BROADCASTS.com

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Fountain, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Pandora, Castbox, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, or on your favorite podcast platform.\nIn this episode of Unchained, Alex Pack, managing partner at Hack VC discusses the firm's recent $150 million fundraise, the challenges of raising capital in a bear market, and the firm's focus on early-stage Web3 infrastructure. He also shares his thoughts on the intersection of crypto and AI, the future of DeFi, and the importance of security in the crypto space. Pack believes that the current infrastructure of crypto is still in its early stages and needs significant improvement before it can reach mainstream adoption. He also sees potential in the development of more secure smart contracts and the integration of AI into decentralized applications.\nShow highlights:\n\nHow Hack VC was able to raise $150 million in a bear market, especially after the blowups of FTX, 3AC, and Terra\n\nAlex's interaction with SBF, whom he calls a "sociopath," and why he didn't invest in FTX\n\nHack VC's philosophy to "back hackers" in crypto\n\nThe goals behind Zuzalu, the new community that resembles Balaji Srinivasan's idea of a network state\n\nWhat the main focus of Hack VC's investments are, including scalability, AI, and DeFi\n\nWhy Alex believes that "we are still so early"\n\nHow Alex believes crypto and artificial intelligence will intersect\xa0\n\nThe role of AI agents and how to use them in decentralized applications\n\nWhy he thinks that EigenLayer is a great solution for middleware applications\n\nAlex's opinion on the modular vs. monolithic approach for scaling blockchains\n\nHow DeFi survived the last bear market, contrasted with the collapses of CeFi companies like Celsius, BlockFi and FTX\n\nWhether algorithmic stablecoins can ever work and what Alex thinks of Ethena's USDe\n\nHow to improve security in crypto, according to Alex\n\nWhy the outcome of the Bitcoin ETFs exceeded Alex's expectations\n\nWhat he believes the catalysts are for the next bull market\n\nThank you to our sponsors!\nPolkadot\nGuest:\n\n\nAlex Pack, Managing partner at Hack VC\n\nPrevious appearances on Unchained:\n\nDragonfly Capital on Why Ethereum Is So Far in the Lead\n\n\u2018The Last Big Whale\u2019: Why the Crypto Contagion of 2022 Eventually Hit Genesis\n\nLinks\nNew fund\n\nBloomberg: Hack VC Raises $150 Million for Bets on Battered Crypto Industry\xa0\n\nHack VC Closes $150M Venture Fund I, Bringing AUM to $425M\n\n\nStablecoins:\n\nUnchained:\n\nWhat Is Ethena\u2019s USDe Synethic Dollar? A Beginner\u2019s Guide\n\nWhat Is Terra and Why Did It Fail?\n\nWhy It's so Hard to Keep Stablecoins Stable\xa0\n\nWhat Is Depegging in Crypto and Why Does It Occur?\n\nWhat Is Real-World Asset (RWA) Tokenization? A Beginner's Guide\n\nEigenLayer ecosystem\n\nUnchained: What Is EigenLayer? A Guide to the Decentralized ETH Restaking Protocol\n\n\nThe Block: AltLayer closes $14.4 million strategic round co-led by Polychain and Hack VC\n\n\nModular vs. monolithic approach\n\nUnchained:\xa0\n\nWhat Are Modular Blockchains? A Beginner's Guide\n\nThree Crypto Pioneers on Crypto\u2019s Monolithic vs. Modular Debate\n\nCrypto x AI crossover\n\n\nio.net and Ritual Collaborate to Boost Global AI Compute Landscape\xa0\n\nRitual x EigenLayer: Restaking for AI\n\nUnchained: 5 Use Cases of AI in Blockchain\n\n\nZuzalu\nDecrypt: I Spent a Month Inside Vitalik Buterin\u2019s Social Experiment\u2014Here\u2019s What It Was Really Like\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices