AMAs & Special Episodes
Speshal
June 11th AMA with Mirko & Emily from Cronos In this special AMA, Mirko and Emily join Karl to address questions from the @cronos_chain community. A no-fluff, wide-spectrum AMA. Cronos leadership took on over 70 minutes of direct community questions—addressing the 70B unburned CRO vote, gas fees, grants, infra, ZK, the ambassador program, Onchain Wallet alignment, and the elusive Crypto.com relationship. Mirko stressed experimentation, iterative feedback loops, and chain “resuscitation.” Emily focused on comms, discovery UX, and community outreach.
🕒 Timestamp Overview
🔴 00:00–11:00 — Setting the Stage: Who Are Mirko & Emily? 🔵 11:00–22:00 — Why Cronos? Narrative, Positioning & Real-World Rails 🔴 22:00–33:00 — Meta-Chasing, Builder Firepower & Ecosystem Goals 🔵 33:00–44:00 — Facilitation vs Participation: IMO Fallout & Labs' Role 🔴 44:00–55:00 — Protocol Partnerships, Infra Investment & KOL Strategy 🔵 55:00–66:00 — Chronoscan, Bridging, Gas Cuts, and Block Time Upgrades 🔴 66:00–77:00 — Grants, Builders, Referrals & Ice Cream Truck Marketing 🔵 77:00–88:00 — Growth Tactics, Loyalty, Engineering, and Roadmap Gaps 🔴 88:00–99:00 — Unburned CRO Vote: Trust, Transparency & Token Use 🔵 99:00–110:00 — Centralization Optics, Onchain Wallet, Discovery & Marketing
🔴 00:00–11:00 — Setting the Stage: Who Are Mirko & Emily?
Mirko introduced himself as a longtime operator within Cronos—former lead on accelerator programs, now GM. With PayPal and global experience under his belt, he framed his mission as “reigniting the ecosystem” via clarity, visibility, and frequent engagement.
Emily focused on her external-facing role. She emphasized ecosystem cohesion, listening to community voices, and co-marketing efforts. Her highlight: building bridges between core builders, users, and external partnerships.
🔵 11:00–22:00 — Why Cronos? Narrative, Positioning & Real-World Rails
Mirko admitted the narrative isn't clear enough—but it should be. Cronos’ real edge? Close ties to Crypto.com, real-world payment rails, and onramp/offramp infrastructure. He cited the DeFi card integration as a signal of this direction, hinting at more “visible wins” ahead.
He promised upcoming positioning clarity in a formal update, emphasizing a need to communicate why Cronos is “not just another chain.”
🔴 22:00–33:00 — Meta-Chasing, Builder Firepower & Ecosystem Goals
Mirko discouraged chain-level narrative chasing (e.g., jumping from memes to RWAs to AI). Instead, he outlined a Solana-style model: empower builders, let them lead the narratives.
Key verticals of interest:
RWAs (via Crypto.com synergies)
AI integrations
Launch infrastructure & novel fundraising mechanisms
🔵 33:00–44:00 — Facilitation vs Participation: IMO Fallout & Labs' Role
Elder pressed on the controversial IMO era. Mirko acknowledged missteps and reaffirmed Cronos Labs should be a facilitator, not central executor. Going forward:
Amplification over ownership
Better affiliate/KOL outreach
Consistent comms beyond the Cronos bubble
Emily emphasized boots-on-ground efforts—hiring more people like her to scale project support and outreach.
🔴 44:00–55:00 — Protocol Partnerships, Infra Investment & KOL Strategy
Old wounds revisited: why did Cronos ignore tools like IC Tools, Collabland, etc.? Emily clarified that cost and priority assessments stalled some integrations—but that’s changing. Some partners are returning now with lower asks, sensing ecosystem momentum.
Meanwhile, Labs is hiring aggressively to execute affiliate programs, ambassador upgrades, and sustained industry presence.
🔵 55:00–66:00 — Cronoscan, Bridging, Gas Cuts, and Block Time Upgrades
Mirko highlighted immediate infra priorities:
Cronoscan staying. Period.
Bridge integrations: Stargate, CCIP already live; more coming.
Block time slashed below 1s.
Gas fees reduced 10x.
He acknowledged that high gas and slow blocks were gating UX and adoption—calling these upgrades “non-negotiable for competitiveness.”
🔴 66:00–77:00 — Grants, Builders, Referrals & Ice Cream Truck Marketing
Three builder tracks are in the works:
Microgrants for solo hackers
Larger deals for standout protocols
A new referral program for builder acquisition ($2k per confirmed deployment)
Mirko wants to test fast and iterate. Wild example? “Put an ice cream truck with Cronos branding outside the Crypto.com Arena and onboard users.” Nothing is off the table.
Emily stressed quality time with builders—beyond just cash. Targeted support, marketing help, morale boosts.
🔵 77:00–88:00 — Growth Tactics, Loyalty, Engineering, and Roadmap Gaps
Mirko outlined 3 key 2025 buckets:
Community Growth: Ambassadors, content, loyalty programs, growth loops
Infra Modernization: Docs, SDKs, explorer improvements, engineering hires
Onchain Wallet & Crypto.com Integration: Deepening rails, native flows
They acknowledged roadmap communications have lagged but committed to a mid-year refresh—including AI revisions, RWA focus, and clearer expectations.
🔴 88:00–99:00 — Unburned CRO Vote: Trust, Transparency & Token Use
Elder pressed hard on the optics of the 70B unburn. Mirko:
Stands by it: “No more status quo.”
