Meet the team: Matthew Jodorowsky, CTO of ChainDot Finance Foundation.

Who are you?

I’ve been a game/finance loving technology enthusiast all my life, with a passion for exploring emerging technology. I had the joy and pleasure of working with the some of the most successful online games of all time at major software houses, and have experimented and explored everything from independent game design to tools for efficiently interact with smart contracts.

These days I’m focused on building a flagship product for ChainDot with a super hype, and I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to bring all the benefits of blockchain mixed with privacy features to mainstream adoption. Obtaining privacy yet provable ownership demonstrability and funds disclosement is the step needed to obtain a legal compliant statu-quo of the blockchain technology when it comes to mainstream finance regulation. All the capabilities of ChainDot makes it perfect to fit the role of the first and most advanced privacy based DeFi project.

What lured you into the world of blockchain?

The concept of digital currency is so natural: back in 2013 when I learned about how Bitcoin managed to begin to solve the problems inherent in enforcing digital scarcity I was paying attention and started my adventure in blockchain and cryptocurrencies world.

It wasn’t until CryptoKitties was unleashed on the world with its implementation of non-fungible tokens and a fun, adorable, gamified way to interact with the technology that I fully got my efforts on Ethereum and its possibilities. Before that moment I just speculated on ETH smart contract features just for fun. I joined the CryptoKitties community so that I could share things I was learning, and to continue to learn, and discovered a rich, highly intelligent, highly motivated group of enthusiasts like myself. In part, CryptoKitties spoke to me because it was a relatively safe space to play around with technology, explore the bold boundaries and frontiers of non-fungible tokens and smart contracts, and I just saw opportunity around every corner.

What should I read next?

We live in such interesting times, with so many possibilities open to us that it can be tough to project into the future to see where we’re going and how we might go about getting there. I recommend reading historical and science fiction stories to help exercise and flex those muscles in the brain that can reveal what the future of open worlds can look like, in ways that nobody else may yet be thinking about. I particularly enjoyed the System of the World series from author Neal Stephenson, whose novel Snow Crash is so fundamental to my own understanding of the Metaverse. I also appreciate the novel Anathem, also by Stephenson, which takes a different approach to encourage us to consider how the world we live in came to be (and how key actors can be so fundamental at shaping that world in key moments in history).

While driving: Music or Podcasts?

I adore podcasts, especially those smaller independent productions that have no set schedule or limitations on duration. I’ve been a listener since the term was coined, back when you had to use clunky “podcatching” software to download MP3 files overnight and then manually plug in your iPod in the morning to be able to listen to them the next day. I find that when two or more people allow themselves to get deep into a conversation topic and you can follow them well below surface level, farther than you’ll ever get in any mainstream media product, that to me is the best thing. I feel so fortunate that there are so many really great podcasts in the crypto space, and even specifically in the NFT space that I’m so interested and involved in. Some of my favorites are NonFunGerbils and Zima Red. In addition to blockchain focused podcasts, I find that I can learn a lot and come away with key insights even in podcasts focused on areas far beyond my own bubble and areas of direct interest. I just need to find more far off places to drive to so that I can consume more of the great content that’s produced!

Interviewer: Lisa Robinson, PR for ChainDot Finance.