In this episode, Antonio, founder of dYdX, opens up about his deeply personal journey of stepping down as CEO and ultimately returning to the company. He shares raw insights about founder identity, the emotional toll of building a successful company, and the profound realizations that came from completely disconnecting from his creation. The conversation explores the unique challenges founders face with connection, leadership, and authenticity, while offering a candid look at how Antonio plans to run dYdX differently after his return. Found out what it's actually like being a founder in crypto. Thanks for tuning in! - - Start your day with crypto news, analysis and data from Katherine Ross and David Canellis. Subscribe to the Empire newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/empire?utm_source=podcasts Follow Antonio: https://x.com/antoniomjuliano Follow Jason: https://twitter.com/JasonYanowitz Follow Santiago: https://twitter.com/santiagoroel Follow Empire: https://twitter.com/theempirepod Subscribe on YouTube: https://tinyurl.com/4fdhhb2j Subscribe on Apple: https://tinyurl.com/mv4frfv7ww Subscribe on Spotify: https://tinyurl.com/wbaypprw Get top market insights and the latest in crypto news. Subscribe to Blockworks Daily Newsletter: https://blockworks.co/newsletter/ - - Explore the SKALE Ecosystem at skale.space/ecosystem and stay up to date with the gas-free blockchain on X at @skalenetwork - - The self-custody wallet that's built for swapping. Created for a multi-chain world by the most trusted team in DeFi. Available on Chrome, iOS, and Android. https://blckwrks.co/UniswapWallet - - Supra Containers are secured by Supra’s L1 nodes and get access to Supra’s 500k TPS throughput, sub-second consensus latency, and all their built-in services like oracle price feeds and onchain randomness without any overhead. Supra is also MultiVM compatible so you can easily deploy your EVM, Move, and SVM smart contracts here. Get all the freedom, control, and tools you need to build super dApps and bring the world onchain. To learn more, visit www.supra.com/blockworks - - $cmETH, a Mantle native liquid restaking token, will launch together with Season 2: Methamorphosis, allowing users to easily participate in restaking, and earn $COOK rewards in addition to other yields. $COOK, the governance token of mETH Protocol, will allow holders to play a pivotal role in directing the strategic future of mETH Protocol. Learn more: https://x.com/mETHProtocol - - Timestamps: (00:00) Intro (02:13) Stepping Down from CEO (17:09) Returning to Building (32:57) Skale Ad (33:36) Supra Ad (34:32) Uniswap ad (35:04) Mantle Ad (35:57) Founders Lessons Learned (39:30) Advice for Founders (47:30) Founders Setting Goals (59:38) Social Strains of Foundership - - Disclaimer: Nothing said on Empire is a recommendation to buy or sell securities or tokens. This podcast is for informational purposes only, and any views expressed by anyone on the show are solely our opinions, not financial advice. Santiago, Jason, and our guests may hold positions in the companies, funds, or projects discussed.