. You don't need to get an intro through a mutual to reach me. Yes cold DM here works: some of my favorite portfolio companies were actually from cold DM on X/LinkedIn. I don't read cold emails as much. 3. I (ofc) will respond if it could be a fit for us. 4. The best format to DM is: blurb on what you are building + why + who you are (add LinkedIn/X) Nothing is too early: it's okay if you don't have a deck or website. What we look for is the right founder with the right insights in net-new sectors. 5. One per category: once we invest, we are all in to support the company for their entire lifecycle — the main reason we don't back competitors. 6. What we look for: weird stuff that I haven't heard of or thought of before. Or, to put it more bookishly, "disruptive" versus "sustaining" innovation per The Innovator's Dilemma. 7. I don't take calls lightly because founders' time is as valuable as my own. I rarely get on calls just out of curiosity—that's a waste of everyone's energy. Hope this helps clarify things. Will add to this thread as more come up

I rarely write about one particular token, but given the volume of requests for our thesis on @Stacks $STX, I’m consolidating my thoughts here in one place. Hope this is helpful to those seeking to understand the STX ecosystem and the reasons behind our conviction. TLDR 1. It's the OG blue-chip crypto project. 2. It's the first compliant token: a key driver for institutional adoption is to use STX as the de facto BTC staking provider. 3. The most optimal return on risk for real “whales” to generate yield on BTC with peace of mind. 4. The undisputed forerunner in bitcoin L2 with 10 years of first-mover advantage. 5. It has a rare token standard moat. 6. Its ecosystem moat: 155 monthly actively developers + 60+ projects adopting its token standard 7. It's vastly being undervalued at the moment based on comparables in ethereum. 8. Tokenomics and token maturity: 100% vested. 9. Upcoming catalysts

Almost a year after the publication of @PortalVentures’ initial bitcoin thesis, we are excited to present its sequel: Chapter Two of Bitcoin 👉 portal.vc/bitcoinsequel

A BTC thesis: The Panda Renaissance. This piece is the culmination of 3-months of research on Bitcoin. Expect rich data, analyses, & PoVs on BTC as a currency, asset, and L1, along with the latest technological, institutional, & market catalysts. 👉portal.vc/bitcoin

IT HAS ARRIVED! “An Honest Report on Web3 Data & Storage,” the first-of-its-kind, 34-slide primary research report to systematically, objectively, and exhaustively assess the decentralized storage space by interviewing 30+ leading experts over 50+ sessions lnkd.in/epfK2pKr

Serious question: what’s stopping #STX @Stacks from being the next ETF? 1. SEC stamped non-security token 2. BTC yield generating 3. Inherit BTC security 4. Levered up BTC bet with real utility 5. Ecosystem has undergone decentralization @muneeb @andrerserrano @kyleellicott 👀

Finally pushed out this research piece on Business Models in MEV on @theBlockcrunch. Expect insights on 1. Why Flashbots is bad biz today 2. How it can be good biz tmrw 3. Emerging trends 4. Concluding predictions TLDR - a thread blockcrunch.substack.com/p/i…

It’s a milestone day – announcing @PortalVentures Fund II, an oversubscribed $75M fund, dedicated as the first, only, and best crypto fund exclusively focused on leading pre-seed protocol businesses. I’d like to take a moment to share a more personal note. Truthfully, it feels surreal to see my face on the cover of Fortune Term Sheet. If I could go back to my 15-year-old self—“fresh off the boat” to Canada, struggling in an ESL program—and tell her this would happen one day, she’d surely look at me with an eye roll. VCs, by nature, are pattern-seekers. And as I reflect on my own path, the dominant thread is “know what you want.” From my first day at business school, I knew venture capital was the one true career for me. It was the purest form of epiphany, where seemingly random fragments of my life piece across stages together for a strikingly obvious picture - from my days as a lively child TV anchor in China to a nerdy, taciturn high schooler in Canada leading the science club to the Physics Olympiad - from six years of mastering storytelling in management consulting to gaining insights from some of the most successful companies in web2 and web3 to now inform best practices for my portfolio companies - from designing the crypto course for Wharton, organizing the UPenn Blockchain Conference now three years in a row, to now the dedicated pre-seed focus, in which proximity to talent is a key ingredient. Once you discover what you want with an unyielding will and a “whatever it takes” conviction, it materializes. The real work is figuring out what it is that you truly want, then letting your passion guide you. Here’s mine: to create the future in the present day on crypto rails, and let’s do it together. This milestone would also not have been possible without the most astute thinker, trusted partner, and my Bo-le (伯乐), @evanbfish. Here’s to a spectacular Fund II and many more to come! Big shoutout to @leomschwartz for the insightful piece & coverage! Fortune Article: lnkd.in/gtUqNEGV

