Balaji and Steven Glinert on Network States, Supply Chains, and Allied Coalition Strategy
Theo Jaffee and Sophia Puccini speak with Balaji Srinivasan and Steven Glinert about the shifting balance of power between nations, networks, and technology.
The conversation covers China’s industrial rise, America’s manufacturing challenges, the role of alliances in a multipolar world, and whether the internet is becoming a political force independent of traditional nation states. They discuss supply chains, technological sovereignty, decentralization, and competing visions for the future global order.
Along the way, Balaji outlines ideas from the Network State and Network School, while both guests debate how technology, economics, and political power may evolve over the coming decades.
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Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details please see a16z.com/disclosures.
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Balaji and Taylor Lorenz on AI and Media
Theo Jaffee speaks with Balaji Srinivasan and Taylor Lorenz about how AI is reshaping media, trust, and online communication. Building on prior public disagreements between the two, the conversation revisits core tensions around media, technology, and power in a rapidly changing information environment.
They discuss the breakdown of traditional information systems, the rise of AI-generated content, and why new models for verifying identity and truth may be necessary. The conversation lays out competing visions for the future of media, from decentralized “webs of trust” and cryptographic verification to the role of journalism, privacy, and public accountability.
Resources:
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Balaji Srinivasan: Prove Correct, Not Just Go Direct
Erik Torenberg and Theo Jaffee speak with Balaji Srinivasan, angel investor, entrepreneur, and author of The Network State, about how AI is transforming media, eroding trust, and reshaping how information is created and verified. They discuss why systems like hiring, journalism, and online communication are breaking under synthetic content, and what replaces them. The conversation also examines the role of cryptography, on-chain data, and new models of proof in rebuilding trust online.
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Balaji on Why AI Raises the Cost of Verification
a16z general partner Erik Torenberg speaks with Balaji Srinivasan, angel investor and entrepreneur, about why AI simultaneously reduces the cost of creation and increases the cost of verification, and what that tension means for the shape of the AI economy. They discuss why AI drives companies toward the "trusted tribe" model of the Chinese internet, why physical world tasks are easier to automate than digital ones, why shortcuts only work for experts, and why AI makes everyone a CEO rather than making CEOs obsolete.
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Steven Sinofsky & Balaji Srinivasan on the Future of AI, Tech, & the Global World Order
There’s been a wave of M&A deals lately - Meta and Scale, Windsurf and Google - and a lot of it points to something bigger: how regulation, capital, and innovation are colliding in 2025.
In this episode Erik Torenberg brings together Steven Sinofsky, former Microsoft Executive and Balaji Srinivasan, founder of the Network School, and author of the Network State to break it all down.
From acquihires to “acquifires,” from FTC crackdowns to the deeper battle between the state and the network, this is a sharp conversation on the future of tech and power.
Resources
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Balaji on How Tech Truly Wins Media
What really caused the breakdown between tech and media—and what comes next?
Erik Torenberg sits down with Balaji Srinivasan (entrepreneur, investor, and author of The Network State) to explore the long-building conflict between Silicon Valley and legacy journalism. Balaji explains how the collapse of traditional media business models gave rise to political capture, clickbait, and adversarial coverage of the tech industry.
They discuss why “going direct” is no longer optional, how tech became the villain in establishment narratives, and what it would take to build a new truth infrastructure - from decentralized content creation to cryptographic verification.
This episode covers power, distribution, and the future of media, with a signature mix of historical insight, social analysis, and Balaji’s forward-looking frameworks.
Timecodes:
0:00 Introduction
1:26 The Media vs. Tech Conflict
2:11 The Collapse of Journalism Revenue
2:39 Rise of Wokeness and Political Realignment
6:50 State vs. Network: A New Framework
9:00 The Power Structure of Media Institutions
19:25 The Role of Distribution and the Internet
29:20 The Social War: Red vs. Blue America
30:05 X Day and the Shift in Social Media Power
42:56 Strategies for Technologists: Go Direct
48:36 The Importance of Individual Creators
1:10:00 Decentralized Truth and the Ledger of Record
1:36:00 The Future of Media, Democracy, and Equality
1:37:08 Conclusion & Final Thoughts
Resources
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Balaji Srinivasan: How AI Will Change Politics, War, and Money
a16z General Partners Erik Torenberg and Martin Casado sit down with technologist and investor Balaji Srinivasan to explore how the metaphors we use to describe AI—whether as god, swarm, tool, or oracle—reveal as much about us as they do about the technology itself.
Balaji, best known for his work in crypto and network states, also brings a deep background in machine learning. Together, the trio unpacks the evolution of AI discourse, from monotheistic visions of a singular AGI to polytheistic interpretations shaped by culture and context. They debate the practical and philosophical: the current limits of AI, why prompts function like high-dimensional programs, and what it really takes to “close the loop” in AI reasoning.
This is a systems-level conversation on belief, control, infrastructure, and the architectures that might govern future societies.
