The Network State Podcast

#36 - Arjun Khemani

12 snips
Feb 18, 2026
Arjun Khemani, author, podcaster, and privacy advocate who worked on Airchat and with Zcash. He discusses why on-chain privacy matters for sovereignty and creativity. He outlines the moral case for scaling Zcash and debates on-chain vs off-chain tradeoffs. He talks about making private payments practical and Gen Zcash efforts to make privacy engaging.
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ANECDOTE

COVID Radicalization And AirChat

  • Arjun dropped out of school during COVID after reading books and blogging and worked at AirChat before joining Zcash.
  • He traces his radicalization into crypto to self-education during lockdown and web projects like AirChat.
ANECDOTE

Personal Privacy Shift

  • Arjun stopped doxxing his location after realizing surveillance risks and values on-chain privacy for freedom.
  • He connects personal privacy practices to broader political and creative freedoms.
ADVICE

Prioritize On‑Chain Scaling

  • Scale private blockchains on-chain rather than relying solely on off-chain hacks like Lightning or centralized custodians.
  • Balaji urges Zcash to pursue on-chain scalability so privacy can be widely usable and resilient.
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