Bankless

Ansgar Dietrichs, an Ethereum Foundation researcher focused on scaling and protocol design, breaks down the ZK EVM and why verifying blocks without re-execution matters. He sketches the three scaling bottlenecks and how real-time proofs, RISC-V compiled clients, and blobs could shift verification. He outlines a phased rollout from optional to mandatory proofs and a rough path toward ZK-native Ethereum by 2030.

A legal battle erupts over prediction markets and who gets to define truth. AI-powered markets and autonomous agents emerge as a potential crypto killer app. Base splits from the OP stack while Layer 2 economics and token flows shift. Harvard pivots into Ethereum and institutions start buying DeFi tokens. Leadership changes at the Ethereum Foundation and signs of life for the Clarity Act surface.

Lyn Alden, macro investor and writer known for long-term fiscal and monetary research. She breaks down the “gradual print” era and why fiscal dominance is reshaping central banks. She explains gold’s rally, a possible multipolar monetary order with gold and Bitcoin playing different roles, and what Kevin Warsh-style Fed policy might look like in practice.

They fisk Coinbase’s Super Bowl ad and what it reveals about crypto’s collapsed public story. They unpack a brutal selloff, record IBIT volume and the possibility of forced TradFi liquidations. Prediction markets and Robinhood’s rapid growth get center stage. They weigh LayerZero’s L1 bid, MegaETH/Aztec launches, Vitalik calling ETH a store of value, BlackRock tokenizing on Uniswap, and a weird missing tungsten cube.

Jim Bianco, market analyst known for sharp macro and market-cycle takes. He breaks down last week’s fourfold selloff and why AI is crushing software build costs. He explains how crypto traded like software, how TradFi ‘synthetic Bitcoin’ amplifies volatility, and why the next crypto surge must be about replacement and building.

Johann Kerbrat, GM of Crypto at Robinhood, leads the company’s tokenization, L2, and wallet efforts. He breaks down Robinhood Chain’s testnet and finance-first L2 design. They discuss tokenized stocks vs traditional exchanges, liquidity and routing solutions, the role of a Robinhood-certified app program, and how wallets and institutional integrations fit the new onchain stack.

Namik, product and biz lead shaping MegaETH’s strategy and app incubation. Lei Yang, systems engineer leading MegaETH’s architecture and stress tests. They unpack MegaETH’s ultra-low latency, massive throughput, and state-trie redesign. They discuss the 11.4B tx stress test, gas and EVM tweaks, USDM stablecoin economics, proximity markets for MEV, and an aggressive app-incubation plan.

A tweet from Vitalik resets Ethereum’s scaling story and sparks debate about the rollup-first plan. They explore why rollup interoperability and stage-two progress lagged. Conversation shifts to L1 scaling via ZK technology as a possible new direction for 2026. The discussion covers the fading of ‘L2s are Ethereum,’ what second-gen L2s must do to stand out, and the community’s mixed reactions.

Markets are in free fall as crypto, tech and gold sell off together. They explore why crowded trades are unwinding and what a hawkish Fed pick could mean for rates and risk assets. Vitalik’s shift on L2 rollups and the future of Ethereum gets unpacked. They cover huge institutional paper losses, a stablecoin yield standoff, and how OG sellers are reshaping the market.

Davide Crapis, protocol engineer working on agent identity and interoperability. Austin Griffith, hands-on Ethereum builder known for developer tooling and on-chain agent demos. They map agent stacks like ERC-8004 identity and x402 payments. They recount OpenClaw bot labs, agents getting wallets and treasuries, prompt-injection and security risks, and why tooling and agent-native wallets matter.