Timecodes:
0:00 Introduction: The Polytheistic AGI Framework
1:46 Personal Journeys in AI and Crypto
3:18 Monotheistic vs. Polytheistic AGI: Competing Paradigms
8:20 The Limits of AI: Chaos, Turbulence, and Predictability
9:29 Platonic Ideals and Real-World Systems
14:10 Decentralized AI and the End of Fast Takeoff
14:34 Surprises in AI Progress: Language, Locomotion, and Double Descent
25:45 Prompting, Verification, and the Age of the Phrase
29:44 AI, Crypto, and the Grounding Problem
34:26 Visual vs. Verbal: Where AI Excels and Struggles
37:19 The Challenge of Markets, Politics, and Adversarial Systems
40:11 Amplified Intelligence: AI as a Force Multiplier
43:37 The Polytheistic Counterargument: Convergence and Specialization
48:17 AI’s Impact on Jobs: Specialists, Generalists, and the Future of Work
57:36 Security, Drones, and Digital Borders
1:03:41 AI, Power, and the Balance of Control
1:06:33 The Coming Anti-AI Backlash
1:09:10 Global Implications: Labor, Politics, and the Future
Resources:
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Rebuilding Civilization from First Principles: Inside Balaji’s Network State Vision | E2145
Today’s show: Jason sits down with Balaji Srinivasan in Singapore to explore how he's turning years of theory into reality with Network School—the first node of a broader vision for internet-native, decentralized societies. Balaji explains how these “sharp societies” combine education, co-living, and startup culture to create physical communities aligned by values, not geography. From digital nomads to aspiring founders, people are opting into these new systems as an alternative to broken traditional governance. They discuss everything from Starbase and sovereignty to the future of democracy, Bitcoin, and America’s place in a multipolar world.
Timestamps:
(0:00) Introduction of Balaji Srinivasan and the impact of Bitcoin(1:39) The concept of Network School and Network State, including startup societies(4:05) Benefits and historical context of network effects in communities(7:08) Economic and social benefits of Network School(9:35) Global appeal and diverse motivations of Network School participants
(10:22) Squarespace - Use offer code TWIST to save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain at https://www.Squarespace.com/TWIST(12:30) Media perspectives on new societies and the challenge of self-determination
(19:35) Vanta - Get $1000 off your SOC 2 at https://www.vanta.com/twist(24:00) Personal experiences with US state migration and critique of California politics(27:11) The right to exit, thousand city system, and the two-party system
(29:44) Vouched - Trust for agents that’s built for builders like you. Check it out at http://vouched.id/twist(31:09) Choosing a country like choosing a college and impressions of new cities(34:03) America's global reputation, politics, and the decline of empires(39:25) Dollar devaluation, Bitcoin's future, and global currency dynamics(41:26) Global power struggles: China versus the Internet and US demographics(44:01) Trump's tariffs, MAGA, and international trade realities(48:12) China's manufacturing dominance and US diplomatic legacy(54:39) The Internet's counterbalance to China and Bitcoin's future risks(1:00:31) Role of cryptocurrencies, quantum computing, and Bitcoin security(1:02:12) Cryptocurrency challenges and the resilience of Bitcoin(1:03:27) Network school state community and opportunities for investors(1:04:01) Closing remarks and final pitch for Network School
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Balaji Srinivasan on Polytheistic AI, Human-AI Symbiosis, and Prospects for AI Control
Balaji Srinivasan, investor, former CTO at Coinbase and GP at a16z, and writer of The Network State, joins Nathan to discuss polytheistic AI and AI gods, human-AI symbiosis, how AI will be controlled, and much more. If you need an ecommerce platform, check out our sponsor Shopify: https://shopify.com/cognitive for a $1/month trial period.
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TIMESTAMPS:
(00:00) - Episode Preview
(00:06:07) - Evolution of AI Systems
(00:09:39) - Challenges of AI Robustness
(00:29:54) - Intersection of AI and Politics
(00:52:14) - Regulation
(00:52:44) - Slippery slope of precedent setting
(00:54:00) - Role of AI in political chaos
(00:54:41) - Emergence of decentralized AI
(01:05:39) - AI's future as amplified intelligence
(01:1300) - Polytheistic model of AI
(01:32:00) - Role of AI in Habitat Degradation
(01:33:32) - AI's ability to do differential diagnosis
(01:34:04) - ABC of economic apocalypse: AI, Bitcoin, China
(01:36:00) - Evolution of AI in chess and medicine
(01:38:22) - Difference between AI existential threat and economic disruption
(01:40:19) - Impact of cryptography on public infrastructure
(02:07:40) - Role of tribalism in AI
This show is produced by Turpentine: a network of podcasts, newsletters, and more, covering technology, business, and culture — all from the perspective of industry insiders and experts. We’re launching new shows every week, and we’re looking for industry-leading sponsors — if you think that might be you and your company, email us at erik@turpentine.co.
NOT A DRILL! Balaji Bets the Dollar will Hyperinflate to Zero
Balaji Srinivasan is back on Bankless with alarming takes. According to Balaji, in the next 90 days, the Dollar will hyperinflate—and the Bitcoin price will skyrocket to $1 Million.
He’s backed up these claims with a million dollar bet. With these dire predictions and a track record of strong takes, we needed to hear him out.
Who should we bring on next to counter these claims?