Asserts the war chest enables ETF strategies and ecosystem growth
Downplays dilution fears—asks community to judge by outcomes, not hypotheticals
On burns? They’ll rework the 50M validator burn program and quarterly burns to better align with builder and community impact.
🔵 99:00–110:00 — Centralization Optics, Onchain Wallet, Discovery & Marketing
On decentralization:
Mirko: It’s a spectrum. Cronos sits in the middle—close to Crypto.com but not fully centralized
Transparency is key: governance mechanics, validator weight, and power structures need clearer explanations
On Onchain Wallet:
Banner visibility and campaign integration coming
Discovery improvements underway
Collaboration with Esther’s team ongoing
Elder emphasized the need for honest framing about the centralized scaffolding Cronos operates on. Mirko agreed and wants to focus on user value, not ideological purity.
August 19th AMA with @Todin A 101-minute Traffic session centered on an AMA with the founder of Todin, a European crypto-integrated price comparison tool. The conversation covered Todin’s business model, affiliate systems, user onboarding, long-term roadmap, token launch via NovaFox, Microsoft and retail partnerships, and community expansion strategy. Todin aims to onboard Web2 consumers while rewarding Web3 users through cashback and staking incentives. AMA concluded with open-floor questions and reflections on DeFi utility.
🕒 Timestamp Overview
🔴 00:00–08:45 — Space opens, Todin intro, site concept explained 🔵 08:45–15:12 — Price aggregation engine and affiliate data streams 🔴 15:12–23:30 — Revenue flow, cashback in partner tokens, whitelisting 🔵 23:30–30:40 — Onboarding flow for crypto vs normie users 🔴 30:40–36:55 — EU affiliate network and shop partnerships 🔵 36:55–44:10 — Shopify plugin idea, onboarding form process 🔴 44:10–52:20 — Print-to-order shop dynamics and roadmap prioritization 🔵 52:20–58:55 — Colruyt connection, in-store TV promo, IRL funnel alpha 🔴 58:55–66:10 — Deprioritizing crypto-native audience in favor of normies 🔵 66:10–72:40 — Frontend/backend team structure and roles 🔴 72:40–78:25 — Tokenomics breakdown, NovaFox launch process 🔵 78:25–84:50 — NSTAR mechanism, launchpad mechanics, token sale strategy 🔴 84:50–89:20 — Airdrops, partnerships with Call and Wolfswap 🔵 89:20–94:30 — Crypto.com/Cronos Labs engagement status 🔴 94:30–99:00 — Country rollout strategy and AI-based shopping assistants 🔵 99:00–101:00 — Final notes, community support, AMA wrap-up
🔴 00:00–08:45 — Space opens, Todin intro, site concept explained Karl opens the AMA with the usual warm-up before handing it over to Todin's founder. Todin is introduced as a price comparison engine initially focused on the Belgian e-commerce market. Users get cashback rewards in crypto for online purchases—funded by affiliate commissions from partner stores.
🔵 08:45–15:12 — Price aggregation engine and affiliate data streams Todin built a smart, two-year-old algorithm that directly integrates with 33 EU partners (no scraping). It compares prices, delivery time, and environmental impact to recommend optimal options. The algorithm can compare 3M+ products in ~20 minutes.
🔴 15:12–23:30 — Revenue flow, cashback in partner tokens, whitelisting Affiliate revenue funds cashback, distributed in user-selected whitelisted tokens (e.g. CRO, Todin Coin, Moon, Call). 1% goes back to users, 0.25% gets burned, and a portion funds a BTC/USDC "shopping pool" staking vault.
🔵 23:30–30:40 — Onboarding flow for crypto vs normie users Non-crypto users see a point system front-end, with redemption via gift cards. Under the hood, it's crypto. They can later unlock full Web3 functionality. Account ID tracking links affiliate sales to users via a backend database.
🔴 30:40–36:55 — EU affiliate network and shop partnerships Todin is currently live with shops like MediaMarkt, Bol.com, and Coolblue. Expansion into other countries will follow after Belgium’s rollout. Getting affiliate data requires formal partnerships, not scraping.
🔵 36:55–44:10 — Shopify plugin idea, onboarding form process Karl suggests Shopify integration to onboard long-tail merchants. Current onboarding involves a manual form, a call with Todin, and CSV-based data sync. Long-term plan includes documentation and automation.
🔴 44:10–52:20 — Print-to-order shop dynamics and roadmap prioritization Todin is focused on high-variance pricing markets (e.g. EU electronics) vs U.S. Amazon dominance. Plans to gradually expand by replicating its Belgium model to other countries. Resource-intensive due to compute and partner integrations.
🔵 52:20–58:55 — Colruyt connection, in-store TV promo, IRL funnel alpha Todin’s founder and business dev lead both work at Colruyt Group (30,000+ employees). Plans exist to promote Todin via checkout screen ads and physical cards in Belgium supermarkets. Potential crypto checkout pilot discussed (inspired by Swiss SPAR).
🔴 58:55–66:10 — Deprioritizing crypto-native audience in favor of normies Karl notes most value is driven by Web2 shoppers. Todin confirms they are using crypto to bootstrap but plan to target the general public for true revenue scale. Crypto is the incentive layer, not the core userbase.
🔵 66:10–72:40 — Frontend/backend team structure and roles Team of 4 core members: frontend (founder), business dev (Fabian), algorithm engineer (Gabriel), backend (Jamie), plus 2 freelancers (designer, mobile app dev). Gabriel focused on matching product data across merchants.
