A16z Crypto Raised $2.2 Billion for Fund 5. Here's How They Plan to Deploy It
From AI agents as economic actors to quantum threats and prediction market regulation, Ali Yahya of a16z lays out the investment thesis behind a16z crypto's fifth fund.
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a16z crypto just closed its fifth crypto fund at $2.2 billion — smaller than its previous fund, but the firm says that's deliberate.
General Partner Ali Yahya argues we are entering a different phase of crypto's development: one where infrastructure is ready, regulatory clarity is arriving, and the competition for real users has begun in earnest.
Two themes sit at the center of a16z's thesis — the collision of crypto and FinTech, and the emergence of AI agents as economic actors. But Yahya's most striking claim may be about blockchains themselves: that performance is no longer a moat, privacy is. And that the chains which get privacy right will accrue stronger network effects than anything the industry has built before.
What does a world of privacy-dominant blockchains do to DeFi composability, to security, to the ability to track hackers? And where does the quantum threat actually stand?
Host:
Laura Shin, Host / Unchained
Guests:
Ali Yahya, General Partner, a16z crypto
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Why Zero-Knowledge Proofs Are Critical to Ethereum’s Future - Ep. 473
In this episode, Stanford cryptography professor Dan Boneh and a16z General Partner Ali Yahya elevate our knowledge of zero-knowledge proofs and their applications in the blockchain world. Listen as they dive into the intricacies of succinct proof systems, the difference between SNARKs and STARKs, the magic of recursive SNARKs, and why zero-knowledge systems are essential to the evolution of Ethereum.
Show highlights:
how Ali became a general partner at a16z Crypto and why Dan started working on “the science of blockchains”
what a succinct proof system is
analogies for understanding zero-knowledge proofs
the difference between SNARKs and STARKs and whether centralization can be fully avoided
how zero-knowledge technology became so crucial for blockchains
the reasons to push computations off-chain and the applications of this technology
why zkEVMs are essential to help Ethereum scale
why privacy is important not only in financial transactions but also in other areas like social networks and gaming
the challenges that arise from trusted setups and whether it would be possible to create false proofs
how to mitigate the trusted setup problem with different proof systems
what is being built to make zero-knowledge proofs cheaper to create
whether a privacy-focused technology can be pursued while staying compliant with regulations
how zero-knowledge proofs can improve the security of blockchain bridges
Thank you to our sponsors!
Crypto.com
Halborn
Guests:
Ali Yahya, general partner at a16z crypto
Dan Boneh, professor of computer science and electrical engineering, Stanford University; and senior research advisor, a16z crypto
Using ZK Proofs to Fight Disinformation
Links
Unchained: zkEVM: The Computing Overhaul to Help Scale Ethereum
Previous coverage of Unchained on zero-knowledge:
Can You Trace Monero? 'It's Hard - But Not Impossible,' Says Nick Bax
a16z crypto:
Privacy-Protecting Regulatory Solutions Using Zero-Knowledge Proofs: Full Paper
zkDocs: Zero-knowledge Information Sharing
How the Coming Privacy Layer Will Fix the Broken Web
CoinDesk: Polygon Rolls Out Zero-Knowledge, Privacy-Enhanced Identification Product
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
a16z's Crypto Thesis | Arianna Simpson, Ali Yahya
In this episode of Empire, Arianna Simpson and Ali Yahya join to discuss a16z's crypto thesis. We start with Ali's network flywheel framework, the future of interoperability and protocol value capture. Do protocols have moats? Is the L1 trade over? Will applications accrue an outsized share of crypto's value?
We then discuss DAO governance, music NFTs, zero-knowledge proofs and crypto's open design space. This is one of those can't-miss episodes!
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Timestamps:
(00:00) Intro
(01:14) Crypto's Network Flywheel
(08:40) Is The L1 Trade Over?
(20:52) a16z’s Value Accrual Framework
(28:03) Circle ad
(29:45) Infrastructure Unlocks
(37:55) a16z’s Governance & DAO Philosophy
(44:33) Evolution of Web3 Gaming
(49:19) Music NFTs
(55:22) ZK Proofs & Building Privacy Into Blockchains
(1:00:33) What Feels Obvious That Others Are Missing?
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Follow Arianna https://twitter.com/AriannaSimpson
Follow Ali: https://twitter.com/alive_eth
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Resources
Ali's network flywheel tweet thread
https://twitter.com/alive_eth/status/1296831069065375749
Computers That Can Make Commitments (Chris Dixon)
https://a16z.com/2020/01/27/computers-that-make-commitments/
The Fat Protocol Thesis
https://www.usv.com/writing/2016/08/fat-protocols/
The Internet Economy
https://cdixon.org/2016/03/13/the-internet-economy
Commoditize Your Complements
https://www.joelonsoftware.com/2002/06/12/strategy-letter-v/
The Myth of The Infrastructure Phase
https://www.usv.com/writing/2018/10/the-myth-of-the-infrastructure-phase/
1000 True Fans
https://kk.org/thetechnium/1000-true-fans/
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Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.
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a16z's Ali Yahya Says We’ve Entered The Golden Era Of Blockchain Applications
This week on The Defiant Podcast we speak with Ali Yahya, General Partner at a16z, also known as Andreessen Horowitz. a16z is an investment giant - they’ve raised $6.7B between their crypto funds in the last two years and are the largest crypto-dedicated fund in the world.
We start by discussing how a16z got its start in crypto - their first investment, where they channelled their focus, and how they evolved to where they are today.
According to Ali, we’re entering the Golden Age of blockchain applications. We talk about how building in the middle of the bear market is laying the foundation for the next bull run.
Ali notes several key developments he’s observing in blockchain that span from networking to usability at the application layer. These include innovations in privacy, programming languages, proof-of-stake, consensus algorithms, zero-knowledge proofs, scalability and interoperability.
An important takeaway from our conversation is that Ali believes in a future of multiple blockchains that coexist with each chain serving a particular purpose.
Will we see today’s biggest players maintain their dominance in the future? Or are the next generation of blockchains yet to launch?
🙏 Thanking our podcast sponsors:
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