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——— Timestamps:
0:00 Intro 7:50 Weeks when Decades Happen 9:30 $1 Million Bitcoin Bet 16:20 Balaji’s Track Record 19:00 Pandemic https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1222921758375927808 23:15 Hyperinflation https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1636797265317867520 27:50 US Banking Failure https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1636822077775941633 32:50 The Banks are Insolvent https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FrXKYKcakAAdJwe?format=jpg&name=medium https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1637671174271565825 35:38 More Failure, More Funding https://archive.is/0Jww3#selection-731.0-731.286 40:30 FDIC and the Fed https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/eu/10874230/Jean-Claude-Juncker-profile-When-it-becomes-serious-you-have-to-lie.html https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/monetary20230312b.htm 44:18 Bank Runs https://qz.com/the-feds-discount-window-is-lending-to-banks-at-2008-le-1850237214 https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1637859435149398016 https://www.straitstimes.com/business/banking/wall-street-giants-move-to-rescue-first-republic-bank https://www.federalreserve.gov/newsevents/pressreleases/other20230315a.htm 52:25 Escaping to Gold https://twitter.com/spectatorindex/status/1637544100663803904 57:50 Exporting Inflation https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2011/jul/17/bread-food-arab-spring https://www.wsj.com/graphics/red-economy-blue-economy/ https://howmuch.net/articles/rise-and-fall-dollar 1:04:30 Bitcoin in Wartime https://pbs.twimg.com/media/FrrfQuaaUAEFYev?format=jpg&name=medium 1:10:45 Capital Allocation https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1488988253411708931 1:13:30 The Only Real Banks https://twitter.com/koeppelmann/status/1637898298005626881 1:20:49 Why Now? https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1637329482687324161 https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1637868839890472960 https://twitter.com/0xfoobar/status/1637855829750628353 https://www.google.com/search? q=sivb&oq=sivb&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i10i131i433i512l2j0i10i512l2j69i64l3.1066j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 https://www.google.com/search?q=usd+btc&oq=usd+btc&aqs=chrome..69i57j0i512l4j69i64l3.1207j1j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8 1:28:15 Do This Now https://twitter.com/MaxCRoser/status/1355652800588505089 1:34:52 A Year From Now https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PHe0bXAIuk0
----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
Disclosure. From time-to-time I may add links in this newsletter to products I use. I may receive commission if you make a purchase through one of these links. Additionally, the Bankless writers hold crypto assets. See our investment disclosures here: https://www.bankless.com/disclosures
Balaji Srinivasan on The Network State
In this episode, we’ll explore the concept of The Network State with Balaji Srinivasan. As the world becomes more digital, it also becomes more distributed. This is obvious on the individual level – how you order goods, the way you chat with friends, and the news you consume… all from a handheld computer. It’s also becoming more obvious at the company level. The pandemic shook the world into remote work and many companies have decided that maybe work can be done in ways they never imagined. But what about the state – whatever that means? Could the network rival the state?
In this episode we’ll explore what a nation state even is and how it may be challenged by a new Leviathan: the network. We also cover the difference between a nation and a state, how constants become variables, the cloud continent, digital power, your identity stack, calibrating risk, polycentric law, cloud regulations, building fast with atoms, founding vs inheriting, the powerful vs the powerless, and just about everything in between.
Timestamps:
0:00 - Introduction
2:41 - Nation vs state
14:38 - Constants becoming variables
16:12 - The cloud continent
20:10 - The three leviathans
30:00 - Digital power
37:20 - The identity stack
53:22 - Cloud first, land last
55:49 - Diplomatic recognition
1:01:47 - Root access to land
1:06:35 - Calibrating risk as society
1:16:13 - Regulatory harmonization
1:28:15 - Polycentric law
1:34:49 - Building fast with atoms
1:38:57 - Looking to history
1:42:00 - Founding vs inheriting
1:50:46 - The one commandment
2:17:33 - The powerful vs powerless
2:28:46 - The competition for people
2:33:45 - Historical lines
2:42:23 - v3 of governance
Resources:
Balaji’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/balajis
Balaji’s website: https://balajis.com/
The Network State: https://thenetworkstate.com/
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#331 – Balaji Srinivasan: How to Fix Government, Twitter, Science, and the FDA
Balaji Srinivasan is an angel investor, tech founder, philosopher, and author of The Network State: How to Start a New Country. He was formerly the CTO of Coinbase and General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz. Please support this podcast by checking out our sponsors:
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EPISODE LINKS:
Balaji’s Twitter: https://twitter.com/balajis
Balaji’s Website: https://balajis.com
Books:
1. The Network State: https://thenetworkstate.com
2. Reputation and Power: https://amzn.to/3eyQiF6
3. Exit, Voice, and Loyalty: https://amzn.to/3TpuLNP
4. Seeing Like a State: https://amzn.to/3MJfvcD
Articles:
1. Bitcoin Is Civilization: https://www.commonsense.news/p/is-bitcoin-anarchy-or-civilization
2. Great Protocol Politics: https://foreignpolicy.com/2021/12/11/bitcoin-ethereum-cryptocurrency-web3-great-protocol-politics
3. Regulation, Disruption, and the Future: https://bit.ly/3CKY9Ys
4. The Measured Man: https://theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2012/07/the-measured-man/309018
5. Secret Document That Transformed China: https://npr.org/sections/money/2012/01/20/145360447/the-secret-document-that-transformed-china
6. Hollywood’s Missing Movies: https://reason.com/2000/06/01/hollywoods-missing-movies
7. New York Times Truth Campaign: https://adweek.com/agencyspy/droga5s-first-big-campaign-for-the-new-york-times-is-all-about-the-truth/126274
PODCAST INFO:
Podcast website: https://lexfridman.com/podcast
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– Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lexfridman
– Medium: https://medium.com/@lexfridman
OUTLINE:
Here’s the timestamps for the episode. On some podcast players you should be able to click the timestamp to jump to that time.
(00:00) – Introduction
(07:23) – Prime number maze
(33:35) – Government
(49:51) – The Network State
(59:55) – Pseudonymous economy
(1:23:41) – Exit
(1:38:23) – Building a network state
(2:26:09) – Wikipedia
(3:03:40) – Fixing science
(3:30:08) – Fixing the FDA
(5:01:16) – Longevity
(5:20:14) – Donald Trump’s ban from social media
(5:49:32) – War
(5:56:41) – Censorship
(6:10:40) – Social media
(6:26:56) – Wokeism and communism
(6:45:44) – Cryptocurrency
(7:03:17) – AI, AR, and VR
(7:15:15) – Advice for young people
(7:48:10) – Regulating logic
#519 - Balaji Srinivasan - Legacy Media Is Lying To You
Balaji Srinivasan is an entrepreneur and essayist, he was co-founder of Counsyl, former chief technology officer of Coinbase and former general partner at Andreessen Horowitz.