Math for @stacks $50B FDV prediction, conservatively

Boom 💥 GRADUATED! #wharton #MBA #commencement

This marks the end of a major chapter and the start of another. I'm excited to announce that I have joined @evanbfish at @PortalVentures as an Investment Partner. linkedin.com/pulse/mba-crypt…

Not a buzzword soup: here are the four tangible reasons why AI needs web3. Over the past few weeks, I researched the intersection between blockchain and AI and found four critical pillars blog.filecointldr.io/four-no… Here’s the blogpost tldr 🧵

Someone needs to teach trump the concept of "saving face" as a China 101

Biggest takeaway from BTC Core dev panel at @MITBitcoinClub conference: OP_CAT probably not happening any time soon, to say the least. Good validation for @ArchNtwrk to remain the only solution for bridgeless programmability experience directly & natively on Bitcoin.

Thrilled for @PortalVentures to lead @bimabtc’s pre-seed round. Our thesis is simple: stablecoins on BTC need to happen but have not. After screening most startups in the space, @bimabtc distinctly stood out for their - exceptional founder-market fit as a group of BD machine - blazing speed to execution - tactical and realistic vision to address some of the most obvious but overlooked use cases globally Stablecoin is a race for distribution. Be-ma wildfire 🔥 Big congrats to @bimasaiyan @hipiyushhere

Feeling so blessed to stare at our beautiful portfolio of leaders in every BTC sub-category from last year 🥰 The mafia is forming & growing 📈 @ZeusNetworkHQ @bitflow @LiquidiumFi @ordinalhive @ord_io @Bison_Labs @ArchNtwrk @ALEXLabBTC @asignaio @ArkadikoFinance @PortalVentures @evanbfish

Curb your enthusiasm: Why DePIN has the hardest business model to compete in for founders & predict winners for VCs. What to expect in this thread: 1. An analysis of the DePIN business model & why it's challenging. 2. Areas where DePIN founders can create “moats” to stand out among competition 🧵👇

9/15 The BTC “tribes” (outline below) 1. @Stacks - The ONLY altcoin that yields BTC via staking - The dominant general-purpose Bitcoin L2 - first mover advantage - A true ecosystem - Compliant token - Tokenomics - Major catalysts in Q1: sBTC, Nakamoto, EVM & Rust-VM subnets

TON seems to have become a topical trends among investors lately, but I struggle to see how VCs have a place in this eco. Having usage/PMF doesn’t automatically make something venture backable. Imo the formula goes Investable = PMF + need capital to reach maturity & GTM + long term value accrual Startups on TON hit the 1st but just not the 2nd & 3rd

Not your everyday shared sequencer: @evanbfish and I present @PortalVentures’ investment thesis to lead @RomeProtocol’s preseed round alongside @toly, @nickwh8te, @neelsomani, @RahimNoorani2, @santiagoroel, @tarunchitra, and @JasonYanowitz portal.vc/rome_protocol

With all this ZK frenzy, I wonder how many know Filecoin has been using ZK-SNARKs for its proof of replication as part of the data dealing process for years 🤷🏻‍♀️ And NOT make a big deal out of it

Adding two related links 1. Why SIP-10 token standard moat is the real deal 2. My $50B FDV - conservative - prediction on $STX