🔴 72:40–78:25 — Tokenomics breakdown, NovaFox launch process Token will launch on NovaFox, which only accepts utility projects. 30% presale (burned if not sold), 30% treasury, 15% liquidity, 1% NovaFox holder airdrop, 5% team (vested), 5% ecosystem, 4% advisors. No discount for pre-sale tiers.
🔵 78:25–84:50 — NSTAR mechanism, launchpad mechanics, token sale strategy NovaFox uses NSTAR (game token model) to fund pre-sales, sidestepping security classification. Token sold against CRO. Launch goal: ~$1M, but anything unsold gets burned. Early September is the target window.
🔴 84:50–89:20 — Airdrops, partnerships with Wolfswap Todin is partnering with Wolfswap. They've done giveaways and AMAs together. Todin confirms airdrop to NFX stakers (not bonds), to reward long-term NovaFox participants.
🔵 89:20–94:30 — Crypto.com/Cronos Labs engagement status No response yet from Mirko or the current Cronos Labs team. Todin is in the builder Telegram group. Karl and other speakers offer to help make introductions. Discussion around avoiding early dependence on Cronos Labs support.
🔴 94:30–99:00 — Country rollout strategy and AI-based shopping assistants Belgium full site and app ready Q4. International "lite" click-and-earn version launches Q4–Q1. Gradual full-site rollouts by country to follow. AI assistant bot is in R&D to suggest gifts based on user preferences.
🔵 99:00–101:00 — Final notes, community support, AMA wrap-up Team is open to user feedback and pivots. Gift card conversion system coming for non-crypto users. Todin encourages more AMAs and spaces to increase visibility. Karl closes with high praise for Web2-first DeFi models and reaffirms support.
August 25th AMA with SoliDEX Soladex joined Traffic for a focused 80-minute AMA to introduce their DEX platform on Cronos. The session explained V3 liquidity, emissions mechanics, governance via veSDX, and community incentives. They also addressed concerns about transparency, revenue generation, and Loom/Frogs ecosystem integration. Format was tight and educational, reserved for Soladex; general Traffic resumed later in the day.
🕒 Timestamp Overview
🔴 00:00–08:45 — Room fills, structure explained, guests introduced 🔵 08:45–14:20 — Joan introduces Soladex origin and core model 🔴 14:20–22:10 — What is a V3 liquidity pool? Deep-dive and comparison to V2 🔵 22:10–32:30 — Platform mechanics: V2 vs V3 use cases and APR ranges 🔴 32:30–42:40 — UI, user education, onboarding, and liquidity strategy 🔵 42:40–53:25 — Voting mechanics and emissions structure explained 🔴 53:25–60:05 — Incentives, bribes, and how emissions scale 🔵 60:05–68:40 — Platform revenue, veSDX lockups, and protocol sustainability 🔴 68:40–75:10 — Community concerns: Loom/Frogs integration, communication gaps 🔵 75:10–80:00 — Final thoughts, team shoutouts, voting behavior, closing remarks
🔴 00:00–08:45 — Room fills, structure explained, guests introduced
Setting the Stage Karl opened by welcoming attendees, encouraging them to pin tweets and fill the stage to help the algo. Early chatter between Joan (Soladex), Doug, Hayden, and Sunshine established a light tone. Karl clarified this was a focused AMA solely on Soladex — the usual chaos of regular Traffic would return later.
🔵 08:45–14:20 — Joan introduces Soladex origin and core model
Who is Soladex? Joan shared his DeFi background and motivation to solve fragmented liquidity on Cronos. Soladex introduces the first ve(3,3) model on Cronos — built for sustainable liquidity incentives. It’s developed by the same team behind Frogs and Loom Finance, aiming to centralize governance and emission power while aligning incentives for protocols, LPs, and voters.
🔴 14:20–22:10 — What is a V3 liquidity pool? Deep-dive and comparison to V2
Education First Karl paused tokenomics talk to ground listeners in V3 fundamentals. He compared V2 and V3 pools:
V2 = passive LPing across the full price range
V3 = concentrated liquidity in custom price bands Joan explained Soladex allows users to choose how narrow (higher APR) or wide (lower APR) their tick range is.
🔵 22:10–32:30 — Platform mechanics: V2 vs V3 use cases and APR ranges
Who Should Use What V2 pools are for passive users. V3 is for active users willing to monitor market movement and re-enter position if price leaves their range. Haten clarified the UI has tabs for “Concentrated Liquidity,” “Classic Stable,” and “Classic Volatile” to help choose based on token pair behavior.
🔴 32:30–42:40 — UI, user education, onboarding, and liquidity strategy
Helping Users Not Get Wrecked Karl emphasized the need for better education materials, as V3 LPing is deceptively tricky. Soladex confirmed they're working on daily posts, threads, and documentation. Karl noted his own missteps and pushed the team to onboard at ground level with examples and videos.
🔵 42:40–53:25 — Voting mechanics and emissions structure explained
veSDX and Governance Users can lock SDX for 1 week to 4 years to receive veSDX. Votes direct emissions to specific liquidity pools. In return, voters earn:
100% of platform trading fees from those pools
Bribes offered by protocols wanting votes
Each vote affects only one specific pool, not the entire token pair.
🔴 53:25–60:05 — Incentives, bribes, and how emissions scale
Gamified Liquidity Protocols are incentivized to bribe veSDX holders so their pools receive more votes. More votes = higher share of emissions. Doug broke down how 2% vote share of 30,000 emissions = 600 SDX, but 4% next epoch = 1,200 SDX. LPs benefit indirectly when votes are stacked on their pool.