Our information diets are making us mentally fat. Whether it's fake news, mis or disinformation, state propaganda or conspiracy theories, the world is very difficult to navigate. Balaji also wants to start a new type of country, he has views on how to optimise your working day and he generates more new ideas than almost anyone. Today we get an insight into his thought process behind all of this.
Expect to learn why socialism always continues to arise across the world, how Balaji tracks all of the ideas he has in his head, why Singapore is a powerhouse of a new country, how immigration will deal with remote VR workers in India, why everyone should use a dashboard to track what's going on in their life, the key trick that the legacy media uses to manipulate you and much more...
Sponsors:
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Extra Stuff:
Read The Network State - https://thenetworkstate.com/
Check out Balaji's website - https://balajis.com/
Follow Balaji on Twitter - https://twitter.com/balajis
Get my free Reading List of 100 books to read before you die → https://chriswillx.com/books/
To support me on Patreon (thank you): https://www.patreon.com/modernwisdom
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131 - Rise of the Network State | Balaji Srinivasan
✨ DEBRIEF ✨ | Ryan & David's Unfiltered Thoughts on the Episode: https://shows.banklesshq.com/p/debrief-rise-of-the-network-state
Balaji Srinivasan is an investor, founder, and Former CTO of Coinbase and GP at a16z and author of The Network State, which will be the main focus of the podcast today.
The Network State explores ideas surrounding digital communities and the future of how we coordinate as a species. A startup society fosters the emergence of network unions, which evolve into a network archipelago—eventually calcifying into the network state.
As we muse about the fate of human systems, we explore mental models for understanding the digital revolution and how we can allow coordination to thrive.
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🔐 LEDGER | SECURE STAKING https://bankless.cc/Ledger
------ Topics Covered:
0:00 Intro 6:19 Common Denominators 8:50 Micro vs. Macro History 15:15 The Network State 19:05 Online Communities 23:50 Nation vs. The State 36:20 Why A Nation State 40:18 The One Commandment 1:02:44 Being Inside the Network State 1:08:00 Bankess x the Network State 1:13:38 What’s the Incentive? 1:19:30 Violence’s Role 1:33:48 Non-Wealthy Critique 1:38:53 Everyone Joins the Network State 1:44:20 Network State Action Items 1:48:46 Closing & Disclaimers
------ Resources:
Balaji https://twitter.com/balajis
The Network State https://thenetworkstate.com/
Dashboard https://thenetworkstate.com/dashboard
Vitalik’s Review https://vitalik.ca/general/2022/07/13/networkstates.html#what-is-a-network-state
One Commandment https://thenetworkstate.com/the-one-commandment
FDIC Insured Bank Charts & Fintech Tweets https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1351068210930601984
----- Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
The Chopping Block: A Network State in 10 Years? Balaji Srinivasan Says Yes - Ep. 379
Welcome to The Chopping Block! Crypto insiders Haseeb Qureshi, Tom Schmidt, and Tarun Chitra chop it up about the latest news in the digital asset industry. In this episode, Balaji Srinivasan discusses his latest book, “The Network State, how different digital tools like crypto will help empower network states, and analyzes how crypto fits into the current political environment.
Show topics: why Balaji wrote a book and why he is so enthralled with a digitized future
what a “network state” is, and what components of crypto are embedded into the idea
why Balaji is interested in “re-centralization”
why Balaji believes that networks states need to be recognized by real nations
what makes a network state better than a physical nation or digital community
why Balaji thinks a community of people who eat a keto diet could be the first network state
why Balaji thinks the network states will be a good thing
where Bitcoin maximalism fits into the left vs. right political divide, woke culture, and Christianity
what the overlap between politics and crypto will be going forward
what is the best way to learn, read, and debate “The Network State”
where crypto tools and communities have gone wrong so far and how the industry can improve going forward
what lessons Balaji learned from the tech bubble in the early 2000s
what Balaji’s over-under is for when the first network state will arrive
Balaji’s pitch for a 50:50 BTC/ETH portfolio (note: not investment advice)
Hosts Haseeb Qureshi, managing partner at Dragonfly Capital
https://twitter.com/hosseeb
Tom Schmidt, general partner at Dragonfly Capital
https://twitter.com/tomhschmidt
Tarun Chitra, managing partner at Robot Ventures
https://twitter.com/tarunchitra
Robert Leshner, founder of Compound
https://twitter.com/rleshner
Guest: Balaji Srinivasan Twitter: https://twitter.com/balajis
Episode Links
The Network State
https://thenetworkstate.com/
Technological Revolutions and Financial Capital
https://www.amazon.com/Technological-Revolutions-Financial-Capital-Dynamics/dp/1843763311
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
#606: Balaji S. Srinivasan — 5-10-Year Predictions, How to Start a New Country, Society-as-a-Service (SaaS), Bitcoin Maximalism, Memetic Warfare, How Prices Are Born, Moral Flippenings, The One Commandment, and The Power of Missionary over Mercenary
Brought to you by Eight Sleep’s Pod Pro Cover sleeping solution for dynamic cooling and heating, Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement, and Shopify global commerce platform providing tools to start, grow, market, and manage a retail business.
