Key Takeaways
- Aidan Salzmann, co-founder of Stride Labs, holds a B.A. in Computer Science from UC Berkeley and has experience in product development and engineering.
- In 2022, Aidan co-founded Stride Labs to solve liquidity issues for staked tokens, especially in the Cosmos ecosystem.
- Stride Labs’ primary product, the Stride blockchain, offers liquid staking for the Cosmos interchain ecosystem. This allows users to stake tokens while maintaining liquidity.
Who Is Aidan Salzmann?
Aidan Salzmann co-founded Stride Labs, the organization behind the Stride blockchain. With a background in product development and engineering, he transitioned from roles as a researcher and product engineer to focus on building liquid staking solutions for Cosmos and Stride Labs.
He earned his B.A. in Computer Science from the University of California, Berkeley, where he studied data systems, computer programming, and related topics. Aidan also spent a semester at the University of Copenhagen and is fluent in German and English.
Early Career
Aidan Salzmann’s path into technology started at UC Berkeley, where he joined Virtual Reality at Berkeley, a student group that worked to spread knowledge about virtual reality. While there, Aidan learned about VR and met Riley Edmunds, who would later become his co-founder at Stride Labs. This early experience with new technologies started Aidan’s interest in the tech world, leading to his future work in the field.
Machine Learning at Veo Technologies
In 2018, Aidan started his first professional job as a Machine Learning Engineer at Veo Technologies, a company in Denmark. He worked on using machine learning to improve the company’s sports technology. This international experience helped him build his engineering skills and allowed him to explore the global tech world while also growing his passion for AI and technology.
Product Engineering at Humu
Aidan’s next job was at Humu, a company focused on improving workplace productivity with science-based technology. From 2019 to 2021, Aidan worked as the lead engineer for Manager Effectiveness, one of Humu’s three main products.
He helped create tools for managers to improve team performance using information-based insights. This role helped him grow his product engineering skills and strengthened his interest in developing technology that could have a real-world impact.
Co-founding Stride Labs
In March 2022, Aidan co-founded Stride Labs, a big step in his career. The company was created from his idea of solving the liquidity problem for staked tokens in the crypto space. Stride Labs aimed to offer more options for users in the Cosmos ecosystem. This project allowed Aidan to use his engineering skills and product development experience to create new decentralized finance solutions (DeFi).
Stride Labs and the Cosmos Ecosystem
Stride Labs’ main product is the Stride blockchain, which helps provide liquidity for staked tokens in the Cosmos interchain ecosystem. Cosmos is a decentralized network of blockchains that can grow and work together.
Stride Labs improves this ecosystem by offering liquid staking, letting users stake tokens while keeping access to liquidity. The Stride blockchain uses a Proof-of-Stake (PoS) system, making it more energy-efficient and long-lasting than traditional Proof-of-Work models.
The Innovation of Liquid Staking
Stride Labs offers a unique feature in the Cosmos ecosystem: liquid staking. This allows users to stake tokens while keeping access to them, so they can earn staking rewards without locking up their assets. When users liquidate stakes, they get a version of their staked tokens that can be freely traded. These tokens earn rewards in real-time, and users can swap them anytime for the original tokens plus the rewards. This flexibility sets Stride apart and has helped the platform grow in the DeFi space.
Supported Chains and Future Growth
Stride Labs supports liquid staking for several projects in the Cosmos ecosystem, including Cosmos Hub (STATOM), Osmosis (STOSMO), and Sommelier (STSOMM). By working with these projects, Stride is growing its portfolio and helping expand decentralized finance in Cosmos. With a strong foundation, Aidan Salzmann and his team are ready to keep growing and moving forward with liquid staking and DeFi solutions.
Stride Protocol on Bell Curve Podcast
In the latest episode of the Bell Curve Podcast, February 6, 2024. Mike is joined by Aidan Salzmann, co-founder of Stride Labs, and John Charbonneau, general partner at DBA. They explore the design of the Stride protocol, focusing on features like stTIA and the liquid staking module (LSM).
The conversation covers how to align incentives between protocols, what is causing the growth of liquid staking, how liquid staking tokens can be used as flexible money in rollups, and how to manage validator sets.
Vision for Decentralized Finance
Salzmann’s vision for decentralized finance is about more than staking solutions. At Stride Labs, he believes decentralized systems can create fairer, cleaner financial environments. Using blockchain and liquid staking, Aidan wants to give people more control over their assets, allowing them to earn rewards and keep access to their funds. He aims to help build a more decentralized system where users can grow their wealth and be involved in decision-making.
Final Thoughts
Aidan Salzmann’s path from studying at UC Berkeley to co-founding Stride Labs shows his strong technology and product development background. With Stride Labs, Aidan has brought new ideas to the Cosmos ecosystem, allowing users to earn rewards from staking tokens without losing access. His goal for decentralized finance is to create fairer, more open systems that give people more control over their money. As Stride Labs continues to grow, Aidan’s work will play a key role in shaping the future of finance.
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