An Explosive Thesis: Why We Led @uraniumdigital_ This investment falls under our current thematic focus of “Crypto Rails for Latent Markets” to improve market efficiency and unlock financial innovations on top of dormant markets—in this case, uranium. The timing is impeccable: nuclear energy is experiencing an unprecedented tailwind from the geopolitical race, AI-driven demand, regulatory catalysts, and major supply shocks. As the dominant fuel, Uranium "yellowcake" is poised to become one of the most valuable commodities of the next century. In many ways, uranium is the "bitcoin" for regular people: volatile price, finite, high growth potential, and non-mainstream. But here's the shocking part: uranium has no liquid market or infrastructure for any financial innovations to build on top of—no spot, no oracle, no derivatives. If you want uranium exposure, either go licensed and buy on OTC, or buy ETF/mining stocks. What?! So much money is being left on the table: it's a well-known fact that most trading volume of commodities comes from derivatives/non-physically settled trades. Here are some stats on other common commodities: The ratio of Total Notional $ of Derivative / Physically Settled Trades: 👉 Coal: 7:1 👉 Natural gas: 23:1 👉 Uranium: 0:1 In this thesis, you'll find: 1. A primer on nuclear energy and why it's the most misunderstood and promising energy source 2. Why the time is now to pay attention to uranium 3. The opportunity we see: the least efficient market for the most important commodity of the future 4. How @uraniumdigital_ is creating a new "pie" at the intersection of nuclear energy and crypto 🔗 Full thesis link in thread.

For founders coming to Cannes, we’re bringing back our favorite tradition: Jeffersonian Dinner with Strangers — this time cohosted with our friends at @MoonrockCapital @sjdedic @cryptovlat Expect delightful food, chill vibes, and quality conversations among a crowd of 6–8 new connections. We’re specifically looking for founders we haven’t met yet — it’s “dinner with STRANGERS” after all! Click here to join us: lu.ma/g00mnwwf 📷

I'm increasingly realizing that the true moat of an ecosystem is its own token standard. With so many use-case-specific L2s and app chains on ETH emerging, what’s keeping the general-purpose L2s like ARB/OP/ZKsync afloat? I really don't know. Generalized EVM chains (L1 and L2 alike) invest heavily to buy partnerships and enterprise users. But without being particularly good at/known for something, and now facing @plumefor for RWA, @UnichainApp for DeFi, and @base for distribution, what are their remaining rights to win? 🤷🏻‍♀️. It's a head-scratcher. Users and developers are pragmatic & mercenary by nature and shift from one ERC20 chain to another based on incentives and UX. Most ERC-20-based chains compete on commoditized features like speed and cost. UX and community can be a lasting moat once they reach escape velocity — but building culture is a hard job and demands a completely different skill set (I will say tho @monad_xyz and @berachain got the chops for this). Now - why is Solana killing it? Many reason but I think SPL is a major one. Bootstrapping a new standard is a pain in the butt but that's also how network effect is truly formed: it's the crypto equivalent of vendor lock-in in web2. Exhibit A - DePIN projects want to be SPL to interoperate with each other This is also why I'm perma-bull on @Stacks for their SIP10 and the double-digit ecosystem they've managed to build on top. And @ArchNtwrk for their generational opportunity to create the first truly fungible token standard on BTC—the largest liquidity pool, period.

6 hours later - uncanny timing

At @PortalVentures, we seek bold founders who defy the status quo, paving new paths of "what if." The vision of @OfflineProtocol is particularly contrarian: in a world where our dependency on the internet has gotten extreme, what's the fallback plan? The internet connects people, but people's connectivity should not 100% rely on the internet. @OfflineProtocol creates an offgrid mesh network, on top of which applications can operate unwired. Fallback to Offline Protocol to stay connected when you: 1. Don't have internet For instance, why you need walkie-talkies at events like Burning Man or when locating family during emergencies like the LA wildfires.​ 2. Don't need internet Consider farmers who don't want to pay for 5G/LTE setups just for local communications within a 2-mile radius.​ 3. Don't want internet For example, during mental health retreats where individuals wish to be unwired but still require basic payment and messaging capabilities Our thesis isn't that the internet will disappear. Rather, it's about addressing our unprecedented need for interconnection by creating an alternative source of connectivity that doesn't solely rely on fiber-optic cables. Cannot be more excited for what @sxtvik is cooking at @OfflineProtocol!

