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🌟 If there’s a theme this week, it’s convergence. AI and Web3 are finally building shared infrastructure, TradFi is walking through the front door of crypto, and even the chaos machines like Pump.fun are forcing the industry to reckon with what real adoption should look like. Poseidon raised $15 million to give AI the clean data pipelines it desperately needs, BitGo filed to go public and put a price tag on custody infrastructure, and PNC partnered with Coinbase to bring crypto access to nearly nine million customers. At the same time, regulators are loosening their grip, platforms are maturing, and institutions are staking their claim across the map. Not everything went smoothly. A major Web2 breach showed exactly why decentralized identity can’t come soon enough. Still, the direction is clear. Crypto is building, bridging, and shipping, and the momentum feels real this time.🌟

a16zCrypto makes major waves, leading a $15M seed round for up-and-comer Poseidon in an apparent AI play. 🏄🌊

(And a big shoutout to Introduction.com member and Partner at a16z, Pyrs Carvolth!)

Proof of Concept 🧾

Founded in Q1 2024 by a brilliant team with deep roots in AI, robotics, and Web3, Poseidon set out to build a decentralized data layer where anyone could contribute valuable real-world data and be rewarded transparently through crypto-native licensing. Think content creators selling their content to be trained by AI. Poseidon provides the middleware to facilitate this transaction for both parties. The project was officially incubated under Story Protocol, whose programmable IP infrastructure serves as the foundation for Poseidon’s structured, traceable, and (this is the signal) 🚦legally compliant 🚦 data ecosystem. Think retail AND institutional implications. Quickly, these mad scientists at Poseidon got to work in the lab 🧑‍🔬

By Q2 2024, they had successfully tested Internal SDKs and data collection pipelines with select partners. They focused on real-world applications like audio data and robotics inputs. Early feedback was extremely positive, validating their decentralized collection and programmable licensing model.

Moving and Shaking 💃🪇

Aligning with Story Protocol was smart  🧠 Poseidon orchestrates the “how” of data collection. Story enforces the “who owns what”. Together, they turn fragmented, high-risk data into a liquid, legally sound asset class. But that’s just the mechanics ⚙️

Story, coincidentally, is financially and strategically backed by … a16zCrypto … small world. I guess at that point, all it took was an … introduction 🤝

a16zCrypto saw real potential in Poseidon as a solution to a nagging AI problem. Currently, AI development is bottlenecked by lack of original content and high-quality data. Most models rely on scraped or recycled datasets that are legally ambiguous, biased, or insufficient for training systems that interact with the real world. Individuals are wary of giving up their data. Privacy concerns. I get it. Institutions are constantly in hot water over their data collection / usage. For example, OpenAI is facing a wave of lawsuits and regulatory scrutiny for allegedly using copyrighted and personal data without consent to train its models. These challenges highlight the urgent need for IP-safe data infrastructure especially for the AI era. 

In the mind of a16zCrypto, Poseidon fills an obvious market need. 

The perfect love-Story(Protocol) 👨‍❤️‍💋‍👨, a16z jumped at the opportunity leading the $15M funding round. For Poseidon, sometime in life, it’s the hands you shake…not the grades you make…

Per the release: Capital is to be allocated for scaling SDK distribution, onboarding data contributors, and further integrating with Story Protocol’s licensing rails.

What's Next ⏩⏩

Poseidon has some hot summer plans ☀️☀️ Their datasets and licensing infrastructure will be put through its paces by AI developers, robotics labs, and foundation model startups. This is all a preamble for their upcoming full SDK and marketplace platform launch this fall. Stay tuned for real-time matching between data buyers (AI teams) and contributors (content creators), with automated on-chain licensing and attribution. 

Poseidon’s position as a data marketplace for AI is a market strategy W. Their alignment with Story Protocol, tech and networking W. Their $15M seed round with a16zCrypto, Industry backing W. The gains are stacking. Let's keep an eye on this one. 

