EP 388 – Are We Entering a New Era of Decentralized Finance? – Qin En Looi and Ganesh Kompella

by Michael Waitze | Sep 17, 2025

Artificial intelligence and blockchain are no longer separate innovations. They are beginning to merge, creating systems that are both intelligent and trustworthy. AI brings automation, reasoning, and decision-making, while blockchain provides transparency, provenance, and security.

On this episode of ATP, ⁠Qin En Looi⁠⁠, a Partner at ⁠Onigiri Capital⁠ & ⁠Saison Capital⁠ and ⁠Ganesh Kompella⁠, a Founding Partner at ⁠Tykhe Ventures⁠, highlight that this moment is different because of a shift in mindset and infrastructure.

Some of the topics Qin En and Ganesh covered in detail:

Together, AI and blockchain unlock ‘decentralized intelligence’.
The AI and blockchain ecosystem has matured with stronger infrastructure, institutional adoption, and broad developer access.
Clear, supportive regulation is shifting from hindering innovation to driving it.
While core AI infrastructure may remain centered in the West, Asia’s talent and scale position it to lead in applied AI and blockchain use cases.
DeFi will not replace traditional banks but will serve as their middleware, enabling faster, more transparent, and programmable financial services.

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