About Me:

I am currently a venture-backed web3 founder fellow part of South Park Commons, with a background in engineering (Google, Microsoft), entrepreneurship (founding member of Parallel Finance), product management (web3 UX lead at co-founded blockchain studio), and venture capital (8 decimal capital). I hold a BA in Neuroscience and MS in Management Studies, took my first Vipassana meditation retreat when I was 18, and have been meditating for over 10 years.

Having lived in France, China, and the US, I had the privilege to explore multiple cultures and connect with people from all walks of life. I have previously taught courses on cultural adaptation to 60+ people and always look for creative ways to expand my network and deepen my relationships.

During my free time, I enjoy socializing, hosting events, fitness training, self-development, building side projects, freestyling in popping/hip-hop, cooking, and photography. If you’d like to connect or reach out for any inquiries, message me at <remigai93> (at) <gmail> (dot) <com>.

⚡Morning habits⚡ that help me enjoy and do more: Exercise, Meditation (Vipassana), Journaling (Gratitude+Top Tasks+Mind Dump), Learning.

Crypto Projects (github):

• Parallel Finance: Suite of DeFi protocols (AMM, money market and liquid staking) built on Polkadot, backed by Polychain, Sequoia, Founders Fund, Coinbase Ventures, and more. We originally started from a Polkadot Hackathon in 2021 during which we won third place. (website)
• SlowSwap: The only on-chain MEV prevention solution using VDF (verifiable delay function). Won finalist in DeFi track at EthDenver 2022 Hackathon. (website) (demo) (deck) (github)
• Starknet Recovery Service: The first on-chain wallet recovery service for Ethereum Externally Owned Accounts (EOA), powered by storage proofs on StarkNet. Won first place at the Starknet House Hackathon in 2022. (demo) (deck) (github)
• Stark x: The first natively cross-chain and composable Central Limit Order Book (CLOB) DEX deployed on StarkNet for trustless settlement and asset liquidity, powered by storage proofs and SNARK proofs. Won first place at the Starknet Encode Autumn Hackathon in 2022. (website) (demo) (deck) (github)
• Madara (L3) x Celestia (DA) integration: This is a modular approach of integrating Madara (L3) with Celestia (DA), so that state diff is posted on a data availability layer instead of L1 calldata. 94.9% of Starknet’s gas usage was due to state diff calldata settlement on L1, which is very costly. Lambda Week Hackathon in Paris 2023. (deck) (github)
• Starknet Naming Service: The equivalent of ENS (Ethereum Name Service) for Starknet. Starknet Name Service domains are secure domain names for the decentralized world. (demo) (github)
• EVM Wars: Omni-chain ERC721 NFT standard and cross-chain battle royal NFT game across Polygon, Ethereum, Avalanche, Fantom, and Binance Chain, built using Layer Zero’s cross-chain messaging protocol. built using Layer Zero’s cross-chain messaging protocol. (website) (demo) (deck)
• LiquidBit: NFT marketplace aggregator (similar to gem.xyz) and derivatives (futures, option, and fractional) for professional traders and institutions. (website)

Writings (medium) and features:

• Internet vs Blockchain Revolution articles used as a reading resource for the MIT Media Lab Cryptocurrency course
• Writings translated and featured in the Chinese book “Blockchain: Advanced Guide for Industry Leaders / 区块链：高级玩家手册” -coming up soon!
• Articles published on Hackernoon

Podcast:

• 8 Decimal Capital Podcast (host): Interview of Aleks Larsen from Blockchain Capital on the topic of “Decentralized Finance (DeFi) Adoption and Opportunities” (video here)

Speaker at:

• CIS Blockchain Technology Investing, Los Angeles, USA, Panelist on the topic of Funding Crypto and Blockchain From A Venture Capitalists Point of View – October 15th, 2019
• The Trading Show, Chicago, USA, Panelist on the topic of Blockchain Applied: examining the practical use cases for decentralized ledgers – May 8th, 2019
• Security Token Realised, London, UK, Speaker on the topic of Investing in the Security Token Ecosystem – January 23rd, 2019 (video here)
• Questrom School of Business, Boston, MA, Speaker/Coach on helping international students to connect with locals and integrate the US culture by breaching limiting beliefs and teaching key conversation skills – December 10th, December 3rd, and November 22nd, 2016
• InteGreat Hub, Boston, MA, Speaker/Coach on how to make friends in the US for internationals – August 14th, and July 20th, 2016

Favorite Book/Resources:

Tech:

• Web2 full-stack bootcamp Hack Reactor coding bootcamp
• Web3 solidity bootcamp: 0xMacro
• Cracking the coding interview
• Clean Code
• The Manager’s Path: A Guide for Tech Leaders Navigating Growth and Change
• The Effective Engineer: How to Leverage Your Efforts In Software Engineering to Make a Disproportionate and Meaningful Impact

Mental Models/Mindset:

• Mindset: The New Psychology of Success, Carol S. Dweck
• The Obstacle Is The Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph, Ryan Holiday
• Can’t Hurt Me: Master Your Mind and Defy the Odds, David Goggins
• Impact Theory Channel: Mindsets, Achievements, Hacks
• Farnam Street Blog: Decision Making, Mental Models
• Decision Making 12 weeks Course by Farnam Street
• Naval’s Twitter and Blog: Life Philosophy, Happiness, Value Creation
• Wait but why articles

Productivity:

• GTD methodology with Asana Tool as todolist
• Gettings Things Done
• 5 Gears
• The 12 Week Year: Get More Done in 12 Weeks than Others Do in 12 Months
• The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure
• The Effective Executive: The Definitive Guide to Getting the Right Things Done
• The 80/20 Principle: The Secret to Success by Achieving More with Less
• Atomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones
• No Excuses!: The Power of Self-Discipline for Success in Your Life

Entrepreneurship/Business:

• The Great CEO within by Matt Mochary (Top-down)
• Startup School from Y Combinator (Bottom-up)
• The Cold Start Problem
• a16z Podcast: Venture Capital, Tech, Entrepreneurship
• Making moonshots
• The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company
• The Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea
• Principles: Life and Work

Crypto:

• Crypto Twitter for all things news, tech, and alphas
• DeFi and the Future of Finance
• The internet of money
• Unchained Podcast: Crypto, Blockchain

Social/Communication:

• How to Win Friends & Influence People, Dale Carnegie
• Success is in your Sphere (Relationship Management)
• Never eat alone
• Crucial Conversations Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High
• Never Split the Difference: Negotiating as if Your Life Depended on It

Investment:

• The Psychology of Money: Timeless Lessons on Wealth, Greed, and Happiness
• The intelligent investor
• Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger

Spirituality/Emotional Health:

• Think like a monk
• A new earth
• Power of now
• The alchemist
• The 4 agreements

Other:

• Sapiens: A Brief History of Mankind, Yuval Noah Harari
• The Brain that changes itself: Stories of Personal Triumph from the Frontiers of Brain Science, Norman Doidge