Get Paid for Sharing Good Links | Internet Explorers Ep. 81
We sit down with Internet-native builder and creative coder Mike Bodge to break down his newest experiment: AUX, a gamified curation tool for attention, links, and taste. Described as StumbleUpon meets group chat meets token-powered leaderboard, AUX lets you post URLs that battle for the Internet’s front page. It’s an onchain attention economy that’s equal parts meme-fuel and media archive—designed with taste, not virality, in mind. Before Mike joins, Jess, Josh, and Peace explore the week’s most interesting moments: Noice, the evolution of creator tokens, and why L1 assets might be in trouble. Plus: MoviePass is back (?!) and trying to make you a fantasy film mogul. Stick around to the end for a heartfelt goodbye—a big new chapter awaits us all. This episode unpacks: How Noice turns Farcaster into a microtip economy The messy future of creator tokens Why apps, not L1s, will capture disprortionate value What AUX reveals about curating Internet taste How Mike Bodge hides the crypto in his app Rekt as the blueprint for brand-backed tokens What MoviePass is building with $100M (?!?) The difference between novelty loops and compounding crypto businesses Why VCs are rethinking the startup funding factory A preview of what’s coming after Internet Explorers Chapters: 0:00 — Intro: Discussing end of Q2 and Bitcoin's quiet ATH 5:06 — Noice taking over Farcaster world and L1 discussions 15:31 — Introducing Mike Bodge and AUX: Internet attention machines 29:32 — AUX: Curating the ultimate feed for the internet 38:14 — Tokenomics and business model behind AUX platform 46:48 — Exploring AUX's content and user engagement strategies 54:10 — Discussing changing landscape of startup fundraising strategies 58:05 — Brand coins: Capturing social and cultural value 1:00:03 — MoviePass raises $100M for fantasy movie mogul game 1:07:49 — Announcement: farewell (for the moment), teasing future plans Internet Explorers is a weekly rundown show where extremely online individuals broadly explore (romanticize, even) new consumer Internet experiences. Seed Club Twitter: https://x.com/seedclubhq Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/internet-explorers/id1756599282 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6iJk3xZoij7pVhlNbTP9qS?si=4cda0ac044dc4c6a Pods.media: https://pods.media/internet-explorers
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Forget VC: Founders Turn to "Internet Capital Markets" | Internet Explorers Ep. 80
Will the concept of "Internet Capital Markets" reshape how founders raise capital? This episode explores the implications of platforms like Believe, which enable app developers to bypass traditional VC funding. Featuring guest co-host Jarrod Dicker, the discussion delves into the challenges and opportunities of this new paradigm, including the tension between short-term speculation and long-term value creation. The conversation examines the evolving dynamics between founders, investors, and users in the crypto ecosystem, and considers how consumer crypto apps might redefine the role of blockchain platforms in the future. This episode unpacks How "Internet Capital Markets" might redefine fundraising Believe’s app-store-style token launch approach Tokenomics: bonding curves, AMMs, and “quote pair” models Speculator demand versus compounding network value Lessons from 2017 ICOs and current regulatory gray areas Retail token buyers as long-term investors—or not The extraction dilemma in high-velocity markets Stablecoins and RWAs as on-ramps to mass adoption B2B integrations fueling broader crypto consumer apps Designing token incentives for emotional engagement Chapters: 0:00 — Intro: Bullish outlook on crypto space 5:21 — Internet Capital Markets and token launchers 10:57 — Challenges of expanding the crypto buyer pool 16:14 — Balancing consumer needs with blockchain expectations 21:54 — Potential of micro-transactions in crypto products 27:22 — Impact of consumer crypto apps on market dynamics 32:09 — B2B as gateway for broader consumer adoption 37:55 — Importance of expanding beyond existing crypto users 43:52 — Metrics and transparency in crypto companies 50:40 — Consumer apps challenging L1/L2 blockchain narratives 56:48 — Speculative demand as driver for new users 1:02:16 — Optimism for crypto space despite regulatory challenges Internet Explorers is a weekly rundown show where extremely online individuals broadly explore (romanticize, even) new consumer Internet experiences. Join us live on Twitter/X, Fridays 10am PT / 1pm ET. Seed Club Twitter: https://x.com/seedclubhq Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/internet-explorers/id1756599282 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6iJk3xZoij7pVhlNbTP9qS?si=4cda0ac044dc4c6a Pods.media: https://pods.media/internet-explorers
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Don’t Get Rugged by an AI Agent | Internet Explorers Ep. 79
What happens when you unleash thousands of AI agents into a fake economy filled with scams, memecoins, and market manipulation? Poof from DX Terminal joins Internet Explorers to explain why that might be the future of crypto. In this week’s episode of Internet Explorers, we dive into the second banana zone with a special guest: Poof from DX Terminal. The gang explores DX Terminal’s wild new simulation—a weeklong, no-stakes, AI-generated memecoin market that’s equal parts Mario Kart and Wolf of Wall Street. They also unpack a massive week of mainstream adoption: Stripe’s move into stablecoins, Meta’s rumored payout rails, and Robinhood’s blockchain ambitions. Meanwhile, consumer apps like Focus Tree are outpacing entire L2s, and Jess asks the big one: do chains even matter anymore? From social wallets to speculative agents, this episode is a chaotic ride through the bleeding edge of consumer crypto—and the internet-native markets it’s giving birth to. This episode unpacks: Stripe’s stablecoin strategy and why it matters DX Terminal’s AI simulation of an onchain memecoin market Why Poof ditched real-world tokens for in-game economics How Focus Tree beat StarkNet in daily users Why crypto Twitter kills retention The power of mini apps on social wallets DX Terminal’s art collaboration with Gremlin Lessons from training thousands of AI trading agents Why ephemeral software may be the next big thing How Poof thinks about the “autonomous economy” Chapters: 0:00 — Intro: Crypto market sentiment and recent news 5:37 — DX Terminal: AI agent simulation of crypto world 11:28 — Stablecoins and mainstream crypto adoption accelerating 18:01 — Building for broader market vs crypto Twitter 23:29 — Focus Tree: Successful consumer crypto app example 29:05 — DX Terminal: Details on gameplay and launch 34:48 — Reflections on working with AI for 5 months 41:07 — Ephemeral software and AI experimentation insights 48:38 — Advice for getting into AI development 54:57 — Coinbase Wallet integrating Farcaster: Potential challenges 1:02:31 — Minia demo day highlights and Zora episode Internet Explorers is a weekly rundown show where extremely online individuals broadly explore (romanticize, even) new consumer Internet experiences. Join us live on Twitter/X, Fridays 10am PT / 1pm ET. Seed Club Twitter: https://x.com/seedclubhq Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/internet-explorers/id1756599282 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6iJk3xZoij7pVhlNbTP9qS?si=4cda0ac044dc4c6a Pods.media: https://pods.media/internet-explorers
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Zora Founder on the Plan to Pay Creators | Internet Explorers Ep. 78 (LIVE!)
