Austin Diamond

Super excited to share that we're closing in on $1B in volume since our launch and we've closed another $9m in funding led by our longtime partners at @a16zcrypto!

@davepaffenholz Ayyy congrats!!

Thrilled to announce our Series B. Try Juicebox, and win the talent war!🧃

@mariogabriele @ileri Congrats! They are lucky to have you!

I'm joining Hummingbird as a partner. I've been fascinated by Hummingbird ever since I wrote about them in 2023. Though their returns were truly remarkable, what struck me most was how differently Firat (@ileri) and Barend saw the world. Their understanding of outlier founders had a depth, rigor, and originality I hadn't encountered anywhere else in venture. It mapped to what I felt was the reality of startup building, but with a clarity I had yet to develop. In an asset class that can feel like an echo chamber, these two were clearly playing their own game. I feel privileged to be a part of the team. Though The Generalist remains mine and I will continue building it, this does mark a new chapter - one I couldn't be more excited about.

@katiekirsch @eriktorenberg coded. Stole this from him years ago. 10/10

Another favorite interview question: "If you took this job and it didn't work out 6 months from now, why do you think that would be?"

@benhylak @Replit @framer @speak @clay Congrats! Pumped for you and the team

earlier this year, we launched the first agent monitoring platform now, we are used by some of the fastest growing ai companies (@replit, @framer, @speak, @clay) and just raised a $15m seed round

@cdixon @guywuolletjr Ayy congrats @guywuolletjr!

Today we are excited to announce that we are promoting Guy Wuollet (@guywuolletjr) to General Partner. We first met Guy in 2018 while he was studying computer science at Stanford, where he also rowed varsity crew. He initially joined the firm as an intern working on the enterprise go-to-market team, but it soon became clear he was most passionate about crypto. We kept running into Guy: first when he joined our Crypto Startup Accelerator to build a decentralized ISP, then while doing research at Protocol Labs, and finally as a teaching assistant for our research partner @danboneh. After joining us full-time in 2020, Guy began investing in infrastructure, DeFi, and DePIN. He has been a steady and creative force, making significant contributions to more than 20 investments, including Solana, LayerZero, Gensyn, EigenLayer, Daylight, and Morpho. Based on insights from prior investments like Orchid, Nym, and Helium, Guy defined our thesis on what would become known as DePIN. He wrote one of the defining blogs on why DePIN matters and helped us invest in Gensyn. Next he wrote about decentralized energy and led our investment in Daylight. Guy also invested in decentralized transportation, robotics, and AI projects as he helped run our accelerator. DeFi has always been central to Guy’s thesis, but his early investment in Morpho was driven above all by conviction in the founders. He recognized in @PaulFrambot and his team a rare combination of technical depth and clarity of vision. Since then, Morpho has grown to billions in total value locked and become one of the leading protocols in DeFi. Their V2 launch marked a major leap forward in efficiency and scale for on-chain lending. Through his work with founders, Guy has shown a rare mix of deep technical expertise and thoughtful pragmatism. Founders often tell me how impressed they are that Guy systematically reads, understands, and provides useful feedback on protocol design and other hard technical topics. His writing and advice on token and protocol design have helped influence many projects in our portfolio. Beyond his investing skills, Guy has been a calm and positive presence, with a wry sense of humor, both inside the firm and for founders. As the crypto team grew from a small group to more than 80 people, he helped recruit and mentor many of the talented investors, researchers, and operators who make the team what it is today. Guy is an invaluable member of the team, and it has been great to see him grow and develop over the last five years. Guy joins me, @alive_eth, and @AriannaSimpson as @a16zcrypto’s fourth General Partner.

@turbahn @FireblocksHQ Congrats to you and the team! Lucky to have been able to work with you all over the years

Today, Dynamic is joining Fireblocks. A month after starting Dynamic, I had my first call with the @FireblocksHQ CEO, Michael Shaulov. I left that call thinking, “I need to partner with him.” Since the beginning, we’ve admired how Fireblocks built trust and scale across the industry. I can't understate how much I respect this team, and always have. By joining Fireblocks, we’re combining our strengths. Fireblocks is leading the way in digital asset security infrastructure. Dynamic is leading the way in giving developers the tools to build next generation financial experiences, on crypto rails, with speed and simplicity. Together, we can serve everyone, from the two-person startup to the Fortune 500 company, with one complete crypto stack for every stage of growth. For our customers, nothing changes. You’ll keep building with the same tools and people you know and trust, now with more power behind you: stronger security, faster delivery, and global support. This moment feels something we've been building toward for years. It’s the next step toward our vision of making crypto work for everyone. To our customers, community, and investors, thank you for placing your faith in us. LFG and back to work!

