NFTs and the Metaverse - with Axie Infinity Cofounder Jeff Zirlin

The Harbinger - China Tech & VC Podcast

Hi folks, welcome back to the Harbinger VC podcast. Today we have a conversation with my old friend from college, Jeff Zirlin, who is one of the founding members of Axie Infinity and runs their global growth efforts. In short, Axie Infinity created a Pokémon-inspired universe where players can earn tokens through gameplay, and in a just few years has become the #1 Ethereum game with over $1bn token market cap. Today’s interview is spontaneous, but I had to get Jeff on since NFTs (non-fungible tokens) and the Metaverse are white hot conversation topics these days, especially after Beeple’s $69 million NFT sale and Roblox’s IPO. We cover Jeff’s initial foray into the world of crypto starting with Ethereum and CryptoKitties, which eventually led to Axie Infinity. We talk through NFT technology in practical terms… what ownership over digital assets enables, starting with collectibles and brand IP but moving into games and virtual worlds. In particular, Jeff highlights the strength of the Axie Infinity community. While Axie is a fun game, it has also created a social network (and jobs platform!) based on play to earn opportunities and community engagement across its players globally, from the US and Europe to Japan and Southeast Asia. Write up: https://www.theharbingerchina.com/blog/nfts-and-the-metaverse-with-axie-infinity-cofounder-jeff-zirlin