Deep | Dragoon 📌 Devcon 8 🇮🇳

ai is making creative judgment more valuable than ever before. and i've spent a year exploring why. i've been working with a team of agents to research, experiment, build projects, build frameworks, and push the boundaries of creative intelligence. along the way, i've studied patterns, emerging trends, workflows, and the behaviour of teams, design leaders, and creatives as they navigate ai and creativity more broadly. i've experimented with countless ai tools, generated a ton of work, tested ideas, worked with agency and creative studio teams, and explored what's possible. this work took an enormous amount of time, hard work, and perseverance. a lot of ideas, countless iterations, and plenty of things that didn't work. happy to finally bring it all together in one place so anyone, anywhere, can explore it, learn from it, and build on it. everything is live ↓ link in comment; please check :)

four days in mumbai across @EFDevcon , @ETHIndiaco and @ETHGlobal. from AI agents and post-quantum cryptography to indian builders, art, culture and the future of onchain products. one thought stayed with me: ethereum doesn't have an innovation problem. it has a make-people-care problem. i wrote about the conversations, ideas and observations that stayed with me, and what i think comes next. here's what i took away ↓ designprotocol.substack.com/…

four days in, and the conversations got bigger than the conference itself. 🇮🇳 a little late, but @EFDevcon final day in mumbai deserved a proper recap. from @ETHGlobal Pragma to technical discussions and conversations with brilliant leaders and creative minds, here’s what stood out. > ETHGlobal Pragma Mumbai a different conference experience. one track, curated talks and focused conversations. less running between stages, more time understanding what people are building and why. > the open source network state Balaji S. Srinivasan’s talk at @ETHIndiaco explored a bigger question: what happens when communities can build institutions and coordinate globally through open technology? this conversation goes far beyond crypto. > privacy beyond the buzzword HOPR’s private transport, peer payments and Gnosis VPN workshop raised an important question: how do we communicate without exposing unnecessary metadata? > the infrastructure underneath decentralisation privacy isn’t just about transactions. protecting network communication, reducing metadata leakage and resisting censorship are fundamental to keeping permissionless systems open. > the people shaping the ecosystem met incredible leaders, builders and creative minds. some of the best conversations happened away from the stage, without slides or agendas. > beyond the protocol AI, finance, identity, privacy and open infrastructure are becoming increasingly connected. the boundaries are blurring, and that’s where some interesting opportunities are emerging. > the creative layer this industry needs more people thinking deeply about product experience, brand, storytelling and culture. technology moves quickly, but communicating its value matters just as much. > a little perspective don’t let conference criticism, hot takes and noise distract you from your own work. focus on building, learning and contributing. some people might need a little Burnol to get over their conference experience. 😂 > and the merch hunters? they’re everywhere. don’t confuse a few people chasing free merch with the actual builders and potential of an entire ecosystem. one thought to close the week: be kind. give people credit. share knowledge, make introductions and celebrate good work. culture isn’t built through conference stages or social media commentary. it’s built through how we treat people and contribute to the ecosystem. ethereum’s biggest opportunity isn’t just what its technology can do today. it’s what it enables people to build, own, coordinate and organise tomorrow. that’s the bigger story. i explore these intersections through The Protocol, my research and writing project on crypto, product, design, culture and the future of the internet. designprotocol (dot) substack (dot) com and a special thank you to the organisers, volunteers, support staff and the entire Ethereum team. so much work happens behind the scenes. genuinely appreciate everyone who made this experience possible. ❤️ bringing @EFDevcon to India was one of the best decisions. the energy, hospitality and people made this a wonderful experience. mumbai, you delivered. 🇮🇳 see you at devcon lisbon. 🇵🇹🦄

