The Pirate Pod

Fresh off MainNet and TGE, Francisco Agosti of Tanssi Network and Thiago Rüdiger of the Tanssi Foundation join the Pirate Pod to dive into why app chains are the future of blockchain development and deployment, insights and challenges (and triumphs!) of launching a mainnet and token, ecosystem growth and more. The conversation dives in on how Tanssi is making application deployment faster and more efficient by reducing the time to market from months to days. With a serious focus on developer experience and shared security, Tanssi is expanding partnerships and is poised to be a critical component for the future of defi and institutional growth and development.

Francisco Agosti on X: @fjagosti

Tanssi Network on X: @tanssinetwork

Thiago Rüdiger on X: @thiagorudiger

Tanssi Foundation on X: @TanssiFdn

Bhaji Illuminati, the CEO of Centrifuge, joins the Pirate Pod to discuss the evolution and current state of Real World Assets (RWAs) and the maturation of the digital asset landscape. Bhaji shares insights on the challenges and opportunities in tokenization, the tailwinds of the regulatory landscape, institutional readiness and the technological innovations that Centrifuge is implementing. The discussion, held with Arrington Capital’s Keli Callaghan, also touches on recent events, announcements coming out of EthCC, the future of digital asset treasuries and the CFG token – all areas that are in growth mode as Bhaji taps into her CMO and BD background to take Centrifuge to the next level.

Bhaji on X @itsbhaji
Centrifuge on X @centrifuge
https://centrifuge.io/

Arrington Capital is expanding its leadership team, recently appointing Ravi Kaza as CIO Partner and Colton Conley to Partner. Having joined Arrington Capital’s investment team as a Principal in 2023, Colton has been successful in identifying early-stage web3 investments and has run point on some of the most exciting investments in the fund’s recent history – such as Redstone, Rilla, Space and Time, and aPriori.

Colton’s track record aligns with the overall goal of Arrington Capital to continue to find and support the best founders as the web3 industry matures.

Keli sits down with Colton in this episode to chat about his background, why now, advice to those looking to get into the space and his outlook for the rest of 2025.

Colton has been involved in crypto since 2018 and brings a deep understanding of capital markets and DeFi. He previously founded Prime Protocol, a cross-chain lending protocol that raised over $3M in venture capital from Arrington Capital, Framework Ventures and Jump in (2022) before an exit in 2024. Prior to his web3 experience, Colton was a quantitative trader in Global Fixed Income at Citadel after graduating from Yale University.

In this episode of the Pirate Pod, Keli Callaghan interviews Hal Smith Stevens, co-founder of Rilla, a decentralized streaming infrastructure company. They discuss Hal’s journey into the crypto space, the challenges faced by the streaming industry, and how Rilla aims to disrupt the current model by utilizing peer-to-peer technology. The conversation covers the market size for sports streaming, the need for change in media economics (ie: decentralized tech for cost reductions), and the potential for audience engagement and value redistribution. Hal shares insights on the technical advantages of Rilla’s network, user accessibility, tokenomics, and future use cases beyond sports. There is also a discussion on community involvement and the exciting future of Rilla.
Rilla Network on X: https://x.com/RillaNetwork

This episode is all things Zero Knowledge Proofs in a deep dive with Wyatt Benno and Houman Shadab from NovaNet who joined Keli Callaghan from Arrington Capital. NovaNet is the first full decentralized proving network, focused on making Zero Knowledge Proofs (ZKPs) portable and accessible for browsers, consumers devices and other constrained environments. Wyatt and Houman explore the intricacies of zero-knowledge proofs (ZKPs), how they are advancing the decentralized space and current applications and future use cases. The conversation delves into the evolution of ZKPs, their potential to redefine interactions in various sectors, and the legal frameworks surrounding privacy-preserving proofs. NovaNet’s innovative enhances inclusivity and modularity, allowing for cross-chain capabilities. The discussion also touches on incentives for participation in the prover network and modularity, highlighting the transformative potential of ZKPs in industries such as AI, gaming, legal, and finance.