Balaji S. Srinivasan (@balajis) is an angel investor and entrepreneur. Formerly the CTO of Coinbase and general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, he was also the co-founder of Earn.com (acquired by Coinbase), Counsyl (acquired by Myriad), Teleport (acquired by Topia), and Coin Center.
He was named to the MIT Technology Review’s “Innovators Under 35,” won a Wall Street Journal Innovation Award, and holds a BS/MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering and an MS in Chemical Engineering, all from Stanford University. Balaji also teaches the occasional class at Stanford, including an online MOOC in 2013, which reached 250,000+ students worldwide.
His new book is The Network State: How To Start a New Country. You can also read it for free at 1729.com.
Please enjoy!
This episode is brought to you by Shopify! Shopify is one of my favorite platforms and one of my favorite companies. Shopify is designed for anyone to sell anywhere, giving entrepreneurs the resources once reserved for big business. In no time flat, you can have a great looking online store that brings your ideas to life, and you can have the tools to manage your day-to-day and drive sales. No coding or design experience required.
More than a store, Shopify grows with you, and they never stop innovating, providing more and more tools to make your business better and your life easier. Go to Shopify.com/Tim for a FREE 14-day trial and get full access to Shopify’s entire suite of features.
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This episode is also brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could use only one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually AG1 by Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system.
Right now, Athletic Greens is offering you their Vitamin D Liquid Formula free with your first subscription purchase—a vital nutrient for a strong immune system and strong bones. Visit AthleticGreens.com/Tim to claim this special offer today and receive the free Vitamin D Liquid Formula (and five free travel packs) with your first subscription purchase! That’s up to a one-year supply of Vitamin D as added value when you try their delicious and comprehensive all-in-one daily greens product.
*
[06:39] The current state of crypto and overall markets
[14:41] Market depth and the Overton window
[20:54] The challenges of identifying possible trends
[24:25] Does transhumanism need rebranding?
[27:13] Augmented reality glasses: the next big thing?
[38:10] Rethinking Icarus from a transhumanist, pro-innovation perspective
[59:20] DALL-E 2 as a compact programming language
[1:02:03] Peter Turchin and cliodynamics
[1:03:30] What is a network state?
[1:17:49] Humans like to fight over borders—even when they're invisible
[1:26:04] American anarchy
[1:46:55] Bitcoin vs. gold as an inflation hedge
[1:52:59] What needs to happen for Bitcoin to behave in the way Bitcoin holders would like it to behave?
[2:24:29] Society as a service: how the establishment of a network state could succeed—without devolving into a cult
[2:49:25] Chinese control; missionary over mercenary; innovation over top-down control
[3:00:57] India's upward trends
[3:05:57] Establishment disdain for tech interlopers (the feeling is mutual)
[3:11:40] Parting thoughts
*
For show notes and past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show, please visit tim.blog/podcast.
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#547: Balaji Srinivasan — Centralized China vs Decentralized World, The DeFi Matrix, Ascending vs Descending Trends, Bitcoin Mining as Energy Storage, Reputational Civil War, and Maximalism vs. Optimalism
Brought to you by Wealthfront automated investing and Eight Sleep’s Pod Pro Cover sleeping solution for dynamic cooling and heating.
“The monopoly of truth is upstream of the monopoly of violence.” — Balaji Srinivasan
Balaji S. Srinivasan (@balajis) is an angel investor and entrepreneur. Formerly the CTO of Coinbase and general partner at Andreessen Horowitz, he was also the co-founder of Earn.com (acquired by Coinbase), Counsyl (acquired by Myriad), Teleport (acquired by Topia), and Coin Center.
He was named to the MIT Technology Review’s “Innovators Under 35,” won a Wall Street Journal Innovation Award, and holds a BS/MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering and an MS in Chemical Engineering, all from Stanford University. Balaji also teaches the occasional class at Stanford, including an online MOOC in 2013, which reached 250,000+ students worldwide.
To learn more about Balaji’s most recent project, sign up at 1729.com, a newsletter that pays you. They’re giving out BTC each day for completing tasks and tutorials. Subscribers also receive chapters from Balaji’s free book, The Network State.
Please enjoy!
This episode is brought to you by Wealthfront! Wealthfront pioneered the automated investing movement, sometimes referred to as ‘robo-advising,’ and they currently oversee $20 billion of assets for their clients. It takes about three minutes to sign up, and then Wealthfront will build you a globally diversified portfolio of ETFs based on your risk appetite and manage it for you at an incredibly low cost.
Smart investing should not feel like a rollercoaster ride. Let the professionals do the work for you. Go to Wealthfront.com/Tim and open a Wealthfront account today, and you’ll get your first $5,000 managed for free, for life. Wealthfront will automate your investments for the long term. Get started today at Wealthfront.com/Tim.
*
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And now, my dear listeners—that’s you—can get $250 off the Pod Pro Cover. Simply go to EightSleep.com/Tim or use code TIM at checkout.
*
For show notes and past guests, please visit tim.blog/podcast.
Sign up for Tim’s email newsletter (“5-Bullet Friday”) at tim.blog/friday.
