The Breakdown Newsletter

Could blockchain rails finally realize Ted Nelson’s non-linear, pro-creator “docuverse”?

A recent mistrial illustrates how juries need more background information when it comes to judging complex systems like Ethereum

The team is betting that a 20-minute hardware trust window beats a new alt-L1

To learn how to navigate the physical world, robots need visual data

Advice from Neal Stephenson, Kyle Broflovski, and Crypto Mom on building in crypto

When crypto meets the courtroom, everyone speaks in food metaphors — and nobody leaves full

Sometimes you need to know what actual humans think, and not just simulated humans

How financial markets actively shape the reality they’re meant to measure

If AI is a bubble, let’s hope it gets even bigger

Don’t judge your decisions by their results

Powell is ending “run-off” to keep reserves “ample” — a far cry from colonial America, where fiscal responsibility was public spectacle

María Corina Machado’s Nobel Peace Prize should change the way the world sees bitcoin

Owning the rails doesn’t help if no one wants a ride

Vitalik wants one story, DATs want five, and investors just want to know which ball to catch

Insiders have the best information — markets should be willing to pay for it

A main character of the dotcom boom is suddenly a main character of the AI one

In bonds, stablecoins and billionaires, a reminder of what makes crypto special

If the president breaks the Fed, he’ll own the budget problems

Tempo might ultimately test what people will pay for decentralization

Where TradFi needs bankers and lawyers, DeFi just needs a function call

If AI is a replacement for humans, wouldn’t companies fire the expensive ones first?

In markets, overconfidence is both feature and bug

For DATs, getting to the stock market first may mean owning a business no one wants

A business that gives away 75% of what it raises isn’t selling equity — it’s selling a product