AJ Warner Talks Arbitrum, Robinhood & Why Some Chains Shouldn’t Exist

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For this week’s Tuesday episode, I interviewed AJ Warner, Director of Strategy at Offchain Labs, the team behind Arbitrum, one of Ethereum’s top layer-2 blockchains with over $4B in TVL.

AJ shares his journey from real estate lawyer to crypto strategist, and how a college connection led him to help build Arbitrum from the ground up. They discuss the unique "barbell" strategy powering both Arbitrum One and Arbitrum Orbit, why liquidity and composability are critical for growth, and how Arbitrum balances being a top public chain with enabling enterprises to launch custom blockchains.

He also dives into the recent Robinhood partnership - from launching tokenized stocks on Arbitrum One to designing a dedicated Robinhood chain - and why powering fintech products with crypto rails might be the fastest path to mass adoption. Plus, AJ breaks down why some projects shouldn’t launch their own chain, how Arbitrum’s governance gives token holders real control over upgrades and revenue, and where L2 innovation is headed next.

Timestamps
00:00 - Intro: Who is AJ Warner?
01:12 - From law to crypto via a college connection
04:04 - Building Arbitrum’s "barbell" product strategy
07:40 - Liquidity, composability & Arbitrum’s public chain advantage
10:19 - Stablecoin liquidity leadership: USDC, USDT, PayPal USD
12:48 - Arbitrum Orbit: Launching custom L3 chains
16:21 - Why Uber-style incentive models fail in crypto
20:59 - Who should (and shouldn’t) launch their own chain
24:44 - MEV, operating costs & economics of L2 ownership
28:50 - Opinionated blockspace: making the chain part of the product
33:09 - Governance, token holder control & the Arbitrum treasury
37:31 - Designing Robinhood’s on-chain strategy
39:16 - Why fintech products powered by crypto rails matter
42:52 - Making blockchain invisible (in a good way)
44:52 - Final advice: No shortcuts, just hard work

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Money and people moves

1. Trump-Linked World Liberty Pitches a $1.5 Billion Crypto Vehicle (Bloomberg)

2. Decibel Foundation brings on Ming Wu as CEO to expand onchain markets on Aptos

3. LayerZero Foundation proposes $110 million acquisition of Stargate bridge as token struggles (The Block)

4. Bo Hines, executive director of the White House Crypto Council, stepped down to return to the private sector

5. Harvard Reveals $116 Million Investment in BlackRock Bitcoin ETF (Decrypt)

Talking points for the road

Crypto-focused headlines or research that caught my eye…and should catch yours, too.

1. Stablecoin issuers like Circle and Tether are gobbling up more Treasuries than most countries. Here’s how that could reshape the U.S. economy (Fortune)

2. How a US$1.5 billion North Korean hack exposed Asia’s crypto weaknesses (SCMP)

3. A major historical bitcoin cycle that dictates its price might be breaking (CNBC)

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Please note that this content is for informational and entertainment purposes only. Any views shared should not be considered financial advice, nor should it be used to make investment decisions. Cryptocurrencies are high risk and you should consult a financial professional before making any financial decisions. Make sure you do your own research. We may have a direct or indirect financial interest in content mentioned in this newsletter.