🔵 60:05–68:40 — Platform revenue, veSDX lockups, and protocol sustainability
Where’s the Money? Doug asked the big question: how does the team earn revenue?
Joan confirmed the team locked SDX permanently
They use that locked veSDX to vote and generate revenue from bribes/trading fees
Karl emphasized this makes the team “a user of their own system,” which was received positively
🔴 68:40–75:10 — Community concerns: Loom/Frogs integration, communication gaps
Sunshine’s Feedback Sunshine pressed Joan on communication gaps across Frogs, Loom, and Soladex. He appreciated the AMA but noted prior confusion around project roles and roadmap execution. Joan responded diplomatically, promising clearer coordination and official announcements for changes like Loom LP migration.
🔵 75:10–80:00 — Final thoughts, team shoutouts, voting behavior, closing remarks
Team Votes, TVL, and Culture Doug cheekily asked if the team was voting for Robin/CRO (high TVL). Joan hinted they were, confirming incentives. Karl urged them to keep coming back to Traffic for feedback, and encouraged more transparency on voter behavior. The AMA closed with Joan inviting protocols to bring liquidity to Soladex for extra rewards.
✅ Key Terms Clarified:
veSDX: Locked governance token
Emissions: SDX rewards distributed weekly
Bribes: External incentives for votes
V3 Pool: Concentrated liquidity in a price band
Gauge Voting: Determines emission direction
September 3rd AMA with Schwiz Ebisu's Bay Schwiz joined Traffic for a longform AMA covering the complete history, ethos, and roadmap of Ebisu's Bay, the original NFT marketplace on Cronos. The conversation traced everything from its early CDC NFT origins and marketplace architecture to the rise of Ryoshi Dynasties, the ongoing land expansion update, DEX integration, community token support, and marketing gaps. Key challenges around liquidity, user onboarding, branding, and ecosystem interdependence were discussed with stark transparency.
🕒 Timestamp Overview
🔴 00:00–08:45 — Intro & AMA Format Setup 🔵 08:45–19:20 — Origin Story of Ebisu's Bay 🔴 19:20–28:15 — Team Composition & History 🔵 28:15–36:55 — FTX Aftermath & Pivot to GameFi 🔴 36:55–43:50 — Ryoshi Dynasties Overview 🔵 43:50–51:45 — Early NFT Liquidity vs Now 🔴 51:45–58:55 — Gamification vs Wash Trading Meta 🔵 58:55–64:10 — Reflections on NFT Utility & Market Cycles 🔴 64:10–70:00 — RWA (Real World Asset) NFTs & Escrow Potential 🔵 70:00–75:20 — DEX Expansion: Use Cases & Integration 🔴 75:20–79:00 — DEX vs VVS: Misconceptions & Loyalty Frustrations 🔵 79:00–83:25 — DEX Roadmap & Liquidity Incentives for Projects 🔴 83:25–88:10 — GameFi Expansion: Resource System & Crafting 🔵 88:10–91:00 — Community Praise, RWA Memes, & Marketing Advice
🔴 00:00–08:45 — Intro & AMA Format Setup
AMA Kickoff + Schwiz Joins
Karl opens the space explaining the format: a structured project AMA for Abyssus Bay to help future onlookers understand its full vision. Schwiz joins via his main account and confirms cohosts. Karl highlights that these Traffic AMAs are designed to be replayable artifacts that explain projects clearly — a kind of public “showcase” of who the founders are and what they’ve built.
🔵 08:45–19:20 — Origin Story of Ebisu's Bay
From Collector to Marketplace Pioneer
Schwiz gives the full backstory: a mobile developer from Kansas who was deep into CDC NFT collecting in early 2021. When he realized those NFTs wouldn’t be supported on Cronos at launch, and that no NFT marketplace was coming, he took it upon himself to build one. He juggled a full-time job while teaching himself smart contracts, web development, and Web3 backend logic. His membership NFTs launched the day Cronos went live and sold out. A week later, Ebisu's Bay became the chain’s first major dApp.
🔴 19:20–28:15 — Team Composition & History
From Solo to Small Global Crew
The core team includes Rob (Canada), Miles (UK), and Schwiz himself. Miles—who joined by building a wrapper to improve UX—will soon leave for a high-paying blockchain security job but will still contribute part-time. Schwiz jokes about the bad original UI ("I hadn’t built a website since the '90s"), and notes the team shrank as the market shrank.
🔵 28:15–36:55 — FTX Aftermath & Pivot to GameFi
Market Collapse Led to Reinvention
Following the FTX/Celsius/Luna meltdown, NFT volume evaporated. Blur and others leaned into “volume farming” via liquidity-based rewards. Schwiz hated this approach for promoting wash trading. Instead, he built a GameFi alternative grounded in his game design background: Ryoshi Dynasties.
🔴 36:55–43:50 — Ryoshi Dynasties Overview
Risk-Inspired NFT Reward System
Users stake the $FORTUNE token and get “troops” to deploy on a Risk-style map. Troops determine which NFT collections earn weekly rewards. It's a gamified governance layer. Schwiz proudly claims the launch noticeably spiked wallet activity on Cronos — and asserts nothing like it exists elsewhere in Web3.
