Composable: Exploring Crypto’s Building Blocks (an Espresso Pod)

In this episode of Composable, hosts Alysia and Ellie welcome Hasu, an expert in MEV and the strategy lead at Flashbots. They delve into the intricacies of MEV, which stands for Maximal Extractable Value, discussing what it is in detail, its evolution, and its implications for our multi-chain future. The conversation covers topics such as private RPCs, order flow auctions, and the impact of MEV on both user experience and protocol efficiency. The episode also explores the trade-offs between synchronous and asynchronous composability and predicts future trends in crosschain MEV and protocol design.Relevant links from the show.Flashbots writingFlashbots forumArchive of all MEV-related contentComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode of Composable, Ellie and Alysia dive deep into one of blockchain's most critical yet confusing concepts: finality. Triggered by a real-world story of someone losing funds due to misunderstanding finality in crosschain transactions, they explore the nuanced definitions of finality, settlement, and confirmations across different blockchain layers.The discussion reveals how finality is not a fixed concept but rather depends on trust assumptions, application requirements, and the observer's perspective. They examine how different stakeholders, from centralized exchanges to DeFi protocols, make trade-offs between speed and security when defining finality for their users.Key topics covered: Defining blockchain finalityFinality vs settlementLayer 2 finality considerationsCrosschain composability challengesReal-world application examplesDeveloper trade-offs and decisionsConfirmations and block timesVariable finality factorsComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode, hosts Alysia and Ellie tackle Ethereum FUD (fear, uncertainty, and doubt) head-on by rolling a special "Ethereum FUD" die—a special piece of swag that Espresso Systems produced for ETHDenver 2025—and discussing common criticisms of Ethereum. They cover everything from fee structures and L2 scaling solutions to fragmentation concerns and Ethereum's overall direction, diving into whether the FUD is valid or simply misconceptions and providing a balanced perspective on the challenges and design decisions facing Ethereum as it evolves.Key topics covered:Fees Too Low - Discussion of the criticism that low Ethereum fees indicate lack of usage and declining demandParasitic L2s - Debate over whether Layer 2 solutions help or harm Ethereum by potentially siphoning value from L1Fragmentation - Analysis of liquidity and ecosystem fragmentation across multiple L2 chainsNo North Star - Examination of claims that Ethereum lacks clear direction compared to competitors like SolanaValidator Economics - How fee levels impact validator profitability and network securityProduct Market Fit - Challenges of finding sustainable use cases for blockchain technologyUser Experience vs. Decentralization - Trade-offs between ease of use and maintaining decentralized principlesComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode, Ellie and Alysia dive deep into intent-based bridges, specifically exploring Across Protocol and their proposed Across Prime upgrade. They examine how intent bridges work, their advantages over traditional bridges, and the capital efficiency improvements that Across Prime aims to deliver for solvers (i.e., the liquidity providers that fulfill user intents).Key Topics CoveredWhat are intents and intent bridges - Definition and distinction from traditional bridges, focusing on how users can move assets cross-chain without worrying about underlying mechanismsIntent bridge mechanics - How liquidity bridges work with solvers fronting funds on destination chains rather than actually moving tokens crosschainBenefits for users - Native tokens (no wrapped assets), no slippage concerns, fast transactions, and simplified user experience compared to canonical bridgesIntent lifecycle walkthrough - Three-step process: initiate transaction, fill by solver, and settlement verification using UMA's optimistic oracleSolver risks and challenges - Blockchain reorganization risks, sequencer confirmation dependencies, and capital lock-up issues during settlement periodsAcross Prime proposal - New bonding mechanism that allows solvers to get paid immediately and reuse capital, dramatically improving capital efficiencyCapital efficiency explained - How solvers can potentially earn 50+ transaction fees per hour on the same liquidity instead of just one fee per settlement periodTechnical implementation details - Merkle tree systems for tracking in-flight transactions and user-enforced verification mechanismsSolver rebalancing challenges - Why relayers need better native bridging options to move funds between chains efficientlyERC-7683 standard - Crosschain intent standardization for interoperability between different solver networksNFT bridging limitations - Why liquidity bridges cannot support NFT transfers due to uniqueness constraintsFair exchange problem - Distributed systems challenge of ensuring trustless exchanges and how Across addresses it theoretically and practicallyFuture outlook debate - Whether intents represent the future of crosschain interactions or merely a stopgap until better native interoperability emergesComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode of Composable, hosts Alysia and Ellie speak with Orest from t1 about proof aggregation, TEEs (Trusted Execution Environments), L2 security, and how these concepts relate to finality. The conversation explores Vitalik Buterin's recent post proposing a "two out of three" proof system combining TEE proofs, ZK proofs, and Optimistic proofs to enhance blockchain security while improving finality times. Orest also shares how t1 is implementing TEEs to achieve faster finality times for L2s while maintaining