Podcast: The Crypto Renaissance Has Begun | Josh Rosenthal

Josh Rosenthal joins Jason to discuss the parallels between the Renaissance and today’s crypto movement

article-image
share

In this episode of Empire, Jason is joined by Josh Rosenthal, a former historian and current serial entrepreneur and crypto venture capitalist. Josh’s encyclopedic knowledge of history — from the Middle Ages to the Renaissance and beyond — and his ability to draw a throughline between historical events, Web3 and our world today is truly fascinating.

Josh contends that we are living through the greatest renaissance in history. How will historians look back on today? Tune in to find out.

We discuss:

  • medieval life
  • what defines a renaissance
  • the advent of a dynamic identity
  • signs of a reformation
  • what drives history
  • layering ownership into communication
  • the pendulum between aggregation and decentralization
  • how Web3 brings the missing element to the internet
  • how society will be impacted

Check out what they had to say in the video below.👇

About the show

“Empire” is a twice-a-week show where we share the real crypto stories that aren’t heard elsewhere. On Mondays, Jason Yanowitz and Santiago Santos interview crypto industry movers and shakers to talk about their struggles, bold moves and tough decisions. Finish off the week with Friday’s weekly roundup episode that covers the top news and narratives of the week.

For any NPR or Guy Raz fans out there, you can think of “Empire” as a “How I Built This” for Web3.

Subscribe to “Empire” today on Apple or Spotify. Watch episodes on YouTube.


Get the news in your inbox. Explore Blockworks newsletters:

  • Blockworks Daily: The newsletter that helps thousands of investors understand crypto and the markets, by Byron Gilliam.
  • Empire: Start your day with top crypto insights from David Canellis and Katherine Ross.
  • Forward Guidance: Explore the growing intersection between crypto, macroeconomics, policy and finance with Ben Strack, Casey Wagner and Felix Jauvin.
  • 0xResearch: Get alpha directly in your inbox — market highlights, charts, degen trade ideas, governance updates, and more.
  • Lightspeed: All things Solana, in your inbox, every day from Jack Kubinec and Jeff Albus.
  • The Drop: The newsletter for crypto collectors and traders, covering games, tokens, apps, memes and more.
Tags

Upcoming Events

Javits Center North | 445 11th Ave

Tues - Thurs, March 18 - 20, 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.

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.

recent research

monad ecosystem report graphic.png

Research

Monad's testnet launch has shown promise with 57 geographically distributed validators and over 20 live applications on day one. However, the ecosystem's true test will come with mainnet as it transitions from testing to real economic activity alongside the launch of the native gas token.

article-image

On the news that SOL would be part of Trump’s upcoming strategic reserve, SOL quickly surged before seeing an equally swift retracement

article-image

Senate Majority Leader John Thune said the IRS rule “puts at risk the privacy and security” of millions of Americans trading digital assets

article-image

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick reportedly said a bitcoin strategic reserve could be “executed on Friday”

article-image

If there’s an amount of S&P 500 pain Trump is willing to endure, we don’t know it

article-image

The Normal Mfer is just a degen with a dog — until life is turned upside down

article-image

USDN lets apps and rollups distribute the underlying T-bill yield to users