still processing some of the conversations from @EFDevcon day 3. 🇮🇳 a little late to the recap, but these are too interesting not to share. i’ve been exploring many of these intersections through The Protocol, my independent research and writing project covering crypto, product design, brand strategy and what it takes to build better products in the onchain economy. if you’re interested in these conversations, I’m sharing my notes and research here: read here 👉🏻 designprotocol ( dot) substack ( dot) com day 3 went deep into some of the questions that will shape the next chapter of ethereum: privacy, security, censorship resistance, applied cryptography and the intersection of AI and decentralised systems. a few topics that caught my attention: > the post-quantum transition. quantum computing might not be an immediate threat, but preparing ethereum’s cryptographic foundations for what’s coming is work that needs to happen early. > privacy by default. from private transactions to validator privacy, the conversation is shifting from whether privacy matters to how we make it practical and accessible. > censorship resistance. anonymous broadcast and permissionless networks are essential to keeping open systems genuinely open. decentralisation means little if someone can decide who gets to participate. > AI agents and security. as agents start interacting with wallets, protocols and onchain infrastructure, trust, identity and verification become much bigger challenges. > formal verification. writing code is one thing. proving that it behaves as intended is another. security needs to go beyond audits and become part of how we build. > ethereum’s networking layer. peer-to-peer infrastructure, network resilience and privacy are the less visible pieces that make the entire ecosystem work. > the human side of open technology. sessions around civic AI, digital rights and permissionless systems were a reminder that the technology should ultimately expand what people can do. outside the talks: @KASTxyz deserves another mention. the Gold Party was easily one of my favourite side-event experiences of Devcon. incredible setting, music, people and execution. special credit to Hardeep and the KAST brand and design team for raising the bar. one takeaway from day 3: the future of ethereum isn’t just about making systems faster or cheaper. it’s about making them more private, secure, resilient and accessible without giving up the principles that made them worth building in the first place. the deeper you look into the infrastructure, the more interesting the future gets. more thoughts and research on The Protocol: designprotocol ( dot) substack (dot) com mumbai, you’ve been a good one. 🇮🇳

some side events are good. some raise the bar. the @KASTxyz Gold Party last night was on another level. ✨ insane venue, unreal views, great music, immaculate vibes and a room full of interesting people. met so many cool people, made new connections and had conversations that made the night even better. but a special shoutout to @i_hardeepsingh @raagulanpathy for putting this together. the thought, effort and execution really showed. also, big appreciation for the KAST brand and design team. the visual identity, overall aesthetic and attention to detail made the entire experience feel cohesive. clearly, a lot of thought went into it. honestly, this was the side event of Devcon for me. 10/10 experience. KAST didn’t just throw a party, they raised the bar for what a conference side event can be. more of this energy, please. 🥂

india is bigger than your devcon experience. 🇮🇳 a little late, but @EFDevcon day 2 in mumbai deserved a recap. interesting how quickly people are turning one conference experience into a verdict on an entire ecosystem. a conference is not the ecosystem. a city is not a country’s potential. and a few half-filled rooms don’t tell you where the industry is heading. india has its challenges, absolutely. but it also has an incredible generation of builders, engineers, founders and independent thinkers building things with global relevance. i spent time at @EFDevcon and @ethindiaco, and attended two particularly interesting ETHIndia panels: ethereum request for startups, with Viraz, Binji and Francesco. india deep tech, featuring Aaryaman, Dhanush, Arnav Bansal and Angad Daryani. also got to meet Binji, Francesco, Aaryaman Vir, Hudson, and Austin Griffithsome genuinely impressive people building across different layers of the stack. the future won’t be decided by which conference has the biggest crowd, which city gets the most attention, or which chain gets the most hype. crypto is evolving. the boundaries between crypto, AI, finance and technology are blurring. but don’t confuse your field of view with the size of the opportunity. there’s a lot happening in india. maybe it’s time to look beyond the conference floor. 🇮🇳 ⸻ some day 2 conversations worth highlighting: > ethereum’s roadmap, simplified. what changes next, why it matters, and how the protocol evolves without compromising its core principles. > fast finality. faster confirmations aren’t just a protocol milestone. they can fundamentally improve the experience of building and using applications on ethereum. > dynamic smart contracts. hooks everywhere. more adaptable contracts, greater composability and new possibilities for developers. > smart accounts in production. moving beyond technical demos to real-world lessons. account abstraction needs to make crypto easier for actual users. > red-teaming AI pipelines. prompt injection and supply-chain attacks are serious threats. as AI agents become more capable, security needs to be built into the stack. > privacy and operational security. transaction data leaks, deniability and protecting your ETH. privacy is not just a cypherpunk ideal; making it practical is the real challenge. > UNICEF going onchain. a compelling look at how blockchain adoption can move from pilots to institutions and real-world impact. > the art hub and gallery. one of the strongest reminders that Ethereum is more than infrastructure. art and culture can bring the ecosystem to audiences that technical talks never will. one thought I keep coming back to: ethereum has no shortage of ambitious technology. but the next phase needs stronger storytelling, better brands, thoughtful product experiences and cultural relevance. we spend a lot of time making protocols work. we should spend just as much time making people care about what they enable. technology builds the foundation. culture helps build the movement. still in mumbai. still curious about what’s being built here. 🦄 if you’re around for devcon, feel free to say hi, grab a coffee, exchange ideas or just drop me a DM. always up for meeting interesting people.