No Bitcoin Ordinal trading isn’t the same as ETH - and there’s a reason wh y there are only low single-digit Ordinal trading platforms to date. Here’s a chart put together by @ordinaldude of @ordinalhive to compare

I still think Ordinals will come back. At some point people will want to lever up their BTC. The majority of EVM bitcoin L2s are meme coins that don’t make money at this point - and more importantly, they do not represent direct linkage to Bitcoin price (not native). SOL memecoins let me lever up on SOL but on BTC, swap infrastructure is not nearly as sophisticated natively. One could argue BRC20 but 1. also currently limited by the immature trading infrastructure and 2. It’s not the BTC erc20 - in fact there’s no de facto BTC fungible token standard yet (again, @ArchNtwrk could change this) That leaves Ordinals being the only viable option on the table to add leverage to BTC as 🐂 heats up & rationality leaves the chat. Let’s see how this plays out.

Full thesis here open.substack.com/pub/candid…

As the first backer of Arch & having witnessed its progress since inception, we now have a new definition of what it feels like to be on a rocket ship. @Evanbfish @PortalVentures

Quantum is the new meta—but building a quantum L1 is as ludicrous as asking everyone to move & permanently live in a nuclear bunker. So, what's the play? At @PortalVentures, a key criterion for underwriting a new company is simple: Will this asset still matter in 10 years? Today, I'd like to use our investment in @quipnetwork to show how we build thesis, source, and make bets. This thesis includes Part I: Our research on the opportunity sets at the intersection of quantum and crypto Part II: Investment memo behind Quip Network—a deal that took us over 6 months to find Table of Content Part I 1. No, It’s Not Too Early 2. What Does the Post-Quantum Era Even Mean? 3. Crypto x Quantum: The Defensive vs. Offensive Opportunities Part II 4. Why the Quantum Thesis Is So Hard 5. What Does “Good” Look Like? 6. @quipnetwork & Why It’s the Right Solution Links to thesis👇

The big bang 🔥 Another bluechip coming out of the @PennBlockchain @Penn crypto mafia. Thrilled to be not only the angel but also the co-lead of the round by @PortalVentures @evanbfish

Calling all undergrads, Gen Zers, and high schoolers: one of the most requested roles from our portfolio companies is an "intern" personality to hack social media growth (TikTok, Twitter, RedNote, etc.). I get it - you're busy recruiting for your serious full-time internships or jobs at the OpenAI of the world. Tbh same here when I was an undergrad. But think of it this way: this the best call option for your career: 1. It doesn't affect your "normal" full time job search 2. You will be compensated competitively in cash / token during your school year 3. If the startup pops, you will get to say you were an early employee or even join it full time My DMs are open if you're interested in exploring these opportunities. I'd be happy to personally connect you with our portfolio companies that are actively hiring. You can see some of our portfolio companies on our website 👇

What a fun session geeking out on web3 data & centralized computing! Can’t wait for the video to come out and big shout out to the all-star panelists @storj @ankr @Filecoin and amazing host @computecoinnet!

What a baller merch at the Yellowcake Club by @uraniumdigital_

We at @PortalVentures are proud to co-lead @SkyTradeNetwork's pre-seed round with @Modular_Capital. @SkyTradeNetwork is refreshing from every aspect: blue ocean market + category creator in DePAT + real demand and supply + a founder with proven track record of successful execution nitter.app/dotcuriouscat/status/1… Now comes the best part: SkyTrade is live! Register your airspace today: app.sky.trade Points and referral program 👀 sky.trade

I still believe “Blockchain” the TECH can be decoupled from “cryptocurrency,” at least for enterprise use cases In my consulting days writing Blockchain PoCs for F500s, the distinct value-add are 1. Disintermediate 2. Automate 3. Verifiability Which of ^ actually needs token?

Been seeing interesting overlaps between RWA & DePIN because both touch on offchain assets. Where do we draw the line when they ll both have tokens? A startup is RWA when token=digital representation of asset (whether it’s financial assets like bonds or physical assets like energy) A startup is DePIN when token = currency to pay for onchain activities in the ecosystem, e.g. making storage deals, rendering compute jobs, posting/collecting data onchain RWA is still a software business model (like Opensea, the marketplace infrastructure needs of be maintained centrally in most cases) vs. DePIN is a protocol business model (human costs become a revenue driver in the long run) Very different.