_IRL:

_{ETHGlobal New York 2025, New York City; 8/15-8/17} 🗽

_{Coinfest Asia, Bali; 8/21-8/22 🏄‍♂️}

_{Science of Blockchain Conference, UC Berkeley; 8/4-8/6} 🧬

_Virtual:

_{Web3 Growth Series with Jiho Zirlin, CEO of Ronin x Axie Inifinty
Thursday, July 31 11:00 AM - 12:00 PM EDT} 💻

LINK TO REGISTER

TradFi continues the slow march toward Digital Asset adoption, powered by GENIUS ACT and the like. Huge long-term strategic win for crypto/web3 🤓

PNC X Coinbase

What’s Happening❓

PNC Bank, one of the largest “super-regional” banks in the U.S., has officially partnered with Coinbase to roll out crypto trading access for its ~9 million clients. Announced on July 22, 2025, the collaboration leverages Coinbase’s Crypto-as-a-Service (CaaS) platform to let PNC customers buy, hold, and sell crypto directly from their bank accounts. 

(Huge congratulations to Introduction.com member and Head of Strategic Programs at Coinbase, Brian Stern on this MASSIVE announcement)

With access and familiarity representing a huge barrier for most, this union effectively turns on the lights for millions to dip their feet into the crypto world for the first time. 

How we got here 🗺️

Why now? As soon as crypto starts ripping, PNC wants in? Short answer, yes. Long answer, it's complicated.

PNC is affectionately dubbed a “super-regional” bank. In the weight class of the likes of Truist and U.S. Bank, they are increasingly positioning themselves alongside “megabanks” like JPMorgan and Bank of America. Yes, megabanks > super-regional. And to this point, PNC CEO Bill Demchak stated: “We believe we’re in a position to win” as the bank scales to challenge mega‑banks on a national stage 🤼

Likewise, Rome wasn’t built in a day. This…introduction… wasn’t a weekend handshake. Talks between PNC and Coinbase had been quietly brewing since as early as 2021. With CEO PNC claiming, “We actually went down the path with Coinbase several years ago… then we had the crypto winter… and we had prohibitions from regulators… Now we’ve got the Genius Act through… so off we go.” At that time, U.S. banks faced stringent internal and FDIC guidance limiting crypto-related activity, requiring pre‑approval before engaging in digital asset services. These regulatory barriers made many financial institutions hesitant to pursue crypto partnerships.

It was an obvious move for PNC (~$60B Market Cap; ~$0.5T AUM) to expand with Coinbase ($100B Market Cap; $420 AUM). Especially if they are looking to compete with the megas. They just had to wait for their moment. 

Fast Forward to Today ⏩

With the passing of the GENIUS Act and loosening of federal regulations, the time was right. PNC will now integrate Coinbase’s institutional-grade Crypto-as-a-Service (CaaS) platform within its banking interface. In exchange, PNC will provide select traditional banking services to Coinbase, including settlement and operational banking support, creating a mutual and strategic collaboration. 

PNC CEO believes this will future proof the company: “Partnering with Coinbase accelerates our ability to bring innovative, crypto financial solutions to our clients. This collaboration enables us to meet growing demand for secure and streamlined access to digital assets on PNC’s trusted platform.”

CoinBase: “This is exactly why we do the relentless work to eliminate barriers to crypto. To help trusted institutions meet rising demand for digital assets: securely, at scale, and without compromise.”

This is a watershed moment. A 179-year-old bank just gave crypto the keys to its front door. Coinbase now sits at the intersection of Wall Street and Web3. Millions more have access to crypto. And the direction is clear, with the Feds paving the way to clear adoption, TradFi continues the slow march into the Web3 space. Gains for everyone. 

BitGo IPO

What’s Happening❓

BitGo has filed its S‑1 and is headed for the public markets. The institutional crypto custodian is stepping out of the server room and onto the Nasdaq.