NovaNet on X: https://x.com/NovaNet_zkp
Website: https://www.novanet.xyz/
Docs: https://devs.novanet.xyz/
Wyatt Benno on X: https://x.com/wyatt_benno
Houman Shadab on X: https://x.com/HoumanShadab

In this episode, Shardeum Founder Nischal Shetty chats with Keli Callaghan about a new smart contract platform that linearly scales using dynamic state sharding. Nischal shares his journey into the crypto space, the evolution of the crypto market in India, and the importance of community engagement and education in driving adoption. He discusses the unique features of Shardeum, including its user-friendly transaction model and plans for future growth, emphasizing the role of community and node operators in shaping the platform’s success. With Shardeum’s MainNet launching coming up in early May, tokenomics, node operators, and the Indian market opportunity are all covered topics.

Links:
X: https://x.com/shardeum
Web: https://shardeum.org/
Whitepaper: https://shardeum.org/Shardeum_Whitepaper.pdf
Nischal on X: https://x.com/NischalShetty

In this episode of the Pirate Pod, Keli Callaghan interviews Sergey Gorbunov, co-founder of Axelar, discussing the evolution of blockchain interoperability, the needs of retail (seamless access) and institutions(increasing demand for interoperability), and the role of stablecoins – especially when it comes to the the impact of the regulatory landscape. Sergey explains how Axelar’s technology simplifies cross-chain communication and enhances user experiences, while also addressing decentralization and security. Axelar’s Interchain Token Service is providing significant value when it comes to multi-chain asset issuance (think improved wallet experiences) and the Axelar virtual machine is bringing new functionality and creating a framework of smart contracts. This episode is a deeper dive on how fragmented experiences that are poised to get worse as the technology stack scales horizontally can be improved with Axelar.

The session, which comes on the heels of headlines from the Axelar community including the appointment of Brian Brooks to the foundation board and an ETF for Axelar, highlights upcoming milestones for Axelar and the future of cross-chain applications.

For more information on Axelar: https://www.axelar.network/

In this episode of the Pirate Pod, Keli Callaghan interviews Julio Vieira, founder and CEO of Kluster.AI, a decentralized platform that enables developers to run and fine-tune large AI models using a global network of GPU providers. Julio shares his journey into the Web3 space, the challenges of GPU shortages, and how Cluster aims to provide cost-effective AI solutions through adaptive inference. The conversation explores various use cases, the importance of decentralization, and the future of AI in a decentralized world.

In this episode of the Pirate Pod, Keli Callaghan interviews Charles, the founder of Nifty Island, a blockchain-powered UGC gaming platform that allows players to create and customize their own game worlds. Charles shares his background in crypto and his vision for the future of gaming, emphasizing the trend of player-created content and the democratization of game development. He discusses the unique economic model of Nifty Island, its multi-chain integration, and the importance of community engagement. The conversation highlights the potential for Nifty Island to become a leading platform in the gaming industry, particularly in the realm of user-generated content. Community engagement is ever important as the trend of players building games is accelerating due to lower costs and better tools.
Website: niftyisland.com
Twitter: https://x.com/Nifty_Island (@Nifty_Island)
Discord: https://discord.com/invite/niftyisland

Albert Castellana, cofounder of GenLayer, chats with Keli Callaghan about his company is revolutionizing smart contracts through the introduction of Intelligent Contracts that leverage AI for decision-making. Albert shares his background in crypto, the evolution of smart contracts, and the limitations of current systems. He discusses how Genlayer’s unique architecture and the launch of the Intelligent Oracle aim to address these challenges, enabling more complex and subjective decision-making processes (including how natural language processing will come into play). The conversation also touches on the future applications of Genlayer, the importance of community engagement, and the potential impact of AI on the blockchain ecosystem. The future of blockchain will involve far more complex and generative applications – this podcast episode is a must listen to gain a better grasp on how smart contracts will make subjective decisions and empower these applications of the future.
GenLayer on Twitter: https://x.com/GenLayer
GenLayer on Discord: https://discord.com/invite/m66872spFx
Docs / Getting Started: https://docs.genlayer.com/getting-started