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Follow Tim:
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Past guests on The Tim Ferriss Show include Jerry Seinfeld, Hugh Jackman, Dr. Jane Goodall, LeBron James, Kevin Hart, Doris Kearns Goodwin, Jamie Foxx, Matthew McConaughey, Esther Perel, Elizabeth Gilbert, Terry Crews, Sia, Yuval Noah Harari, Malcolm Gladwell, Madeleine Albright, Cheryl Strayed, Jim Collins, Mary Karr, Maria Popova, Sam Harris, Michael Phelps, Bob Iger, Edward Norton, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Neil Strauss, Ken Burns, Maria Sharapova, Marc Andreessen, Neil Gaiman, Neil de Grasse Tyson, Jocko Willink, Daniel Ek, Kelly Slater, Dr. Peter Attia, Seth Godin, Howard Marks, Dr. Brené Brown, Eric Schmidt, Michael Lewis, Joe Gebbia, Michael Pollan, Dr. Jordan Peterson, Vince Vaughn, Brian Koppelman, Ramit Sethi, Dax Shepard, Tony Robbins, Jim Dethmer, Dan Harris, Ray Dalio, Naval Ravikant, Vitalik Buterin, Elizabeth Lesser, Amanda Palmer, Katie Haun, Sir Richard Branson, Chuck Palahniuk, Arianna Huffington, Reid Hoffman, Bill Burr, Whitney Cummings, Rick Rubin, Dr. Vivek Murthy, Darren Aronofsky, and many more.
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E48: The role of decentralization, China/US break down & more with Bestie Guestie Balaji Srinivasan
Show Notes:
0:00 Bestie Guestie Balaji Srinivasan is introduced
6:01 Balaji's day in the life, Coinbase background, comparing crypto with early 2000's p2p music industry, China's lawful evil
16:09 China declares crypto transactions illegal, comparing and contrasting the US and China's future outlook
39:43 Chances of a revolution in China, predictions for the next 1-2 decades
48:37 Decentralized citizen journalism, the end of corporate journalism
58:11 Facebook's tough stretch continues: leaker might come forward with SEC, lawsuit over FTC payouts, public sentiment turning on big tech, decentralized social media
1:18:43 How decentralized media platforms would work mechanically
Follow the besties:
https://twitter.com/chamath
https://linktr.ee/calacanis
https://twitter.com/DavidSacks
https://twitter.com/friedberg
https://twitter.com/balajis
Follow the pod:
https://twitter.com/theallinpod
https://linktr.ee/allinpodcast
Intro Music Credit:
https://rb.gy/tppkzl
https://twitter.com/yung_spielburg
Intro Video Credit:
https://twitter.com/TheZachEffect
Referenced in the show:
https://www.wsj.com/articles/china-declares-bitcoin-and-other-cryptocurrency-transactions-illegal-11632479288
https://www.wsj.com/articles/xi-jinping-aims-to-rein-in-chinese-capitalism-hew-to-maos-socialist-vision-11632150725
https://www.readingthechinadream.com/
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/united-states/1993-06-01/clash-civilizations
https://www.amazon.com/End-History-Last-Man/dp/0743284550
https://www.amazon.com/Kill-Chain-Defending-America-High-Tech/dp/031653353X?asin=031653353X&revisionId=&format=4&depth=1
https://www.amazon.com/Gray-Lady-Winked-Misreporting-Fabrications/dp/1736703307
https://techcrunch.com/2021/05/12/vitalik-buterin-donates-1-billion-worth-of-meme-coins-to-india-covid-relief-fund/
https://twitter.com/balajis/status/1386288771872673793?lang=en
https://twitter.com/VitalikButerin/status/1386024429629558784?s=20
https://www.amazon.com/Truth-Machine-Blockchain-Future-Everything/dp/1250114578
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOWRembdPS8
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2021/09/23/facebook-testify-kids-safety-lawmakers-probe-whistleblowers-revelations/
https://www.facebook.com/business/news/navigating-change-and-improving-performance-and-measurement
https://www.politico.com/news/2021/09/21/facebook-paid-billions-extra-to-the-ftc-to-spare-zuckerberg-in-data-suit-shareholders-allege-513456
https://www.sec.gov/news/press-release/2021-177
https://www.wsj.com/articles/voters-want-to-curb-the-influence-of-big-tech-companies-new-poll-shows-11632405601?st=qnnf9nvvwigp
https://medium.com/craft-ventures/masks-should-be-the-law-3f53f08709cc
https://www.politico.com/story/2017/11/01/social-media-ads-russia-wanted-americans-to-see-244423
https://balajis.com/yes-you-may-need-a-blockchain/
#259 — The Reckoning to Come
Sam Harris speaks with Balaji Srinivasan about several civilizational challenges and possible paths forward. They discuss the evidence of American decline, the rise of India and China, centralizing and decentralizing trends in politics, the relationship between politics and technology, the failures of the FDA and TSA, how regulation preserves monopolies, the significance of Bitcoin and blockchain technology, the problem of cybersecurity, the Chinese government's attack on Bitcoin, the threat of US regulation of cryptocurrency, blockchain scalability, creator coins, life in Singapore, virtual government, the future of decentralized journalism, independent replication in science, wealth inequality, ubiquitous investing, social status, non-zero-sum capitalism, "start-up countries", and other topics.
If the Making Sense podcast logo in your player is BLACK, you can SUBSCRIBE to gain access to all full-length episodes at samharris.org/subscribe.
Learning how to train your mind is the single greatest investment you can make in life. That's why Sam Harris created the Waking Up app. From rational mindfulness practice to lessons on some of life's most important topics, join Sam as he demystifies the practice of meditation and explores the theory behind it.
Balaji Srinivasan - Optimizing Your Inputs - [Invest Like the Best, EP. 233]
My guest today is Balaji Srinivasan, a serial entrepreneur and angel investor. Balaji is known to challenge conventional wisdom, and he lives up to his reputation in this conversation. We discuss a wide variety of topics, including advancements in health tracking, ways to evaluate your own information diet, and how technology is driving decentralization and what that could mean for countries, corporations, and individuals.