Photos finally came out from #PBC @PennBlockchain Conference 23 - Value Accrual Panel Gotta say, Fat Protocol will always be in style ;) @alekslarsen @jmonegro @chiajy2000

Here’s the tldr thread if you only have 3 min

Lots of Decentralized GPU craze but what constitutes a MOAT for these “@gensynai” of the world when all go them are essentially marketplaces between computer power <> compute jobs? Hint: access to supply side, aka GPUs/CPUs Imo, the winner shall exhibit below key traits 1. (Supply side) Easiest onboarding for CPU/GPU providers to sign on to the network as a “miner” 2. (Supply side) Streamlined integration with data storage & delivery providers (centralized like @awscloud @Cloudflare + decentralized like @Filecoin @FilecoinSaturn) ^ prob one of the biggest adoption challenges I see because AI is much more than just compute = storage + retrieve + compute) 3. (Supply side) artfully crafted Tokenomics that give secondary incentive to miners via token performance -> as additional revenue stream from block rewards 4. (Demand side) offer enterprise-grade SLA for reliable & verifiable compute. Cost is one factor but (especially) enterprise customers care more about CYA - no one gets fired from choosing AWS Real winner has not emerged yet. @rendernetwork @RunOnFlux @akashnet @exa_bits @golemproject @opentensor

Beyond ideology: Three Material Benefits of Decentralized Infrastructure in Web3 1. Cheaper and potentially more performant 2. Lay the bedrock for new categories of innovation 3. Unlock closed doors, so to speak Let’s dive in & full thesis here curiouscat178.substack.com/p… 1/13

First of many team photos! “Here’s what you have to believe”

Been noticing a lot of founders in web3 building “features” vs. “products”. What’s the difference? One is monetizable hence investable vs. the other can accrue usage but not value. Why this matters? A thread 1/8

Why I’m more confident than ever to bet my career on web3 amid a crypto winter - a thread

Heard some people compare Block Reward to CAC - I think differently & here’s how - Miners/Validators = capital asset - Block reward = capital depreciation - CAC = costs to attract builders (hackathons, grants, community, marketing) From spitballing with @evanbfish - a thread

Coined a new term today. DePAT = Decentralized Physical Asset Tokenization, at the intersection of DePIN and RWA. As crypto turns into a fiction novel with all the hype narratives, could DePAT be another cavalry to turn crypto real?

Candidly speaking I have a hard time buying into the grandiose vision of AIML/LLM on chain - more than happy to be proven wrong here but hear me out 1. LLM need data + algorithm + GPU 2. Big tech has supply advantage to all of the above (and maybe that’s what we are trying to change), but the reality is they also have the best models 3. Sure let’s fast forward and somehow we got an equally-robust decentralized ChatGPT: who’s paying for the cost to verify? zkml or TEE or whatever proof generation costs $$ 4. Offchain AIML: You dont need to pay to verify the outcome you are getting from Google Bard. Big tech to output query correctly and honestly = Deadlock outcome in game theory because a. Your data is the most valuable to them, and no point to give you false query output to risk that b. You are small potato to them and they prob dont care enough to falsify output to you c. They prob dont have a reason to act maliciously, because getting caught will cost them a lot more (look at Zuckerberg getting grilled in congressional hearing over stuff he was negligent to - let alone if intentional) 5. Offchain AIML: will you pay money each time to use a clunkier AIML model just for the ability to police the query work done by the model in the background? I really dunno about that 🤷🏻‍♀️

That feeling when you led first checks into companies with real magic ✨

University conferences are just the best - always! Hopping from @PennBlockchain - Yale (4/6) - then Harvard (4/12) - Cornell (4/26)

Want to share a mental model that's been integral to how I approach work and life. Let’s call it: the “Leakage Theory.” The core idea: minimize unnoticed energy leaks to maximize your “Goal Throughput.” Leakage shows up in many forms 👇