🔵 43:50–51:45 — Early NFT Liquidity vs Now
NFTs Were Basically Liquid Assets
Schwiz recalls Ebisu's Bay hitting $1.2M/day in volume — with NFTs often selling within minutes. Users treated the marketplace like a live limit order book. Today, volume is sometimes <$1,000/day. But the drop mirrored OpenSea and broader market behavior. “It’s not just a Cronos thing — the whole sector deflated.”
🔴 51:45–58:55 — Gamification vs Wash Trading Meta
Blur Didn’t “Fix” NFTs — It Inflated Them
Karl compares Blur’s model (floor listing, airdrop farming) to Ryoshi’s model. Schwiz admits Ryoshi took iterations to get right, but the core idea was always long-term sustainability, not quick spikes. He doubts any one platform could’ve “saved NFTs” but still sees Ryoshi as a principled alternative.
🔵 58:55–64:10 — Reflections on NFT Utility & Market Cycles
Screw Fake Utility — Just Make Cool Stuff
Looking forward, Schwiz hopes the “utility theater” of past NFT cycles dies off. He prefers a return to collectibility, rarity, and culture — much like Pokémon cards or vinyl records. NFTs don’t need utility if the community is strong. But if they do gain utility, it should be authentic and fun.
🔴 64:10–70:00 — RWA (Real World Asset) NFTs & Escrow Potential
Karl: "This is the cleanest NFT use case."
Karl proposes the real power of NFTs lies in RWA — think graded Pokémon cards vaulted somewhere with NFT ownership and instant liquidity. Schwiz agrees and says he's open to partnering with RWA services for distribution and trading via Ebisu's Bay infrastructure. Think “NFT marketplace as RWA layer.”
🔵 70:00–75:20 — DEX Expansion: Use Cases & Integration
DEX + NFT Market = Unified Infra
Ebisu's Bay now includes a DEX where NFTs can be listed in community tokens like $MOON. Troops can boost LP yields, and he envisions a future “Moggie Money Market” gamified system with leverage-style competition and thematic lore. Goal: turn LP rewards into a community-controlled mini-market.
🔴 75:20–79:00 — DEX vs VVS: Misconceptions & Loyalty Frustrations
"People kiss VVS’s boots for no reason."
Schwiz vents frustration at projects who default to VVS under the illusion that it leads to Crypto.com listings. “They don’t care about that.” He thanks Karl for launching PUUSH on Ebisu's Bay and laments that brand loyalty often beats actual value or support. Ebisu's Bay has ~$4M in liquidity, but not the herd momentum.
🔵 79:00–83:25 — DEX Roadmap & Liquidity Incentives for Projects
"My customer is the project, not the user."
Karl presses on how DEXs must court projects, not users. Schwiz admits he hasn’t figured it out fully but emphasizes direct support, custom features, and fast feedback. Still, it's hard to overcome inertia — especially when everyone wants centralized attention and few want to take platform risk.
🔴 83:25–88:10 — GameFi Expansion: Resource System & Crafting
Lands Will Soon Matter Again
A massive Ryoshi expansion is underway: troops will harvest resources to craft 20+ items, including fee discounts, bonus dice rolls, and farm boosters. Lands generate these resources. Beta testers are active. The launch has been delayed repeatedly, but over 200k lines of code have gone into it. It’s close.
🔵 88:10–91:00 — Community Praise, RWA Memes, & Marketing Advice
"Best cheeseburger in town — but nobody knows."
Longtime users chime in: Schwiz has launched every major Cronos NFT, run massive airdrops (Ryoshi went to 14k wallets), built daily bots and seasonal themes, and maintained quality support. But branding still hurts him — “Ebisu's Bay” doesn’t scream DEX or GameFi. Multiple people suggest a rebrand (e.g. SchwizSwap, B2DEX). He agrees marketing isn’t his strong suit and jokingly asks for interns.
🔴🔵 Closing Thoughts: This was the most comprehensive AMA ever done for Ebisu's Bay. Schwiz was open, humble, and thorough — candidly admitting flaws while showcasing deep commitment to the ecosystem. While VVS and Blur-style plays dominate attention, Ebisu's Bay remains the most integrated, community-aligned product suite on Cronos. Whether NFTs come back or not, the infra is ready.
September 4th AMA with Delphi Predictions Markets A focused AMA session featuring Delphi, a prediction market platform on Cronos. The discussion covered user experience, liquidity mechanics, regulatory hurdles, roadmap expansion into categories like sports, and community involvement in creating markets.
🕒 Timestamp Overview
🔴 00:00–05:30 — Opening, setup, and Delphi introduction 🔵 05:30–12:15 — How prediction markets differ from betting platforms 🔴 12:15–20:00 — Market categories, project collaboration, and liquidity seeding 🔵 20:00–27:00 — User onboarding, odds setting, and community trust via UMA oracle 🔴 27:00–34:00 — Sports expansion, project outreach, and regional restrictions 🔵 34:00–40:30 — Social features, user adoption, and gamified incentives 🔴 40:30–45:00 — Q&A: manipulation risks, liquidity depth, data resale, closing notes
🔴 00:00–05:30 — Opening, setup, and Delphi introduction
The host welcomes Delphi to the AMA, resets the recording to avoid dead air, and outlines the session format: background, platform mechanics, upcoming features, and community Q&A. Jenny from Delphi introduces herself as market leader, notes her roots in the Cronos ecosystem, and frames Delphi as a simple, early-stage prediction market where users can profit by trading on real-world events.