If content "wants to be free", how can creators get paid? In this special edition live interview, we sit down with Jacob Horne, cofounder of Zora, for a candid conversation on the company’s evolving vision—and what they got wrong early on. Jacob opens up about Zora’s shift from marketplace to protocol, why onchain media matters more than ever, and how consumer apps in crypto have been missing the point. If you’ve ever wondered what Zora actually is or where it’s going next, this is the episode to hear it from the source. Along the way: protocol tradeoffs, the fragility of NFT incentives, and why Zora is now all-in on supporting the onchain internet through composable creation tools. It’s a peek behind the curtain of one of crypto’s most culturally influential companies. This episode unpacks Why Zora is no longer a marketplace company How protocol thinking changed their product strategy The tension between creator and collector incentives What “onchain media” really means to Jacob The risks of speculative activity dominating apps Why Zora is focused on creative tooling How Zora thinks about interoperability A breakdown of Zora’s current app ecosystem What success looks like for a protocol Why this is a 20-year project Chapters: 00:00 — Intro 01:05 — Jacob joins the stage 03:02 — Zora is not a marketplace 07:33 — What went wrong in 2021 10:56 — Owning the protocol 13:31 — Measuring success 17:24 — Creators vs speculators 21:44 — Zora’s real product 26:07 — What it means to be onchain 30:30 — Long-term vision 34:53 — Future of Zora apps 39:27 — The internet is half-finished 44:10 — Open protocols to black boxes 49:15 — What meme coins unlock 53:38 — Why the DAO model broke 57:20 — Building for liquidity, not hype 01:00:42 — UX is the real innovation 01:04:17 — How Zora builds for decades 01:07:39 — Farcon week & final thoughts Internet Explorers is a weekly rundown show where extremely online individuals broadly explore (romanticize, even) new consumer Internet experiences. Join us live on Twitter/X, Fridays 10am PT / 1pm ET. Seed Club Twitter: https://x.com/seedclubhq Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/internet-explorers/id1756599282 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6iJk3xZoij7pVhlNbTP9qS?si=4cda0ac044dc4c6a Pods.media: https://pods.media/internet-explorers
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How Valuable Are Your Memories? (feat. RAC) | Internet Explorers Ep. 77
$ZORA is here, memecoins are changing, CT is mad—but what does it all mean? This episode unpacks Zora's recent token launch, explores the burdens of governance, and dives deep into how "just-for-fun" tokens might be redefining crypto markets, if not the very concept of "value." Later, special guest RAC (André Allen Anjos) joins to discuss Memory Protocol, the ambitious new identity and data-sharing layer he’s co-founded, which promises to revolutionize how we manage and monetize our digital identities—starting with the music industry. This episode unpacks: $ZORA token launch and market reactions The difference between governance and memecoins Brands taking their identities "public" through tokens Exploring tokenized information markets with Politiswap RAC’s deep dive into Memory Protocol Why data portability matters for creators and users The intersection of identity, markets, and crypto incentives How Fungi’s AI bot optimizes DeFi yield Launching apps and social dynamics onchain Future of decentralized identity and monetization Chapters: 00:00 — Intro: Discussing incentives for app collaboration 05:26 — Zora token launch and airdrop reactions 10:09 — Memory Protocol: Building data sharing infrastructure 16:20 — Factory fm: A Letterboxd for music 22:27 — Incentivizing data sharing between applications 28:30 — Farcon event announcement and Kamigotchi launch 34:17 — Oscillator: Building products for music industry 40:25 — Memory Protocol: Connecting apps and reducing friction 46:20 — Bootstrapping networks and proving use cases 55:34 — Fungi: AI-powered DeFi yield optimization agent 1:00:00 — Closing thoughts and upcoming content -- Internet Explorers is a weekly rundown show where extremely online individuals broadly explore (romanticize, even) new consumer Internet experiences. Join us live on Twitter/X, Fridays 10am PT / 1pm ET. Seed Club Twitter: https://x.com/seedclubhq Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/internet-explorers/id1756599282 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/6iJk3xZoij7pVhlNbTP9qS?si=4cda0ac044dc4c6a Pods.media: https://pods.media/internet-explorers
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