DataNFTs & DataDAOs will dismantle the autocracy in today's data economy while keeping the incumbents (aka Big Tech) happy - here's how 1/11

If it's not obvious enough — and this is what I tell all of my portcos: the ONLY way for investors + founders to make money is to build a company that's here to stay. We all know the game of low-float, TGE playbook, and short-term pump. But hey, neither investors nor the team actually harvest anything until at least a year later — and really, it's over the vesting period and beyond, barring any funky secondary/OTC business. The real victims of short-term orientation aren't retail. It's the teams + investors. I’ve always found it funny that CT pits investors’ interests against the team — but please, both investors + teams get dumped on by speculators and traders And the ONLY way for founders + investors to get meaningful reward for their time + capital is long-term orientation: the project needs to gain real traction and earn the right for staying power. It's ridiculous that I'm calling this out but real money comes from real value creation. Calling for real builders.

Crypto at its core = Financialization + Gamification Financialization drives participation Gamification drives addiction w/ @Evanbfish @vikramcantsingh @PortalVentures

Concluding PBC25 with some pictures & stats: 800 conference attendees and 800 hackathon signups. This is my 3rd year of volunteer duty for the @PennBlockchain Conference. Planning an event of this scale is indubitably consuming, especially for a team of 3-4, but it's truly one of the most rewarding experiences, time and time again. None of this huge turnout could have been possible without the small but mighty planning committee @vikramcantsingh @winniewngg @firstc0in See you at the next one!

UX Rant: @WeChatApp still blows @telegram out of the water even w/o the mini-apps functions As a native user of WeChat, I’ve been “forced” to use @telegram cuz crypto & @WhatsApp cuz MBA. I can definitely tell you that these “wannabe WeChats” have a LONG WAY to go - a thread

Getting ready for a bustling crypto summer in NYC - starting to get some IRL Penn Quaker Alum & friends events going locally & at conferences. Action: fill this form out for invites or interest in sponsoring forms.gle/84uFVMULVWNLX9He7 @PennBlockchain

7. Endless permutations of POF Upstream (tx) - Wallet - Searchers bundle - Private RPC @foldfinance @blocknative - User intent layer EIP4337 - MEV rebate @dualityxyz @rook @wallchain_ @kolibrio_mev Downstream - Validator - Wholesaler (MM) - BS auction @dflow

In the context of onboarding normies, what if the premise of “the more trustless the better” is wrong? What if the “trust” element in the current system is a feature not a bug? What if users entrust their assets to others because 1. They don’t trust themselves to not make “human error” 2. They are relieved from the psychological burden of self custody & manage their net worth/ properties 3. They have a scapegoat to go to if sh*t hit the fan 4. It’s easier to tell someone your “intent” (wealth management goals) vs. execute yourselves. Analogous to how it’s faster to call customer service vs. fix the computer yourself 5. They have more faith in the expertise of the trusted party vs. themselves Maybe the element of “trustlessness” should not be the point especially for consumer-facing products. Its perceived value to users are entirely subjective and dependent on users’ philosophical beliefs & crypto nativity.

Exactly - the right answer is never so "on the nose"

Brain food for everyone: here's a running repository of great reads/research/resources/mental models in crypto & venture since 2022. Continuously updating - feel free to suggest adds curiouscat178.substack.com/p…

Huge thank you to these contributors & experts interviewed @jnthnvctr @blockhiro @protocollabs @storj @StorjSupport @ArweaveTeam @stefaanweb3 @DavidVorick @Filebase @computecoinnet @GlitterProtocol @spaceandtime @Web3Q_io @functionland @timdcg @ralexstokes

Why I still stand with Fat Protocol in 2023 - A recap of the evolution of the Fat Protocol thesis to date & why it's still the most directional and relevant thesis Full read here: curiouscat178.substack.com/p…

Mark my words: “X to earn” in crypto will come back. This time it will be different and here to stay.