🔵 05:30–12:15 — How prediction markets differ from betting platforms
The conversation shifts to mechanics: users top up with USDC (via wallet, card, or cross-chain), choose markets (e.g., “Will CRO hit ATH in 2025?”), and buy yes/no shares tied to outcomes. Each share resolves to $1 if correct. Resolution uses UMA oracles tied to public, verifiable sources. Delphi currently focuses on crypto markets but plans to broaden categories, stressing clarity of settlement rules to maintain trust.
🔴 12:15–20:00 — Market categories, project collaboration, and liquidity seeding
Jenny explains Delphi’s roadmap: expanding beyond crypto into community-driven and project-specific markets. Future plans include self-service creation where projects or individuals can seed liquidity themselves. Currently, Delphi seeds initial liquidity but aims for user-driven depth through limit orders. Partnerships with Cronos projects and KOLs are central to onboarding liquidity and expanding market diversity.
🔵 20:00–27:00 — User onboarding, odds setting, and community trust via UMA oracle
The team sets starting odds through internal research but collaborates with partners to fine-tune probabilities. Jenny stresses that users must make informed decisions — market percentages reflect community sentiment, but homework is still required. Questions on ties clarify that outcomes are defined upfront; if ties are possible, they are explicitly listed as an outcome. Otherwise, UMA handles resolution and disputes, maintaining fairness.
🔴 27:00–34:00 — Sports expansion, project outreach, and regional restrictions
Delphi signals sports as its next category push, aiming to attract wider audiences. Collaboration is open — projects can pitch ideas directly via DM or QA forms. Regional limitations are acknowledged: U.S. and Canada remain restricted due to regulatory bans on prediction markets. While frustrating for users, Jenny reiterates this is a compliance issue bigger than Delphi itself.
🔵 34:00–40:30 — Social features, user adoption, and gamified incentives
The AMA highlights Delphi’s differentiation: gamified incentives like point systems, vouchers, and boosted winnings. Social features (share cards, future community comments) are planned to drive visibility across Twitter and beyond. Delphi frames itself not as mere betting, but as an “experience,” positioning against Polymarket by leaning into community fun, Cronos partnerships, and gamified design.
🔴 40:30–45:00 — Q&A: manipulation risks, liquidity depth, data resale, closing notes
Audience questions raise risks of insider manipulation (e.g., someone betting then influencing outcomes). The answer: market design itself must minimize such risks, though no system fully prevents it. Liquidity depth varies — currently shallow but visible via order books. Delphi does not yet plan to monetize market data, though this is a major opportunity seen in other platforms. The session ends with thanks, a USDC voucher giveaway for new sign-ups, and an invitation for Cronos projects to collaborate.
✅ Key Takeaways:
Delphi is live on Cronos as a yes/no prediction market, seeded with USDC.
UMA oracles ensure fair settlement and prevent manipulation of results.
Expansion plans: sports markets, multi-choice outcomes, and self-service creation for projects.
Growth strategy: gamification, social sharing tools, and Cronos community integration.
SpeshialU.S. and Canada remain restricted due to longstanding regulation.
September 11th AMA with Pocket Demons Richie, current lead of Pocket Demons, recapped how he rescued the project after a soft rug, took over contract ownership, and fulfilled original promises like NFT breeding and reward mechanics. He detailed the project’s long-term CRO yield strategy, including staking via Fulcrum and game/event treasury reserves. Most of the AMA centered on Allstake, a multi-tool launchpad platform offering custom staking, NFT marketplaces, raffles, and the AllVerify Discord bot. Richie emphasized transparency, sustainability, and support for other Cronos projects, while teasing gamified expansions like a retro arcade. The tone was casual but detailed, showing clear evolution from survival-mode to infrastructure-building.
🕒 Timestamp Overview
🔴 00:00–05:12 — AMA Kickoff, NFL Chat, and Space Format 🔵 05:13–11:22 — Richie’s Entry into Cronos & Takeover of Pocket Demons 🔴 11:23–16:30 — Breeding Mechanics, Hellions, and CRO Reward System 🔵 16:31–22:49 — Fulcrum Staking and Treasury Strategy 🔴 22:50–29:12 — Launch of Allstake: Vision, Utility, and Platform Scope 🔵 29:13–33:49 — Access Control, Admin Panels, and Custom Tooling 🔴 33:50–38:00 — AllVerify Discord Bot and Community Tools 🔵 38:01–41:15 — Gamified Mechanics, Flappy Bird Clone & Retro Arcade 🔴 41:16–46:00 — HAL Token, Community Loyalty, and Closing Remarks
🔴 00:00–05:12 — AMA Kickoff, NFL Chat, and Space Format
Opening Banter and AMA Intro (Duration: 5m12s) Carl and Richie opened with light banter and NFL talk — Richie revealed he’s a Canadian Raiders fan, attributing it to the Oakland “black hole” culture. Carl outlined the AMA structure: introductions, project background, onchain mechanics, and a focus on learnings for newcomers. The goal was a concise, sub-hour format with room for audience questions.
🔵 05:13–11:22 — Richie’s Entry into Cronos & Takeover of Pocket Demons
How Richie Became Pocket Demons Founder (Duration: 6m9s) Richie began as an investor in Phoenix (rugged), then joined Pocket Demons as a moderator under its original founders — a team of 3 women. Seeing the team flounder, he stepped up. After the team’s soft rug, Richie, with help from Schwiz, secured the contract (but not the treasury), assuming control to honor the roadmap and community promises. He minted the "Fallen Angels" collection to raise funds and re-stabilize the project.