@nickabouzeid @RivetTax Happy customer! Congrats!

Today is Day 652 @RivetTax. Since launch, we’ve filed over 1000 tax returns for companies like Cursor & Cognition. We've become #1 most-rated firm on Sam's List. But today is special, because we get to announce our $5.1m seed round led by XYZ Ventures & Susa Ventures.

@LauraDeming @foundersfund Congrats! Well deserved!!

Taking a first step towards hibernation pods :)  Just announced a $58M Series A led by @foundersfund to back the core roadmap reversibly cryopreserve human organs -> help transplant patients + build sustainable business -> accelerate R&D for whole body cryo

@jordihays @Uniswap Dream team

I hired Dylan in 2021 at Party Round and he was my right hand through the joy & chaos of ZIRP, SVB, and beyond Since then he built & sold a media company to @Uniswap 4 years later, I'm thrilled to be joining forces again, 100% focused on our favorite business: show business

@Gkam192 Thanks! What are you looking for? You can find all info on AMKT.com or via our docs here- docs.amktdao.com/amkt-documenta…

@ShinKiro14 @3liXBT @universaldotxyz @katana Love to see it!

@AustinLDiamond @3liXBT @universaldotxyz @katana Thank you @AustinLDiamond. Just made a small swap to test things out and it worked flawlessly. Also, insanely low gas fees on @katana.

Most of your crypto is TRAPPED. Your XRP sits on Ripple. Your DOGE lives on its own chain. Your SOL is stuck in Solana’s ecosystem. Each asset isolated in its own silo, unable to tap into the yields and opportunities happening elsewhere. @universaldotxyz just changed that on @katana. They’re bringing non-EVM assets directly into Katana’s DeFi stack through uAssets: wrapped versions of XRP, DOGE, SOL, SUI, TAO and others that work natively on the chain. Here’s how it actually works: Universal takes your native assets and stores them in Coinbase Prime custody. Not some multisig. Not a bridge contract. Regulated, institutional-grade custody. Then they mint 1:1 ERC-20 equivalent on Katana. Your XRP becomes uXRP. Your SOL becomes uSOL. Same value, but now it can plug into every DeFi protocol on the flywheel- & yieldmaxxing chain. The backing is verifiable through zkTLS proofs. You can check in real-time that every uAsset has its corresponding native token locked up. No trust required. Why this matters for Katana? Well, remember how Katana redirects 100% of sequencer fees back into the ecosystem? Now those fees compound with Universal’s liquidity: > Non-EVM assets generate trading volume → more sequencer fees > Fees boost yields on uAsset pools → attracts more deposits > Deeper liquidity enables larger trades → more volume > The flywheel accelerates So how do you get uAssets: 1.Universal Swap (RFQ): Submit an on-chain request for quote. Market makers compete for your order. One click, you get freshly minted uAssets. Best for speed. 2.Universal Mint: Deposit native assets directly through universal.xyz. Best for large positions or cross-chain moves. 3.Sushi on Katana: Trade existing uAssets in liquidity pools. Best for smaller amounts or if you’re already on-chain. The real unlock here isn’t just trading. It’s what you can do after. Take uSOL. On Solana, you’re limited to Solana DeFi. On Katana, you can: > Lend it on Morpho for base yield > LP it against jitoSOL on Sushi > Use it as collateral across protocols > Earn boosted APRs from Katana’s fee redistribution Your DOGE that’s been sitting idle since 2021? Now it can earn yield for the first time. Your XRP waiting for the next pump? Put it to work while you wait. This is Katana’s vision playing out in real-time. Every asset becomes productive. Every holder becomes a yield farmer. The sequencer fees from all this activity flow back to users, not a treasury. Non-EVM assets couldn’t access EVM yields before. EVM couldn’t easily access non-EVM liquidity. Universal on Katana bridges that gap. The chain that gives back just opened the doors to the entire crypto universe. Check uAssets: universal.xyz ⚔️

@GadgetLeo @25THPRMR @katana @universaldotxyz On it!