Super thrilled to announce that the Annual Penn Blockchain Conference will be brought to you in person at the beautiful Penn Campus on Feb 10-12, 2023. RSVP forms.gle/rphmrLT25P6fyR8K9 @PennBlockchain @Penn @Wharton @ChundaMcCain

14/15 Shoutout to SMEs below for reviewing my draft & providing feedback: @evanbfish of @PortalVentures @KevinWilliams & @kyleellicott of @BTCFrontierFund @andrerserra of @Stacks @JasonSoraVC of SoraVC @AleksisTapper of @tokenterminal @Old_Samster

Today scope of NFT is confined to the financialization of “digital goods” @__vaporware__ expands scope of NFT to the financialization of “digital events”

If you’re coming to Token2049, I’m hosting a Penn & Friends Meetup on behalf of Penn Blockchain — open to alumni of Penn/Wharton + partner universities. Come through and grab me if you’re exploring ideas to build or looking for your first check! RSPV 👇Link

In FOUR days! See you this Friday & Saturday (2/23 & 2/24) at @PennBlockchain Conference for the largest student & alumni-run Digital Assets & Blockchain Conference! Expect heavy-hitting panelists from the top of their fields across startups, Wall Street, and Venture Capital. Check out the full lineup, and latest agenda here ➡ lnkd.in/eB6ekz5i & Grab your free tickets here ➡️ lnkd.in/gYejmQZQ

A last min tweet as farewell to the best year yet. Too much to be thankful for in 2023 & to be excited about in 2024. LFG ⚡️

One chart to TLDR for you the non-philosophical benefits of decentralized data infra (storage + retrieval + compute) in web3.

Such a joy watching our first-check portcos slaying out there Big Congratz to @proofofmud @0xfinetuned @firstc0in

MBA exams are like EIP4844 Pre-exam cram -> batching learning from literal zero knowledge Taking exam -> posting & settling formula & theory blobs 5 min after exam -> blobs pruned 🙃

The long-awaited bull market is here - yet it strains the mind even more than a bear. In bear, the fight is fear to buy. In bull, the war is greed to sell.

Should’ve tweeted this a month ago when I first said it, but guess now isn’t too late. Lots of VCs / hedge fund managers worry there won’t be another altcoin season. Disagree. Fresh retail liquidity will always look for beta plays to outperform BTC ETH SOL (> 2-3x), but won’t have the degen stamina to sit in front of a screen 24/7 chasing a 0.01% chance at a 1000x on Pump. Sure you can lever up BTC ETF but most retail fresh blood likely won’t be sophisticated traders comfortable with perps on day 1. Instead they buy alts that: 1.Have been around/have heard of - won’t die 2.They can somewhat understand Altcoin season will be 100% back—but only for the “blue chips.” Blue chip = Lindyness + continues to ship / show progress + has a dedicated team (and visible) In crypto, some die, some rug. 80% of the job is just to survive. It always comes back - as long as you keep it going

10/15 2. The “NFTs” and beyond - Ordinals & Runes by @rodarmor - BRC20 by @domodata - Indexer-less NFT issuance @atomicalsxyz - BRC-721E by @BitcoinMiladys @OrdinalsMarket_ @xverse - Ordinal Lending @LiquidiumFi - Oracle-less SRC-2O & ORC-Cash

On behalf of @PennBlockchain & commissioned by professor @kwerb, we are compiling a Upenn/Wharton Crypto Network Registry of Penn alum & friends for ongoing university & alumni engagements forms.gle/rSFc3yxFJhG9oE68A

Web3 Capital Allocators' Dilemma & Myopia curiouscat817.substack.com/p… Here’s the TLDR - a thread

Ditto

Hi gen3 Monke

Shoutout to these powerful brains for their feedback 1/2 @ThogardPvP of @0xPFL @thegostep @ankitchiplunkar of Frontier.tech @mcutler of @blocknative @tomhschmidt @bertcmiller of Flashbots @rainandcoffee @SamPeurifoy @MuratLite of @primev_xyz

Currently doing a research piece on "the future of web3 storage: the battle of decentralized vs. centralized storage." If you are an expert or a founder in the space, please DM - would love to chat & potentially feature what you are building @Filebase @DavidVorick @zixuanzh 1/

My daily best "there are so much to learn dude. i have a dream of just sitting on a beach, tan, and read. MLK would judge my dream, but it's THE dream”