🔴 11:23–16:30 — Breeding Mechanics, Hellions, and CRO Reward System
NFT Breeding and CRO Yield Design (Duration: 5m7s) Richie emphasized honoring the original roadmap by completing the demon–angel–hellion breeding cycle. Users can mint 1 Hellion by combining 1 Demon with 3 Angels. Hellions earn CRO rewards sourced from yield strategies like Fulcrum and product revenue delegation. He emphasized a “child support” theme: parents (demons/angels) are needed to keep earning, but their permanence may not be guaranteed.
🔵 16:31–22:49 — Fulcrum Staking and Treasury Strategy
Treasury Split: Yield vs Community Ops (Duration: 6m18s) 60% of the treasury (~$8,000 USD) is staked in Fulcrum, while the remaining 40% supports internal games, events, and potential product development. Weekly yield claims from Fulcrum feed the ecosystem and year-two distributions are already underway. Full transparency is maintained via Discord and a hallpaper showing staking flows, delegation destinations, and revenue allocation.
🔴 22:50–29:12 — Launch of Allstake: Vision, Utility, and Platform Scope
Allstake: Not a Clone, But a Hub (Duration: 6m22s) Richie introduced Allstake, a multi-tool platform offering staking, Launchpad, custom NFT marketplaces, raffles, and auctions. While inspired by similar platforms like Ebisu’s Bay, Allstake aims to offer differentiated features (to be revealed) and emphasize UX improvements. Richie stressed the goal is ecosystem expansion — not competition — reinforcing the ethos “together we are stronger.”
🔵 29:13–33:49 — Access Control, Admin Panels, and Custom Tooling
Project Founder Tooling and Onboarding (Duration: 4m36s) Allstake’s toolset is founder-facing: minting, raffles, auctions, and custom marketplaces are accessible via a wallet-gated admin panel. Only project founders can configure these. For non-launching projects, setup has a modest fee; for launchpad clients, it’s included. KYC is required for launchpad users. The team plans to offer white-label iframe embeds for founders to host tools on their own sites.
🔴 33:50–38:00 — AllVerify Discord Bot and Community Tools
AllVerify: Role Gating, Multi-Wallets, and Rumbles (Duration: 4m10s) Richie debuted AllVerify, a HiFi-inspired wallet verifier bot with role gating and integrated rumble game triggers. Unique features include:
Multi-wallet support
Admin-only mint prompts
Secure permissions (no admin rights granted) The bot is currently used by Zoodlers and Gayo Ecosystem, with more features and a referral program ($100/year with 20% kickbacks) planned.
🔵 38:01–41:15 — Gamified Mechanics, Flappy Bird Clone & Retro Arcade
Gamify Arm: Fly or Die and Retro Expansions (Duration: 3m14s) NotBased (Richie’s brother and dev) is leading gamification. They tested Fly or Die, a Flappy Bird-style leaderboard game with CRO prizes. Upcoming iterations include capped-player tournaments. Richie envisions an entire Retro Arcade layer to stack fun, nostalgia, and token sink mechanics.
🔴 41:16–46:00 — HAL Token, Community Loyalty, and Closing Remarks
HAL Token Utility & AMA Wrap-Up (Duration: 4m44s) HAL is a non-monetized in-ecosystem token earned via staking or Discord events. It’s spendable on raffles, marketplace items, and spins for NFT/crow prizes. Richie closed by thanking long-time supporters, citing mantras like “Do what you say, say what you do,” and reaffirming the Pocket Demons commitment to longevity and community-first building.
September 12th AMA with Croots NFT Dream walks through Croods’ CTO origin story, the collections timeline, and a revenue-share engine sustained by active investments and services. The star of the show is XLabs DNA—a rarity-safe trait-swap platform with sell-back markets, cross-chain collabs, and an on-ramp via the DNA token. Extras: two arcade games with prizes, rotating Ebisu’s Bay staking, an NFT reroll X-Portal, and managed bots for sales/price updates.
🕒 Timestamp Overview
🔴 00:00–03:30 — Warm-up & format for the session 🔵 03:30–10:00 — Background & why Croods became a CTO 🔴 10:00–17:30 — Collections timeline, supply & volume 🔵 17:30–25:00 — Revenue share model & treasury discipline 🔴 25:00–32:00 — Games: Web3 Underground & Space War X 🔵 32:00–39:00 — Ebisu’s Bay staking & “strategic reserves” 🔴 39:00–51:00 — XLabs DNA: rarity-safe trait swapping (+ sell-backs) 🔵 51:00–56:30 — Partner onboarding, pricing & supply rules 🔴 56:30–62:00 — UX filters, on-chain metadata, cross-chain collabs 🔵 62:00–67:30 — Services: NFT sales bots & token update bots 🔴 67:30–72:00 — DNA token via Agent Fund AI & utilities 🔵 72:00–76:00 — X-Portal (404-inspired) rerolls & economics 🔴 76:00–80:00 — Team roles, what’s next, and where to find Croods
🔴 00:00–03:30 — Warm-up & format for the session (3m30s)
Quick housekeeping and stage fill. Host frames the Traffic format: fast, condensed education for Cronos builders—background → what the project does → what’s next → Q&A. Tennis banter edited out of the final cut.
🔵 03:30–10:00 — Background & why Croods became a CTO (6m30s)
Dream’s been on Cronos since the early NFT days—moderating, networking founders, learning the scene. In Dec 2022 a 500-supply project rugged; Dream, McPuffin, and others took over instead of letting the community die. They rallied ~8 artists and a dev to relaunch quickly and fairly, establishing Croods as a community-driven CTO.
