The killer apps are already here. Crypto just needs to mature

Framework Ventures’ Michael Anderson expects “catalyzing events” to “make all these things real”

article-image

ImageFlow/Shutterstock modified by Blockworks

share

Blockchain products are often described as solutions looking for problems. The question springs up from time to time in the community — when will crypto get the “killer apps” that finally drive it into the mainstream?

It turns out that the apps are already here, says Empire podcast guest Mike Ippolito, in the form of non-sovereign money and permissionless application building, which are “already hundred billion dollar outcomes,” he says.

On the Empire podcast (Spotify/Apple), Ippolito says, “we’re already looking at a lot of the major use cases” for crypto. “You just need to be patient and wait, that people will eventually use these things. And I believe they will. I’m really optimistic about that.”

Host Jason Yanowitz adds that DeFi is already a killer app, but that the use case is often misunderstood as a B2C (business to consumer) system. It behaves more like a B2B, he says, where commerce primarily takes place between businesses instead of flowing to retail consumers.

“DeFi has a dozen protocols that spit off a bunch of cash flow,” he says. “They’re sustainable. They’ve got massive businesses on top of them and funds that sit on top of them.” It’s already, Yanowitz says, an “interoperable ecosystem.”

Host Santiago Santos mentions stablecoins as another strong use case. He sees Coinbase with its recently launched layer-2 protocol Base and app integration with the USD stablecoin (USDC) as a potential “everything app.” 

“The whole vision of Base makes me incredibly excited as a catalyst with account abstraction, with USDC as that conduit,” he says, noting that in a recent discussion with Coinbase protocols lead Jesse Pollak, “You could see the vision.”

“Restaurants issue an NFT, that’s your loyalty. You get points and you pay with USDC — you don’t even whip out Apple Pay, none of that jazz — everything just works.” 

Third party innovation as the catalyst

People had ideas for what would ultimately work on the internet long before it was technically feasible at scale, Framework Ventures co-founder Michael Anderson says. 

“It took catalyzing events for those things to become real,” he says, “like SSL to make e-commerce actually work and the ability to take digital photos and upload them to make social media actually work.”

Anderson expects “third party events” to “make all these things real,” admitting, “it’s really hard to predict what those events will be.”

Ippolito points to the Solana ecosystem as a community that “gets this.”

“You can squint at DePIN (decentralized physical infrastructure networks), and see how this space might end up evolving,” he says. “Stuff that takes place on crypto actually leverages hardware and might eventually influence hardware and then actions that people take in real life,” he says. 

“It’s clearly not where it ultimately needs to be, but I think you can squint at that and see a very attractive future for crypto.”


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

Tags

Upcoming Events

Old Billingsgate

Mon - Wed, October 13 - 15, 2025

Blockworks’ Digital Asset Summit (DAS) will feature conversations between the builders, allocators, and legislators who will shape the trajectory of the digital asset ecosystem in the US and abroad.

Industry City | Brooklyn, NY

TUES - THURS, JUNE 24 - 26, 2025

Permissionless IV serves as the definitive gathering for crypto’s technical founders, developers, and builders to come together and create the future.If you’re ready to shape the future of crypto, Permissionless IV is where it happens.

Brooklyn, NY

SUN - MON, JUN. 22 - 23, 2025

Blockworks and Cracked Labs are teaming up for the third installment of the Permissionless Hackathon, happening June 22–23, 2025 in Brooklyn, NY. This is a 36-hour IRL builder sprint where developers, designers, and creatives ship real projects solving real problems across […]

recent research

Featured.png

Research

Helium stands at a pivotal moment in its evolution as a decentralized wireless network, balancing rapid growth, economic restructuring, and global expansion. With accelerated growth in domestic DAUs and Hotspots supporting its network, Helium is leveraging strategic partnerships and innovative proposals to scale internationally. The recent implementation of HIP 138, “Return to HNT,” has unified its token economy under HNT, simplifying participation and strengthening liquidity, while HIP 139’s phase-out of CBRS refocuses efforts on scalable Wi-Fi offload. Meanwhile, governance shifts under HIP 141 raise questions about centralization as Nova Labs consolidates control over the roadmap.

article-image

In 2011, WikiLeaks faced a financial blockade imposed by the US government. It was Bitcoin’s first major test.

article-image

Kado’s founder Emery Andrew spoke to Blockworks about the acquisition and what’s next for the team

article-image

LayerZero’s Bryan Pellegrino chatted with Blockworks about the firm’s next steps and its 10-year runway

article-image

Colosseum co-founder Matty Taylor is seeing “high-performance [Solana] founders showing a lot of interest in private trading technology”

article-image

Executives weigh the growth potential they see in the public stock and private credit/equities arenas

article-image

Players can stake ME, trade tokens and link wallets to climb the leaderboard