Before we transition to the episode, if you enjoy this conversation with Balaji, I’d recommend the Ethereum episode on our newest show, Business Breakdowns. You can find that episode and more on your favorite podcast player or at joincolossus.com. Please enjoy my conversation with Balaji Srinivasan.
For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here.
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This episode is brought to you by Canalyst. Canalyst is the leading destination for public company data and analysis. If you've been scrambling to keep up with the deluge of IPOs and SPACs these days, Canalyst has models on Marqeta, Oatly, Grab, and everything in between. Learn more and try Canalyst for yourself at canalyst.com/patrick.
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Invest Like the Best is a property of Colossus, Inc. For more episodes of Invest Like the Best, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.
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Follow us on Twitter: @patrick_oshag | @JoinColossus
Show Notes
[00:03:30] - [First question] - Thoughts on information diets and how they influence individuals
[00:21:37] - Ways to optimize your diet by reading the source material and consuming less news
[00:26:40] - Understanding the informational supply chain and tracing data back to the origin
[00:41:07] - Modern cities, the nature of a group of individuals, and what sovereignty may mean in the coming years
[00:53:52] - Key ingredients and main components needed for a successful startup city
[01:11:35] - Social impacts from everyone becoming an investor and how it ties into everything
[01:25:49] - Recommendations and a personal prescription for longevity, health, and wealth
[01:37:32] - The kindest thing anyone has ever done for him
#178 with Balaji - Balaji on How to Fix the Media, Cloud Communities & Crypto
Shaan (@ShaanVP) and Sam (@TheSamParr) host Balaji (@balajis) this episode. This is an amazing dive into Balaji's mind. He talks about the current issues with the media and how he's hoping to fix it with crypto and the blockchain. We also get a look at how he views the world, what motivates him, what he's been wrong about as well as the massive shifts he sees happening.
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Show notes:
* (0:00) Intro
* (2:30) Balaji's background
* (7:33) Why Balaji started a newsletter: 1729
* (22:40) The media and its biases
* (31:58) Balaji on memes and their importance
* (37:45) What the future of media looks like and the role of crypto
* (56:26) When did Balaji get into crypto?
* (1:01:30) Sam asks Balaji what motivates him
* (1:11:50) How the world is changing and becoming more Balaji-like
* (1:19:39) What would 21 year-old Balaji work on?
* (1:22:46) Why geographical proximity is no longer linked to cultural proximity
* (1:26:25) How we can align incentives between tech and everyone else
* (1:32:30) Balaji on crypto-social networks
* (1:37:30) How Balaji operates day-to-day and "the idea maze"
* (1:47:33) The importance of finding the right place to live
* (1:57:30) What it's like to talk to Balaji
* (2:02:08) What has Balaji been wrong about?
* (2:11:00) Science vs. math: getting to the truth
* (2:21:10) Balaji asks Sam for newsletter advice
* (2:24:40) What are Balaji's guilty pleasures
#506: Balaji Srinivasan on The Future of Bitcoin and Ethereum, How to Become Noncancelable, the Path to Personal Freedom and Wealth in a New World, the Changing Landscape of Warfare, and More
Balaji Srinivasan on The Future of Bitcoin and Ethereum, How to Become Noncancelable, the Path to Personal Freedom and Wealth in a New World, the Changing Landscape of Warfare, and More | Brought to you by Wealthfront automated investing, Athletic Greens all-in-one nutritional supplement, and Helix Sleep premium mattresses. More on all three below.
“If code scripts machines, media scripts human beings.” — Balaji Srinivasan
Balaji S. Srinivasan (@balajis) is an angel investor and entrepreneur. Formerly the CTO of Coinbase and General Partner at Andreessen Horowitz, he was also the co-founder of Earn.com (acquired by Coinbase), Counsyl (acquired by Myriad), Teleport (acquired by Topia), and Coin Center.
He was named to the MIT Technology Review’s “Innovators Under 35”, won a Wall Street Journal Innovation Award, and holds a BS/MS/PhD in Electrical Engineering and an MS in Chemical Engineering, all from Stanford University. Balaji also teaches the occasional class at Stanford, including an online MOOC in 2013, which reached 250,000+ students worldwide.
To learn more about Balaji’s most recent project, visit 1729.com, a newsletter that pays you. They’re giving out $1,000 in BTC each day for completing tasks and tutorials. Subscribers also receive chapters from Balaji’s new (free) book, The Network State.
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This episode is also brought to you by Athletic Greens. I get asked all the time, “If you could only use one supplement, what would it be?” My answer is usually Athletic Greens, my all-in-one nutritional insurance. I recommended it in The 4-Hour Body in 2010 and did not get paid to do so. I do my best with nutrient-dense meals, of course, but AG further covers my bases with vitamins, minerals, and whole-food-sourced micronutrients that support gut health and the immune system.
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41 - Crypto-Civilization | Balaji Srinivasan
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A Crypto Civilization | Balaji Srinivasan
No one blends the academic, startup, & venture world quite like Balaji Srinivasan. With multiple engineering degrees, multiple exits, being early into Bitcoin, selling a company to Coinbase, being CTO to Coinbase, Balaji lives on the cusp of the frontier of human innovation.
Rumor is that he’s trying to create a digital country, we’re gonna talk about it.
- Legacy of COVID creating distrust In Institutions Balaji thinks that the world is ready for new institutions and that the movement of time is to generate new solutions rather than repair old ones.
- ‘Crypto-civilization’, or what Balaji calls: The Network StateThe leveraging of the most useful modern technology and coordination tools, to produce structurally independent organizations
- Digital Nations vs the Nation-StateHow might this independence generate friction with the status quo?
