Partner at Placeholder VC
Fat protocol thesis and web3 infrastructure. Co-founder of Placeholder with Chris Burniske.
Joel created the fat protocol thesis. Show protocol-level value capture and network effects.
Protocol-level value capture, web3 infrastructure, network effects
Thin protocol, application-only plays without protocol moat
Value in blockchain networks concentrates at the protocol layer, unlike the internet where apps capture value.
Token buyback-and-make programs (reinvesting in the protocol) create more value than token burns.
In crypto, the protocol layer captures more value than the application layer, inverting the web2 pattern
“In blockchain, value concentrates at the protocol layer.”
— Fat Protocols (2016)
“In the web3 stack, value concentrates at the protocol layer. Applications are thinner because the protocol does the heavy lifting.”
— Fat Protocols essay
Why token burning is often misguided and better economic designs exist
Token buyback-and-make programs create more sustainable value than token burns.
Update to fat protocols thesis: applications capture less value than protocols in crypto.
In blockchain, value concentrates at the protocol layer unlike the internet where apps capture value.
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