great culture. indian founders, please take notes.

a little late, but @EFDevcon day 1 in mumbai 🇮🇳 deserved a recap. if you’re around for devcon, feel free to say hi, grab a coffee, exchange ideas or just drop me a DM. always up for meeting interesting people. i’m the founder of The Protocol, currently researching, writing and experimenting at the intersection of crypto, AI, culture, creative technology and the future of the internet. would love to exchange notes with people exploring similar ideas. > met a ridiculous number of builders, founders, VCs and internet strangers > attended @MetaMask and @Starknet side events. great conversations, great people > reunited with old friends after what feels like an entire bull and bear market > finally met people i’ve only known through their internet avatars > explored almost every community hub. every ecosystem has its own little universe > the art hub and art gallery were genuinely amazing. this is the cultural layer of ethereum that can take it beyond crypto-native audiences and introduce it to millions more > went through almost all the booths. discovered some interesting things being built across the ecosystem > caught interesting conversations around AI agents, cryptography, privacy, security and Ethereum’s future > vitalik’s keynote on the open, secure and verifiable future was one of the highlights > ai agents, agentic payments, privacy and the future of trustless systems were among the hottest topics > had interesting conversations about what crypto companies are still missing beyond technology > my take: we’re still massively underinvesting in culture, brand identity, storytelling, creative direction and memorable user experiences > great technology alone doesn’t build movements. strong narratives, distribution, community and a clear point of view matter just as much > crypto needs more companies that people genuinely want to be associated with, not just protocols people happen to use > helped a few people with ideas, introductions and random product/design feedback along the way > listened to some really good music. crypto conferences need more of this > ate some seriously good food. mumbai is not playing around > devcon merch is 10/10. whoever is behind the merch deserves a raise > Jio World Centre, BKC, Mumbai is a fantastic venue. great space, thoughtful layout and plenty of room for the ecosystem to come together > genuinely impressive event management and execution > bumped into people i hadn’t seen in years and met people i hope to build with > the best part of crypto is still the people building it. no tokenomics can compete with that > mumbai traffic remains the only real proof of decentralization. everyone has their own route > still have a long list of people to meet, conversations to finish and booths to revisit takeaway: ethereum needs more than great technology. it needs culture, art, stronger brands, better stories and ambitious creative thinking to reach the next billion people. day 1 was a good reminder of why this ecosystem is special. now back to day 2. more building, more serendipity, more familiar faces. 🦄

gm gm @EFDevcon fam!!!!! landed in mumbai just 2 hours ago. staying in juhu, so obviously had to make my first stop at prithvi theatre & café. one of bombay’s most iconic cultural spots, where theatre, art, cinema and creative people collide. bumped into some familiar faces from the indian film and tv industry. met theatre actors and actresses i've watched growing up. absolutely wholesome vibes. ❤️ mumbai, you're already making a good first impression. also, i have 1 extra ticketfor a really good show on the 4th. they’re on me. dm me if you’d like to join :)