This isn’t just BitGo’s next phase. It's a trend: the floodgates are open and the capital is pouring in for Web3 / Crypto 🌊🌊

From (Multisig) Wallets to Wall Street 💱

Founded in 2013 by Mike Belshe, a Google alum and co‑inventor of HTTP/2, BitGo started as a Bitcoin security company. Back then, “custody” meant burying your seed phrase in the backyard. 

BitGo helped institutionalize crypto’s backend. First with multisig. Then with cold storage. Then with insurance, qualified trust charters, and API rails for everything from staking to trading 🔐

Today, BitGo secures over $100 billion in digital assets for more than 1,500 institutional clients across 50 countries. They move nearly 8 percent of all Bitcoin on‑chain by value. Quietly, consistently, securely.

Now they are doing it under a ticker symbol: BGXY. Effectively, putting a price on custody infra 🤯

Opportunity Cost ♟️

Yes, timing is favorable. The GENIUS Act put stablecoins on firm legal footing. SAB 121 was reversed, allowing banks to legally custody crypto. Crypto Week etc. etc. 

However, going public comes with big tradeoffs. BitGo will now operate under quarterly earnings pressure, investor oversight, and public scrutiny. There will be tension between growth and decentralization, between margin and mission.

Still, this is what scale looks like. Institutions require trust, and trust needs structure. Web3 may want to decentralize finance, but that doesn’t mean it can skip over the part where finance is built. BitGo exists to manage that gap.

Where we are headed 🛫

This isn’t crypto’s first IPO cycle, but BitGo’s filing stands apart. 

As a quick refresher 🧃 Coinbase listed in 2021 at a $47 billion valuation. Circle is targeting $7.2 billion. Galaxy Digital debuted on Nasdaq this May, sitting in the $5 billion to $6 billion range.

BitGo isn’t an exchange, nor is it a stablecoin issuer. It is pure infrastructure. Custody, compliance, APIs, staking rails. It sells safety, not speculation. WallStreet sees real value in that. 🚦Massive turning point for capital trust in web3/crypto.

Pricing details are still private. But the broader landscape for web3/crypto is becoming clear. Web3 needs TradFi. At least for now. Liquidity, compliance, custody, and capital formation don’t bootstrap themselves. If decentralization is the destination, TradFi is still the bridge. And lucky for us, BitGo understands that better than most 💪 If BitGo trades well, the IPO window swings wide open  🐂

(Props to long time Introduction.com and Sr. Account Manager at BitGo, Olivia Lo!)

Pump.fun Saga 

The Cost of the Pump ⛽

Let’s be honest. Pump.fun works. It prints cash, generates attention, and captures market share. At one point ,it was pulling in $14 million per day in fees. But make no mistake: it works like a casino, not like a financial instrument.

It even has spectacle. Livestreams showcased creators performing outrageous and sometimes violent stunts in real time to pump their tokens. It was engagement engineered with no guardrails. Dopamine for “dollars” 💉

Like I said. It's a casino. It’s not an exchange. Users aren’t investing; they are gambling 🎰What’s the old saying? The house always wins?

Locked and Loaded 🔫

The lead-up to the $PUMP launch was pure theater. The platform’s official X account stirred anticipation with tweets like “The moment you’ve all been waiting for $PUMP is launching… airdrop coming soon,” which triggered a tidal wave of wallet farming, on-chain speculation, and meme-fueled echo chambers. Influencers added fuel, with tweets joking, “can’t wait for the insta $PUMP perpetual futures listing on Hyperliquid at four biiiilion dollas.”

The days surrounding the $PUMP launch weren’t just chaotic; they were massively profitable for the platform itself. According to CryptoSlate, Pump.fun generated over $60 million in trading and launch fees within the first 48 hours, fueled by retail frenzy and whale-driven volume disguised as organic demand. More than $500 million moved on-chain in that window alone, with top wallets quietly capturing most of the upside while retail scrambled for scraps.

