Matt Huang

I was day trading on my Coinbase account, bought it at $200 or $300, it rode up to $1,000. And I've crashed back to 600 and then slowly ground down from there. Actually, right around that time is when I joined Sequoia. So this was right before that. And I remember thinking that, I mean, it was a topic I was fascinated with. And I was interviewing at Sequoia.

I was day trading on my Coinbase account, bought it at $200 or $300, it rode up to $1,000. And I've crashed back to 600 and then slowly ground down from there. Actually, right around that time is when I joined Sequoia. So this was right before that. And I remember thinking that, I mean, it was a topic I was fascinated with. And I was interviewing at Sequoia.

They asked me to put together, part of the interview process was put together a one pager on a company you think we should invest in. And I picked Coinbase, and I think it was seven employees at the time. This was pre the A16Z investment, so just Union Square and Ribbit. And I had a strong belief that it would be an interesting space, and this was probably the best company in that space.

They asked me to put together, part of the interview process was put together a one pager on a company you think we should invest in. And I picked Coinbase, and I think it was seven employees at the time. This was pre the A16Z investment, so just Union Square and Ribbit. And I had a strong belief that it would be an interesting space, and this was probably the best company in that space.

But after joining and after the crash, I kind of tuned it out. Bitcoin was just an asset, and there were some companies serving it, but it wasn't clear that it was this really generative software platform. And so it wasn't until a couple of years later that I reengaged once seeing the activity happening on top of Ethereum.

But after joining and after the crash, I kind of tuned it out. Bitcoin was just an asset, and there were some companies serving it, but it wasn't clear that it was this really generative software platform. And so it wasn't until a couple of years later that I reengaged once seeing the activity happening on top of Ethereum.

I had tuned out crypto. I still owned some Bitcoin and I still followed a couple Twitter accounts that would post the Bitcoin price every now and then. And I think for a couple of years, they stopped posting the price, or maybe I missed those messages. But as it started to pick back up, I started to see those again. Oh, there's actually signs of life in this ecosystem.

I had tuned out crypto. I still owned some Bitcoin and I still followed a couple Twitter accounts that would post the Bitcoin price every now and then. And I think for a couple of years, they stopped posting the price, or maybe I missed those messages. But as it started to pick back up, I started to see those again. Oh, there's actually signs of life in this ecosystem.

And then I also noticed the activity happening on top of Ethereum. It wasn't just another digital asset like Bitcoin, but there were actually these projects like Augur, which was an early prediction market. I thought, okay, it's not just an asset. It's now an entrepreneurial platform. And so I started to spend time there. And Sequoia was very supportive of that.

And then I also noticed the activity happening on top of Ethereum. It wasn't just another digital asset like Bitcoin, but there were actually these projects like Augur, which was an early prediction market. I thought, okay, it's not just an asset. It's now an entrepreneurial platform. And so I started to spend time there. And Sequoia was very supportive of that.

And we, on behalf of Sequoia, made a bunch of, I think, interesting crypto-related investments at the time. And honestly, I think what makes Sequoia great is the kind of multi-generational team that, for any given tech idea, there are 12 opinions involved. And there's this intellectual sparring to find truth. And that was just lacking in crypto.

And we, on behalf of Sequoia, made a bunch of, I think, interesting crypto-related investments at the time. And honestly, I think what makes Sequoia great is the kind of multi-generational team that, for any given tech idea, there are 12 opinions involved. And there's this intellectual sparring to find truth. And that was just lacking in crypto.

And so I ended up going outside the firm to find thought partners that could test my thinking and I could learn from them. And Fred was one of those people that left Coinbase at the beginning of 2017, started Angel Investing. We ended up looking at a lot of projects together. And just in that process, found both someone. The first, I'm sure you experienced this. I sat across from him.

And so I ended up going outside the firm to find thought partners that could test my thinking and I could learn from them. And Fred was one of those people that left Coinbase at the beginning of 2017, started Angel Investing. We ended up looking at a lot of projects together. And just in that process, found both someone. The first, I'm sure you experienced this. I sat across from him.

And started talking to him. And as soon as he started to articulate his thinking, I had a deep sense of this feels like someone I'd want to work with in some way. I don't know. Definitely wasn't thinking, let's start something. But maybe I'd try to invest in whatever next project he was going to do. And it was from there that the seed of Paradigm was born.

And started talking to him. And as soon as he started to articulate his thinking, I had a deep sense of this feels like someone I'd want to work with in some way. I don't know. Definitely wasn't thinking, let's start something. But maybe I'd try to invest in whatever next project he was going to do. And it was from there that the seed of Paradigm was born.

First of all, I don't know about whether that's true. I do know that it was very hard for me to leave. I remember a very intuitive sense that when I got to Sequoia, experienced the culture, all the great personalities, the extreme high standards, the excellence that everyone strove for, I thought, wow, I could be here forever. This doesn't feel like a job.

First of all, I don't know about whether that's true. I do know that it was very hard for me to leave. I remember a very intuitive sense that when I got to Sequoia, experienced the culture, all the great personalities, the extreme high standards, the excellence that everyone strove for, I thought, wow, I could be here forever. This doesn't feel like a job.

This feels like a place I could retire from. And then ultimately, I became obsessed with crypto. I mean, that's the simple answer. And I really developed a strong sense that this would be one of the most important technical economic trends over the next couple decades. And that it was very important for humanity to develop this technology from a financial freedom standpoint.

This feels like a place I could retire from. And then ultimately, I became obsessed with crypto. I mean, that's the simple answer. And I really developed a strong sense that this would be one of the most important technical economic trends over the next couple decades. And that it was very important for humanity to develop this technology from a financial freedom standpoint.