strong security guarantees.Key Topics Covered:Introduction to TEEs and how they workComparison between TEE proofs and ZK proofsVitalik's proposal for combining multiple proof systemsHow t1 uses TEEs for integrity rather than confidentialityRemote attestation process and its importanceSecurity considerations and risk models for TEEst1's unique approach combining TEE proofs with periodic ZK proofsThe challenges of vendor centralization in TEE ecosystemsReal-world tradeoffs between security, speed, and usabilityComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode of Composable, Alysia and Ellie explore the security of crosschain messages. They examine notable bridge attacks, analyze what makes crosschain messages vulnerable, and discuss various security approaches, including multisigs and Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs). The episode breaks down the technical aspects of securing crosschain messages while considering the trade-offs between speed and usability.Key Topics Covered:Notable bridge attacks like Ronin, Wormhole, and OrbitThe anatomy of crosschain messagesSecurity vulnerabilities in bridge systemsMultisig security models and their limitationsTrusted Execution Environments (TEEs) and their role in securing crosschain messagesTrust assumptions in various other security approachesComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode of Composable, hosts Alysia and Ellie speak with Eda Akturk, a developer advocate at Hyperlane, about intents in general and the recently released Open Intents Framework, specifically. They explore what intents are, how they're changing user experiences in web3, and dive into the collaborative effort behind the Open Intents Framework, which aims to make it easier for developers to build intent-based applications.Key Topics CoveredHow to define intents in a blockchain context (eg, allowing users to specify their goal rather than know how to reach it themselves)The Open Intents Framework, a collaborative effort led by Hyperlane, Bootnode, and the Ethereum FoundationHow the framework builds upon the ERC-7683 standard proposed by Across and UniswapThe framework's three main components: smart contract base, open-source solver implementation, and ready-to-use UIThe mechanics of intent transactions and how solvers fulfill user requestsHow solvers front liquidity and manage finality risks when bridging between chainsTarget audiences for the Open Intents Framework, especially new chains and crosschain applicationsBenefits of standardization for creating composability between different intent systemsThe competitive solver market and how it leads to better UXThe future vision for intents in the blockchain ecosystemThe unusual level of cooperation between competing L2s and infrastructure projectsComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso.Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidsonComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode, hosts Alysia and Ellie explore the concept of wrapped tokens in the Ethereum ecosystem, discussing their purpose, benefits, and limitations.Key Topics:Canonical vs. wrapped tokensUse cases for wrapped tokensSecurity implications of token issuanceLimitations and challenges of wrapped tokensBridging solutions and speed/security tradeoffsFuture of wrapped tokensComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso.Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidsonComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode of Composable, hosts Ellie and Alysia dive deep into the topic of synchronous composability with guest Cecilia, an engineer at Gwyneth Taiko. They explore the technical challenges of reaching synchronous composability, potential implementations to enable it, and the future value it could drive. They also examine why many prominent figures in the crypto space consider synchronous composability overrated...Key Topics Covered:Synchronous vs. asynchronous composability in blockchain systemsTechnical challenges of implementing synchronous composability across different L2 chainsGwyneth's successful demo of synchronous composability within their clusterThe advantages of based rollups for achieving synchronous composabilityShared sequencing and why many chains resist implementing itPractical applications of synchronous composability, particularly for L2s accessing L1 liquidityThe "one big rollup" critique and why having multiple chains with shared sequencing still makes senseComparison of synchronous composability with intent-based approaches to cross-chain interactionsThe potential future of domain-specific chains using based infrastructureHow preconfirmation protocols like Espresso could enable faster synchronous interactions between chainsComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidsonComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this sixth episode of Composable, Alysia and Ellie explore the question of what it means to "Build Something Real" and the tension that exists today between blockchain's potential versus its current hype-filled reality.Key Topics Covered:The controversial role of memecoins in crypto and whether they provide genuine valueWhat it actually means to "Build Something Real" in the blockchain spaceHow Web3 is rediscovering the same financial lessons that TradFi learned decades agoThe paradigm shift of data ownership and the challenges of getting users to value itThe current metrics used to measure value in Web3 and their limitationsThe barriers to mainstream adoption and potential solutionsHow interoperability and chain fragmentation impact developers and usersThe importance of security when building in the Web3 spaceBull and bear cases for the future of blockchain technologyComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidsonComposable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso.Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