It’s no secret that at Portal, we enjoy thinking in mental models — for startups, crypto, or capital. Occasionally, I also write about my mental models in life as inspiration surfaces. This is one of those pieces, a WIP framework to map out how we experience joy and pain. May it find its own audience Making Sense of Our Inner World: A Mental Model for Joy and Jitter

Go big or go home

Protocol will always be FAT because top app will inevitably turn into protocol biz model in the app chain era

Asked a founder in DD today, totally out of the blue, “how do you know when to give up?” Couldn’t have imagined a better answer — especially in crypto: “from my XYZ research & experience, the pain point is just that real. I won’t stop until I fix it - this company is mine to lose” So bullish. Stay tuned.

13/15 Additionally, exciting BTC-centric initiatives have been blossoming: @BTCFrontierFund, Bitcoin Startup Labs @btc_albert @OVioHQ BTC base camp, @L1Fxyz by @domodata, Wolf Incubator, Bitcoin Builders Association, etc.

“The battle between every startup and the incumbent comes down to whether the startup gets distribution before the incumbent gets innovation” – Alex Rampell Not this time. Incumbents in the AI era have both innovation & distribution - how can startups win?

HBC was one of the most high signal Con last year - excited to return & join the investor panel. See you soon!

4b/ Monetization option 2: tokenize SUAVE w/ two possible designs + tradeoffs option 1. governance token (mellow and avoid user friction) option 2. utility/fee token (increase BD/adoption risk but comes with higher upside too) or some hybrid see pros vs. cons in article

11/15 3. Side chains: @Liquid_BTC @rootstock_io @TheTNetwork and interop layer such as @InterlayHQ 4. Rollups/L2s: - EVM: @botanix @BsquaredNetwork - ZK Rollups: @alpenlabs @Bison_Labs @chainway_xyz - DA approach:@kasarLabs 5. BitVM by @robin_linus

2/ Overall, my view on the business viability of MEV went from optimistic → pessimistic → euphoric after this 6-week binge mental journey below -> “Exciting - 1B Rev already” -> “Wait Flashbots made no money - is there no value accrual?” -> “Wow tons of $$ oppo coming up”

15/15 @0xfishylosopher of @StanfordCrypto Jian & Haotian of AmberGroup @wordsforgot of @ForesightVen @KyleSamani of Multicoin Logan Allen of @ZorpZK @vikramcantsingh of @PennBlockchain @dapp_whisperer of @BadgerDAO @wooooer of @DiscocoLabs Jake Hamilton @BitcoinUndisc

Breakpoint is always buzzing - can’t wait to share Portal’s latest protocol investing perspectives on stage at @SolanaConf #Breakpoint2023 Grab your tix here -> solana.com/breakpoint Oct 30-Nov 3 See you in Amsterdam!

This is fascinating: been told by many data-centric web3 entrepreneurs that a common reject reason from VCs is “they don’t get what what are doing” or "can't DD" So what are we talking about when we make “self-sovereignty” a tagline in our thesis book?

"Been noodling on what gives a VC the 'right to win' in early-stage venture, before PMF. I think it's twofold, both relating to intuition: Accuracy: sharp intuition & read on the founder (killer or not) + the space (tailwind). High-accuracy intuition takes time to hone through reading, reflection, and recognizing that fleeting, ethereal 'gut feel.' Attunement: the ability to trust and act on intuition with speed. The more attuned you are to your read, the faster you can execute on it. If the accuracy is high, it's only a matter of time until your bet plays out. Then why make founders wait? Early confidence counts. It's an art more than a science. The real homework is from within."

6/15 There are two directions we see: making BTC more… A. capital efficient (make more panda babies) by extending BTC’s identity as digital gold & creating basic financial products while minimizing risks. E.g. trustless staking, L2s, BTC-backed stablecoin

Honored to moderate Wharton’s first Metaverse Industry Talk with esteemed thought leaders like @jamie247 from @OVioHQ and Brandon Hoffman 👾 🍌 from @SamsungNext This is an open event for everyone! Don’t forget to RSVP to get access into the Metaverse platform @GamerjibeSocia