But the hype quickly faded. No airdrop materialized, no utility surfaced, and no roadmap followed. 

Two days later, co-founder Alon Cohen appeared on ThreadGuy’s livestream and confirmed what many feared: there was no immediate airdrop and no firm commitment to token rewards. 

The market response was instant and vicious. In a matter of hours, hundreds of millions in paper value were wiped out, with the token falling more than 40 percent below its ICO price. 

What had been framed as Web3’s most exciting community moment quickly unraveled into a masterclass in how unchecked hype, vague promises, and a single quote can collapse an entire market narrative. It was short-term cash flow built on long-term erosion of trust.

Impressions (Introductions) Matter 🤝

Here’s the uncomfortable truth: this is why institutions hesitate. This is why regulators show up. This is why adoption slows.

We love hype. We love memes. Pump.fun continues to rake it in. $PUMP is valued at close to $1B. Yes. With a B. Their model clearly works. But it works in the same way a casino works. It's fun. It's flashy. And Wall Street only visits on vacation. 

So where does that leave us? The message is clear: Web3 is going to be the future of finance, and Pump.fun is not the blueprint.

Real growth, lasting trust, and staying power come from clarity, consistency, and strong fundamentals. They come from the right teams, the right roadmaps, and yes, the right introduction. Not livestream roulette, class action lawsuits, and tokens that collapse before they list.

Tea Breach ☕

Trust Issues Brewing☕

The prolific dating app currently faces major backlash for massive data breach. Steeped in liability, Tea is a wakeup call for devs and users alike. Privacy isn’t culture its core tech.

Past Perqs  📊

The app had peaked in popularity by mid-2025. Tea had just over 4.6 million users, topped the App Store charts, and was pulling in $1.6 million in annual recurring revenue. Monetization was simple: subscriptions, background checks, and a premium “Tea Pro” tier.

Mean Girls Become Meme Girls 👑

Security researcher Kasra Rahjerdi first discovered the open Firebase database. Once the leak hit the press, 4chan users got wind of it. They got everything. And then 4chan did what they do best…

Many were extremely vocal about how this was major karma for the FemTech company:

Soak it Up 🍵

Yes, the Tea breach made for perfect meme bait. Leaked photos, karmic irony, chaos on 4chan, it checked every box. It was almost too perfect. Begging the question: did anyone have their back?

Data breeches aren’t new. Since 2020, major Web2 platforms have continued to mishandle user data at alarming scale. In 2021, LinkedIn saw data from over 700 million users scraped and sold online. In 2023, Twitter experienced a breach that exposed the emails and phone numbers of over 200 million accounts.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. We’ve seen what happens when the right teams make smart choices. Reddit used Vaults to shift identity to wallets, removing the need for stored credentials. Microsoft built ION to give users control over their digital identifiers. Shopify’s token-gated commerce lets NFTs handle access without collecting personal data. Our very own members have novel solutions that could have easily prevented this. Aleo’s ZK protocol, for example.

Key for Tea 🔑

So what’s the takeaway here? They didn’t have the right team.

No one to give them the right signal. Help them make the right call. Broker the game changing intro.

The tech exists. The know-how exists. This was a classic go-it-alone failure. Poor leadership. Poor planning. Poor execution.

News like this may feel like déjà vu, but in 2025, it should be seen as a relic. For both builders and users, it is a timely reminder that security is no longer a feature, it is the foundation. With the right introduction this could have been one hell of a Tea Party 🎉

✨ This week Web3 is shedding its training wheels and stepping into the infrastructure phase. AI needs compliant data, and crypto has the rails. TradFi wants in, and the doors are finally open. The days of speculation without structure are fading. From Poseidon’s programmable licensing model to BitGo’s public market debut, we’re watching the scaffolding of the next financial and technological wave being assembled in real time. It won’t all be clean. There will still be hype cycles and missteps. But underneath it all, the foundation is starting to look solid.

The Summer of Crypto is here. Temps are rising. ✨