🔴 10:00–17:30 — Collections timeline, supply & volume (7m30s)
Gen1 minted out in ~30 minutes with 1:1 make-good for rugged holders.
Skelyx (interim art/IP step) later burned 3:1 into Croods X.
Croods X = the final, forward collection; prior sets retain utility but value accrues to X.
Total ecosystem supply ~9,985; crossed 1M CRO volume ~a month ago.
🔵 17:30–25:00 — Revenue share model & treasury discipline (7m30s)
Treasury not drained—it’s deployed across Cronos platforms (e.g., VVS, Tectonic, Fulcrum, Ebisu’s Bay) and collab flows. Rough splits: ~60% to holders monthly, ~25% compound, ~15% ops. Holders activate every six months (on-chain fee only; NFTs remain liquid—no lock). Typical monthly outlay ≈ $1k–$2k in CRO, variable.
🔴 25:00–32:00 — Games: Web3 Underground & Space War X (7m)
Two pick-up-and-play titles gated to Croods + partner NFTs:
Web3 Underground (endless platformer) — monthly prizes (NFTs, tokens), high-score + random winners.
Space War X (Galaga/Space Invaders vibe) — weekly high-score prizes; mobile/PC friendly.
🔵 32:00–39:00 — Ebisu’s Bay staking & “strategic reserves” (7m)
Community farms on Ebisu’s Bay rotate across Croods X / Skelyx / Gen1. Beyond base rev-share, Croods loops in partner tokens (8–9 assets in a single farm) to amplify value without heavy sell pressure—partners send modest allocations spread across many stakers.
🔴 39:00–51:00 — XLabs DNA: rarity-safe trait swapping (+ sell-backs) (12m)
The marquee feature:
Rarity integrity preserved. You swap a trait for its variant (e.g., crown → variant crown), not crown → laser eyes. No “pay-to-win” rarity distortion.
Supply-aware variants. Variant max supply ≤ original trait supply; projects can set lower caps for exclusivity.
Secondary inside the lab. Buyers can sell traits back at user-set prices in many supported tokens.
Why it matters: lets holders personalize and rescue “unloved” traits (e.g., swap a construction hat for a military helm) while keeping collection rank stable.
🔵 51:00–56:30 — Partner onboarding, pricing & supply rules (5m30s)
~30 projects lined up (Cronos-first; some Polygon/Solana). Typical pricing today ~25–75 CRO per trait (legacy listings may reflect CRO’s price change). Projects can structure common vs rare variants via price/supply. Collaborations can target artists, tokens, platforms, or personalities (e.g., a “Traffic” mic/hoodie variant), with projects optionally rewarding holders of their applied trait.
🔴 56:30–62:00 — UX filters, on-chain metadata, cross-chain collabs (5m30s)
Lab UI includes trait-category filters (e.g., Head → “crown”; by project name). Metadata updates are on-chain/IPFS, refreshable on Ebisu’s Bay within seconds. The format supports cross-chain partner branding and settlement in the partner’s preferred token.
🔵 62:00–67:30 — Services: NFT sales bots & token update bots (5m30s)
Croods operates managed bots:
NFT Sales Bots for X and Discord (per-sale highlights).
Token Update Bot for X (daily price/liquidity/volume posts). They run these for projects (Croods handles config/ops) and route revenue back into holder flows.
🔴 67:30–72:00 — DNA token via Agent Fund AI & utilities (5m)
DNA launched via Agent Fund AI with a collab that unlocked agent features. Utilities:
Payment unit in XLabs DNA (traits),
Ebisu’s Bay staking,
Mystery Boxes (coming),
In-house NFT marketplace (coming; not competing with Ebisu’s Bay—meant for in-house cohesion),
Potential partner NFT mints settled in DNA.
🔵 72:00–76:00 — X-Portal (404-inspired) rerolls & economics (4m)
A light-risk reroll engine: deposit 1 NFT + small CRO fee to receive a random Croods X from curated inventory. Profits sweep rare traits/ranks from the market to restock, creating a virtuous loop and extra royalties. Offered to other chains/projects with an admin page to claim fees and choose how to deploy them (e.g., LP growth, buybacks).
🔴 76:00–80:00 — Team roles, what’s next, and where to find Croods (4m)
Division of labor: investments (McPuffin, Hendrick), community (Kahuna), BD/collabs (Tx), product/vision (Dream). Team fully doxxed internally with contracts in place for platform devs.
Recent/next: dedicated asset servers (faster loads), multi-trait swaps in one tx, giftable traits, Mystery Boxes, and the DNA-powered in-house marketplace.
Find them: Croods bio → link hub to site, Labs, Portal, Agent, token, and marketplaces (Ebisu’s Bay, Crypto.com NFT, Minted). DNA trades live across Cronos DEXs.
Notes & Nuggets
Rarity-safe customization solves the classic “naked vs overloaded” metadata war that nuked many trait-market experiments.
The sell-back mechanic treats traits more like liquid cosmetics than sunk-cost skins.
Games + staking + bots + rerolls give multiple engagement loops beyond “watch charts.”
Q&A surfaced interest in add-on décor layers (e.g., perch a fire-crow without losing a weapon); Dream outlined feasible approaches that preserve integrity.
Call to Action
Curious? Follow Croods, hop in Discord, and test:
XLabs DNA (try a safe variant swap or list a trait)
X-Portal (reroll an NFT)
Games (compete for weekly/monthly prizes) Builders: DM to list traits, add your token to trait markets, or set up sales/price bots for X/Discord.
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