Base's creator wants to bring billions of people onchain

Welcome back to Talking Tokens.

Monday marked the 100th day since the 4th bitcoin halving. The price action during this time frame is relatively in line with the past 3 halvings, where bitcoin moved less than 10%.

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Base wants to drive the next generation of the internet onchain

Everyone wants to know what will be the killer crypto app or platform that brings mainstream adoption.

While we don’t have a crystal ball, Base’s creator Jesse Pollak is a firm believer that the only way to bring people in is to “give them things they actually want.” 

No, that doesn’t mean it’s time to launch another DeFi protocol, NFT collection or some money-grabbing scheme, but something that can actually better people’s lives.

“That’s the only way,” he said on the Talking Tokens podcast. “There’s no one weird trick.”

(Listen to the episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube.)

And while it sounds obvious, for most crypto projects and protocols - they haven’t struck gold in terms of growth and obtaining new users. But Base, might be on its way.

Coinbase, the largest crypto exchange in the US and the second largest globally by trading volume, “incubated” Base, a layer-2 blockchain built on the OP Stack.

It launched publicly last summer and has seen strong traction since. Given that it was built on the OP Stack, Base is a part of Optimism’s Superchain alongside a group of other chains.

Although Base is less than a year old, it accounts for majority of developer growth, applications and transactions within the Superchain, making up 89% of the total revenue-generating developers; 64% of apps within the ecosystem; and 76.9% of transactions in July, internal data obtained by Talking Tokens showed.

Base also has a total value locked of $1.7 billion, making it the sixth largest chain by TVL, according to DefiLlama data.

If Base can continue to help builders build applications people want to use, that will automatically bring more people on Base, Pollak said. “That’s what we’re really focused on.” 

In turn, once those products and applications are launched, then Base can “get those products in front of people on the Coinbase side, the every day person who buys $5 of Ethereum so they have something else to do.” 

Last summer, Base was determined to help people who have “never done anything in crypto” be able to do “something cool onchain in 60 seconds,” Pollak said.

While that 60-second goal wasn’t hit, Base has improved significantly since then, he added.

“Now really you can go from never having done anything onchain to doing something in less than 10 seconds,” Pollak said. “That’s a big transition and it’s showing up in the metrics too, we’re onboarding more people and developers are onboarding more people into their apps too because it’s easier, too.”

In May, Base announced its second Onchain Summer with Optimism to bring more developers in to build on its network. In June, it had a “buildathon” to kick off the initiative, where about 7,000 developers participated and shipped about 13,000 apps, Pollak said.

“In the next era, if we want to bring billions of people onchain, it can’t just be speculation,” Pollak said, in a nod to the crypto trading market. “It’s gotta be making people’s lives better -whether it’s a small business, or every day person or a builder.”

The two organizations are distributing over $3.6 million in token rewards as part of Onchain Summer.

And it seems to be working as teams ranging from web3-native startups like Doodles, which launched Stoodio on Base, to mainstream organizations like the USA Basketball are celebrating their anniversary onchain, Pollak noted. 

Large brands are starting to “get it more" and “build new things” onchain, while long term crypto brands are transitioning into more engaged commitments onchain and newly emerging crypto startups are building consumer products, Pollak said.

It’s creating an environment that’s “fun, cool and feels like the next generation of the internet” on Base.

“Every day we’re taking a shot on goal and our hope is that some of them hit,” Pollak added. “Once you have one [application] that crosses the line and sees that viral consumer growth, we’ll be off to the races.”

Check out the next section for more details and the full episode.

The latest Talking Tokens podcast 🎙️

For this week’s Tuesday episode, I sat down with Jesse Pollak, the creator of Base, the layer-2 blockchain incubated by Coinbase.

We discuss how Base grew exponentially in less than 12 months, its road to decentralization, what role Coinbase and Optimism’s Superchain plays in expanding the chain and more.

Talking Tokens episodes are released on Spotify and Apple Podcasts at 6AM EST or YouTube at 10AM EST every Tuesday and Thursday. Listen in!

Make sure to subscribe to keep up with the latest episodes. Feel free to leave a review and tell us your thoughts.

Exodus Announces Passkeys Wallet: Frictionless Onboarding for dApps and Users 

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Monitoring blockchains

Looking at some of the biggest developments onchain.

• Solana surpassed Ethereum in total economic value for the first time ever on a weekly timeframe, according to Blockworks research

• 21Shares has integrated Chainlink Proof of Reserve to increase transparency for its spot ETH ETF

• Aptos TVL is nearing the $1 billion mark as projects in its network see strong 30-day growth, according to CryptoRank data (chart below)

Taking on the tokens 

The total crypto market cap decreased 3.23% in the past 24-hours to $2.39 trillion. It is down 1.24% over a 7-day period.

As for the largest cryptocurrencies by market cap…

These metrics were taken prior to publication Tuesday morning EST.

Other numbers we’re eyeing…

• $70,000 — IYKYK, bitcoin neared that price on Monday morning, but has since retracted

Money and people moves

Latest updates on crypto startups that secured funding and industry players who are starting something new.

1. Ava Labs Software Engineer Aaron Buchwald is now leading the HyperSDK team, he shared on X

2. Will there be a SEC job opening soon? Trump says he’ll fire SEC Chair Gensler if elected

3. Bitcoin scaling network Mezo raises $7.5 million in new funding (The Block)

Talking points for the road 

Here’s some headlines and topics that you can talk about at your next dinner party, crypto event or on a first date to look smart (results may vary.) 

1. 1 big thing: Trump in Nashville (Axios)

2. Solana has soared 35% this month. Four experts on where it will go next (DL News)

3. What if the US really bought 1 million BTC? (Blockworks)

4. Bitcoin Tumbles Below $67K as U.S. Government Moves $2B of 'Silk Road' Tokens (CoinDesk)

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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.