Is bridging assets between chains real or just smoke and mirrors? Join Ellie Davidson and Alysia Tech as they dive deep into the fascinating mechanics and philosophical questions around cross-chain bridging.Key topics covered:The difference between "real" asset movement vs locking and minting wrapped tokensWhy bridging L1 to L2 is faster than L2 to L1, and the role of finalityNative vs wrapped assets: exploring USDT0 and other approachesHow traditional finance parallels help us understand bridge security modelsBlock confirmations and the tradeoffs between speed and securityThe future of bridging in a world where chains are synchronously composableWhether you're a developer in web3 or just curious about how assets move between chains, this episode breaks down complex concepts into digestible insights about the current state and future of cross-chain interop.Composable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

Join hosts Ellie and Alysia as they discuss the realities of cross-chain bridges, including looking at which are the most used, crypto UX, security tradeoffs, etc. — and then put several bridges to the test in a live demo, bridging assets across Ethereum, Arbitrum, and Base.Key topics covered include:Speed and fee comparisons across different bridge typesBridge architectures: canonical, intent-based, and externally verifiedSecurity tradeoffs between bridge designsEmerging trends: intent standardization and ZK bridgesCurrent state of bridging UX and areas for improvementThe live demo segment didn't make for great audio content, but you if you'd like to watch them test drive these bridges, you can find the video on Composable's YouTube channel at youtube.com/@composablepod.Essential listening for anyone looking to understand blockchain interoperability and cross-chain asset transfers.Composable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode of Composable, hosts Alicia and Ellie sit down with Maria Shen from Electric Capital to discuss their latest Developer Report that's making waves in the crypto space. They dive deep into how the war for developers is shaping up — with particularly noteworthy data on Ethereum losing out to Solana for most new devs, and a migration of Ethereum devs to working L2s.Key topics covered:The surprising rise of Solana as the leader in attracting new developers, while Ethereum maintains the largest overall developer ecosystemHow Asia has become the #1 continent for crypto developers, with India rising from 10th to 2nd place since 2015The distinction between Ethereum ecosystem developers vs EVM developers, and how this affects developer statisticsWhy Base and other L2s are becoming crucial for Ethereum's developer ecosystem growthThe impact of community support and DevRel efforts on attracting new developersHow DEX activity has shifted predominantly to Solana (81% of transactions) largely due to meme coin activityThe importance of full-time developers (35% on Ethereum vs 18% on Solana) and their impact on ecosystem developmentThe correlation between crypto prices and new developer activity in the spaceThe emergence of multi-chain development as a growing trend among developersWhether you're a developer, crypto enthusiast, or just curious about where the talent in Web3 is heading, this episode offers valuable insights into the current state of blockchain development and where it might be going next.Composable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In this episode of Composable, hosts Alicia and Ellie dive deep into the world of blockchain confirmations, exploring the nuances between preconfirmations, confirmations (like those provided by the Espresso Network), and L1 finality. They unpack how these different levels of transaction verification impact user experience and interoperability.Key topics covered:The emergence and evolution of preconfirmations, particularly in relation to based sequencing, and how they differ from BFT confirmationsThe role of centralized vs. decentralized sequencers and their impact on trust assumptionsHow preconfirmations affect cross-chain interoperabilityThe trade-offs between user experience and security when using different confirmation typesThe future of execution preconfirmations and shared sequencingThe impact of MEV (Maximal Extractable Value) on preconfirmation systemsDiscussion of real-world implementations, including Arbitrum and OptimismThe relationship between Data Availability (DA) layers and preconfirmationsAnalysis of "based rollups" and their implications for blockchain architectureWhether you're a blockchain developer, crypto enthusiast, or simply curious about the technical foundations of web3, this episode offers valuable insights into how transaction confirmations are shaping the future of blockchain infrastructure.Follow us on X: https://www.x.com/composablepodComposable is an Espresso Pod, a production of Espresso Systems. All opinions expressed by Composable’s hosts and podcast guests are solely their own views. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be taken as investment, legal, or technical advice.Composable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

In the debut episode of Composable, hosts Alysia and Ellie begin with a foundational discussion about composability and its role in shaping Ethereum’s future. In it, they break down:The difference between synchronous (transactions completed within one block) and asynchronous composability (transactions completed across multiple blocks).UX pain points caused by fragmentation, like "dust" left on chains after cross-chain transactions.The value of synchronous composability for creating seamless user experiences and enabling new financial products like flash loans.The challenges of achieving synchronous composability across different chains, and the need for coordination and trustless confirmation layers.Composability in terms of ACID properties (atomicity, isolation, consistency, durability)Trade-offs between synchronous and asynchronous systems, including infrastructure complexity and trust assumptions.Plus, they explore current solutions like bridges, intent-based bridging, and message-passing while discussing what’s needed to make Ethereum composable again.Don’t miss this foundational discussion about composability and the future of Ethereum. Tune in, share your thoughts, and join us in reimagining Web3’s interconnected potential.Follow us on X: https://www.x.com/composablepodComposable is an Espresso Pod, a production of Espresso Systems. All opinions expressed by Composable’s hosts and podcast guests are solely their own views. This podcast is for informational purposes only and should not be taken as investment, legal, or technical advice.Composable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson

Introducing Composable, a biweekly podcast exploring cross-chain composability in a multi-chain world. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso Pods.Composable is a bi-weekly podcast exploring crypto's building blocks. Hosted by Alysia and Ellie, and brought to you by Espresso. Find us on X:Composable — @composablepodAlysia — @alysiatechEllie — @ellierdavidson