Did a16z’s crypto-specific startup school in full today. Back-to-back, I like yc’s a bit better.
- Why crypto matters.
- Blockchain primitives.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V0JdeRzVndI
- Remember an aggregation signatures takes a bunch of previously signed transactions and posts those; like compression on the blockchain.
- You could keep a db onchain with little data by using commitment strings and merkle trees.
- Zk allows private data on public blockchains.
- Starting/scaling a crypto company.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VL5V16HAjYA
- Crypto Rating Council offers various regulation/security scores: https://www.cryptoratingcouncil.com/
- Applications, in 2020 and 2025.
- Crypto and gaming.
- Crypto business models.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AI1N6dY8vSQ
- Always chase network effects, they’re so important. User communities, blockchain concentration, whatever.
- Mechanism design.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gCFlGLbI_kE
- Auto-incentivization. Like bird scooters offering discounts if you drop at a charge station instead of van collection every night.
- Decentralization.
- Building companies and developer communities.
- Managing distributed workforces.
- Products and protocol.
- Secure smart contract development.
- Token securities framework and launching a network.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CrrcGiyPglI
- Howey Test to determine if something is a security: an investment of money, in a common enterprise, with the expectation of profit, solely from the effort of others.
- CRC provides ratings for this as well; how likely you are to be overseen by the SEC. Much harder to list on exchanges if so.
- This one was pretty good.
- Fundraising and deal structure.
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNbPriRubUs
- Think critically about token equity vs normal equity. Normal equity is almost always more appropriate first (common exception: building an L1, obviously).
- “Production capital” isn’t the same, because you usually have a community around your product which is incentivized to create revenue and grow the userbase further (eg miners for btc).
- “Crypto Startup School” documentary.