And of course, how does a new 'crypto civilzation' actually manifest.
Balaji is a real Big Brain thinker, so strap yourself in!
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Not financial or tax advice. This channel is strictly educational and is not investment advice or a solicitation to buy or sell any assets or to make any financial decisions. This video is not tax advice. Talk to your accountant. Do your own research.
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E1042: Balaji Srinivasan (@balajis) shares insights on Recode incident, need for decentralized citizen journalism, techlash through the years, potential COVID-19 endgames: bull, bear & base case scenarios
0:55 Jason intros Balaji Srinivasan and tees up his incident with Recode's piece: “No handshakes, please”: The tech industry is terrified of the coronavirus
4:28 Balaji shares his experience with the story and his issues with corporate journalism
15:16 Balaji explains why he reacted the way he did to Shirin Ghaffary's request for an interview
19:52 History of techlash: 1995-2020, when things turned from positivity to overwhelming negativity
26:26 Balaji brings up a sentiment analysis chart published by Recode
31:25 Did both sides of the political spectrum fail in their coverage of the virus? Is citizen journalism the answer?
39:40 Balaji envisions for a new kind of journalism
41:43 Are corporate journalists too like-minded in their approach because of not being representative of the demographics of the US?
48:16 What is modern journalism's biggest blind spot?
51:22 Tips on how to start decentralizing media
54:34 Are modern journalists uncomfortable with subjects playing an active role in the reporting of the story? Did Recode & other outlets fail their readers?
1:01:55 Will the US "let it rip" strategy of dealing with COVID prove catastrophic?
1:05:53 Endgame scenarios: Bull, Bear & Base
1:10:08 Should we be experimenting with "Challenge Trials"?
1:18:52 How culpable is China for the spread of COVID-19? Should wet markets be shut down for good?
1:23:39 Why is the US still behind on mass testing? More on endgame scenarios
1:31:03 Possibility of COVID-19 being a biological weapon?
1:36:27 What should we learn from this crisis? What societal changes will happen?
20VC: a16z's Balaji Srinivasan on Why There Is A Financial Incentive For Truth In VC & Why The Best VCs Invest In Founder To Make Them Richer Than Themselves
Balaji Srinivasan is the Founder & CEO @ 21.co, the company that believes for bitcoin to succeed we need to build the full stack infrastructure for bitcoin, from silicon to hardware. 21.co have backing from some of the best in the world including a16z, Peter Thiel, Scott & Cyan Banister, Naval Ravikant and previous guest Data Collective's Matt Ocko. Balaji is also a Board Partner @ a16z, where he has served for the past 3 years. Prior to a16z and 21.co, Balaji was Co-Founder & CTO @ Counsyl, the genomics startup that now tests 4% of all US births and raised $65 in funding.
In Today's Episode You Will Learn:
1.) How Balaji made the move from operations to a16z and the back to startups? How did his time in operations affect his investing mentality and vice versa.
2.) Why does Balaji believe that the number 1 barrier for most startups is regulation? Why does Balaji look to the unseen?
3.) With such value being held back by regulation, what is the FDA, FAA, SEC etc holding back? How can that value be unlocked? How can you carve out jurisdictions where you can have early adopters?
4.) How can new products look to gain customer validation through micro testing market segments? What are the requirement to do this successfully? What are the common mistakes
5.) How does Balaji view the future of regulation? How can tech help make regulation faster and more efficient? What are the barriers to it's widespread adoption and implementation?
Items Mentioned In Today's Show:
Balaji's Fave Book: The Sovereign Individual, The Princeton Companion To Mathematics
As always you can follow Harry, The Twenty Minute VC and Balaji on Twitter here!
Likewise, you can follow Harry on Snapchat here for mojito madness and all things 20VC.
The Twenty Minute VC is proudly sponsored by Luma, Luma is the world's first ever Surround WiFi system that brings speed, security and control to the home network. And Unlike traditional routers, Luma comes in a pack of two or three sleek devices to place in different rooms in your home. Luma then creates a mesh network that work together to create an outrageously-fast, ultra-secure Surround WiFi network. Lastly, Luma's app lets you easily see and control which devices, users and content are on your network. To buy your Luma, simply dead to getluma.com or amazon.com.
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a16z Podcast: Startups and Pendulum Swings Through Ideas, Time, Fame, and Money
Everything old is new again when it comes to startup ideas and how technology innovation happens. But practically, how does that apply to starting and/or working at startups — especially since the default state of every company is “dying in obscurity”?
In this episode of the a16z Podcast, Marc Andreessen and 21 co-founder Balaji Srinivasan cover everything from deciding what ideas to work on and the optimal type of startups to work at, to the funding environment and pendulum swings of deciding when to IPO. They also discuss the VC “formula” of weighting product vs. market vs. team; the full-stack approach to cracking industries that tech could never enter before; and recent tech trends and news including The DAO, AI, VR/AR and the “Instagrammification of everything”, more.
And where does Andreessen stand on the “moral dilemma” of whether entrepreneurs should drop out of college or not? Would Srinivasan still do a PhD today? People’s early career goals should be about maximizing learning skills and minimizing “personal burn”, they argue. But no matter what, Andreessen believes, smart people — from all industries, not just tech — should build things. It’s also easier to get through startup hard times when there’s an ideological mission motivating you, observes Srinivasan.
This episode is based on a May 2016 conversation that was recorded as part of the Annual Distinguished Speaker Series with Thought Leaders in Technology, hosted by engineering honor society Tau Beta Pi at Stanford University.
photo credit: Ryan Jae/ The Stanford Daily
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