I spent much of my free time reading / thinking about these themes in 2025 - (1) China Podcasters, bloggers and traditional media outlets (on the left and right) were all unified in their belief that the US was “losing” (although the reasons varied quite widely). This narrative felt too one-sided and simplistic. After all, post COVID the US was widely distributing vaccines and opening the economy when China was still locking down major cities. I read a bunch of books to better understand this dynamic, from Mao’s Great Famine to Breakneck and Mr China. (Dwarkesh also had a number of great podcasts on China.) Im exiting the year more optimistic. (2) We don’t read anymore Derek Thompson has written a number of articles on the decline of reading. The NYT wrote about how Colombia isn’t assigning full books anymore. And across the US, we’ve seen high schools deprioritize full books in favor of snippets. And soon with AI, I suspect that many people will also stop long-form writing as well. I don’t know what impact these trends will have on society, but they’re not good. It’s probably one of our more impactful long term societal trends. Maybe we need a new Carnegie library-esq project. (3) Decreasing optimism The media is getting more and more negative. This is manifesting in many ways ... most of us have a family member incessantly sending us deranged articles about the world ending. That being said, I found myself drawn towards content that covered the impact of this negativism on younger generations. Gen Z, despite living through a robust economic cycle and experiencing the highest median income (adjusted for inflation) vs. any prior generation, feels financially hopeless. Many articles were written this year about the Vibecession. I’m guessing the combination of news negativity and lifestyle dysmorphia from social media are creating an environment where no outcome is good enough. The good news is that facts don't support the vibes. (4) Political classics Socialism is gaining in popularity. So much so that 66% of Democrats view Socialism favorably (vs. 42% viewing Capitalism favorably). The chasm between core Republican and Democrat platforms has never been wider. Banksy also put a spotlight on the totalitarian, anti-free speech policies in the UK. Due to the increased media coverage of these shifting political narratives, I had an urge to re-read many classics, like Atlas Shrugged, 1984, and Animal Farm. (5) Stablecoins diverge from crypto And of course, on the stablecoin front … this year, stablecoins officially splintered from the crypto narrative. For crypto as a whole, progress is generally measured in price appreciation. And by that measure, progress was negative in 2025. However, stablecoins gained enough momentum to create their own financial category. This year was a breakout year, with the Genius Act passing, Circle’s IPO, and many major launches - like our announcements with Klarna, Remitly, Ramp, and Phantom. Millions around the world now have greater economic choice and access to better financial services thanks to stablecoins. And with the rise of AI, it seems increasingly likely that stablecoin payments will greatly outnumber fiat payments globally in the not too distant future. -- If you have any good books / articles on this content, please share. I'd love to read more. Onwards :)

had a great conversation w @psneville and @rhackett. we talk about the bridge / USDC origin stories, the product-market fit grind, and whole lot more.

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