Offchain Labs' partner studio Tandem aims to make Ethereum 'unified'

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Building a ‘unified Ethereum’

The Ethereum ecosystem has a vast number of layer-2 blockchains, decentralized applications, protocols and developers building on top of it.

But Offchain Labs, the team of core developers initially behind Arbitrum — one of the biggest L2s by market share — there’s more room for blockchain development.

In mid-August, the team committed $10 million to the launch of Tandem, an incubation project or “partner studio” focused on helping projects in the Ethereum ecosystem with expansion.

“We believe in a unified Ethereum, not one that’s tribal, not one that’s only Arbitrum,” Steven Goldfeder, CEO and co-founder of Offchain Labs, said on Talking Tokens. “We understand that there’s competitors and other chains.”

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

Goldfeder sees Tandem as a way for Ethereum-centric chains to partner and build an interoperable stack that unifies, “not only Arbitrum chains but all Ethereum chains.”

“That’s better for everyone.” to have “shared infrastructure,” he added.

“If a great team is solving a problem and improving user experiences on Ethereum, that’s ultimately what matters,” Goldfeder said.

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

The latest Talking Tokens podcast 🎙️

For this week’s Thursday episode, I sat down with Steven Goldfeder, CEO and co-founder of Offchain Labs (the team building Arbitrum and Prysm). 

We talk about the evolution of Arbitrum and its role in scaling Ethereum, the recently launched Tandem incubation program, the proliferation of layer-2 blockchains this market cycle 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!

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Monitoring blockchains

Looking at some of the biggest developments onchain.

• Aave, a decentralized lending protocol, deployed its Aave V3 mainnet on ZKsync’s ZK Chain Era

• Agora expands its AUSD stablecoin on Avalanche with over $20M minted on the network

• MATIC → POL migration is coming Sept. 4th, here’s everything you need to know

• Plume launched its RWA ecosystem map with over 150+ projects building on its testnet (shown below)

Taking on the tokens 

The total crypto market cap increased 2.85% in the past 24-hours to $2.16 trillion. It is up 3.85% over a 7-day period.

As for the largest cryptocurrencies by market cap…

These metrics were taken prior to publication on Thursday morning EST.

Other numbers we’re eyeing…

• 13,265 BTC or $784M - That’s how much bitcoin the defunct exchange Mt. Gox has moved on Wednesday, according to Arkham Intelligence

Money and people moves

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

1. Ondo Finance taps Mark Janoff as general counsel

2. Story Protocol raises $140M total, following $80M Series B round led by a16z crypto, to build an IP-focused blockchain

3. Brandon Cigri departs Galaxy, joins Eigen Layer’s foundation to help with ecosystem growth and strategy.

4. Bitcoin Miner Bitfarms Buys Stronghold for $125 Million in Stock Transaction (Bloomberg)

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. Bitcoin Bear Trap? Goldman Says Wednesday's U.S. Jobs Report Is Likely to Overstate Weakness (CoinDesk)

2. Pro investors hold 10% of all Bitcoin — and they’re not stopping there, Bitwise CIO says (DL News)

3. The SEC is poised to file fewer crypto cases in 2024 (Blockworks)

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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.