@25THPRMR @katana @universaldotxyz let's see izz upto @universaldotxyz team

okay so @katana gotta have the most goated teams out there not just with query answers but remembering these small things on TL all I had was a comment bro tagged me there 😭 I'm gonna keep cooking some content for katana when i feel like it my last thread was long and got some good response gKatana boys

@MannerBoy1981 @3liXBT @universaldotxyz LMK what you think/if you have any feedback!

@3liXBT @universaldotxyz Great overview, can't wait to try out the uAsset functionality

@ShinKiro14 @3liXBT @universaldotxyz @katana Enter a number in that USDC field in the swap section on the right and you’ll get a quote. LMK if you have any issues!

@3liXBT @universaldotxyz Deploying these assets on @katana through @universaldotxyz unlocks a wealth of DeFi possibilites @3liXBT. A question though, where do I find the "Universal Swap (RFQ)"?

@Justinf_DeFi @AerodromeFi @coinbase Check out uSOL and uSUI on Aerodrome! Similar risks as cbAssets as underlying Solana and SUI is still in custody at Coinbase

@AerodromeFi @coinbase I need cbSOL and cbSUI

cbAssets Have Arrived🛬 Three weeks ago, @coinbase unveiled new wrapped assets—and already, they've done more than $30M in volume on Aerodrome Here's how cbAssets are changing the game 👇

@eriktorenberg Ayy congrats, Erik!

I’m excited to share that: 1.⁠ ⁠I’m joining Andreessen Horowitz as a general partner. 2.⁠ ⁠a16z has acquired Turpentine. Everything I’ve worked on over my career has been around investing and building products/networks/media for founders — a16z is the perfect place for me to do this work at the highest level. I’ve long admired the firm’s endless ambition and startup mentality. When I was thinking about starting a firm and asked Ben for advice on how to build the next a16z, he told me “the next a16z is…a16z”. When I told Marc my plans to marry investing, media, and networks, he said “do it all here, but bigger” and crafted the right role to make it all work. As for Turpentine, the shows will continue. I’m proud of what we built and excited to have more resources for supporting our hosts and growing the network. Today I’m feeling deeply grateful for all the entrepreneurs I’ve backed and my incredible team members at each chapter — and fortunate to now work with all the brilliant people at a16z. I’m stoked to partner with the next generation of great entrepreneurs and also hire even more fantastic people into the firm. DMs are open and my email is et@a16z.com.

@PatrickJBlum @ByrneHobart @TobiasAHuber You love to see it! Happy to be a tiny tiny investor!

This decade will be full of crises. The solutions will not be found in consensus frameworks—but in the anomalies they fail to explain. I started a frontier tech fund last year to continue investing in these anomalies. @ByrneHobart & @TobiasAHuber are joining the next phase.

@sidrmsh @reclaimprotocol Use to prove reserves- universal.xyz/reserves. Their zkFetch SDK was lightweight & great for proving private http responses

@AustinLDiamond @reclaimprotocol TLDR on why?

Who're the best ZkTLS technology providers out there?

@blauyourmind @3LAU @join_royal

@AustinLDiamond @3LAU @join_royal ❤️❤️ I'm super grateful...I indirectly mentioned you in this post :)

A personal update! After an incredible 3.5 years at a16z crypto, I've decided to join my brother @3lau to build a new crypto protocol @join_royal!!! There are a few other things in the works too—more on that soon 👀 I am deeply grateful for having the opportunity to be a part of the a16z crypto team. @cdixon, @AriannaSimpson, @alive_eth, @eddylazzarin, @milesjennings, @kimbatronic, and @AAlbaneseNY, you have created the most extraordinary team in the industry, and I'm endlessly thankful for your mentorship and support over the years. To the investment team (you know who you are): You're not just colleagues—you're family. You are all exceptional, and I've learned so much from each of you. It's been an immense privilege to work with and learn from so many brilliant founders. You are the ones on the cutting edge shaping the future of crypto, and you've inspired me more than anyone. I've always had the desire to build—and now I get to do it alongside my brother. It truly doesn't get better than that. What are we building? Stay tuned :)