In this new episode of The Open Metaverse podcast, our host Mehdi Farooq speaks to Tekin Salimi, the founder of DAO5, an experimental crypto investment manager with a unique vision to convert into a founder-owned DAO.

Tekin shares his journey from being a corporate lawyer to an early general partner at Polychain Capital, his experiences investing in projects like Bearachain, BitTensor, EigenLayer, and more, and how he spots early trends and talents in the Web3 space.

They discuss the future of DAOs, ICOs, token distribution, the importance of founder relationships, and insights into the evolution of DeSci, DePIN, Web3 gaming, and privacy technologies.

Tekin also offers a glimpse into DAO5's progressive decentralization model and his thoughts on building an edge as an investor.

Takeaways:
- You have to be in the weeds to spot trends early
- The quality of founders is the most critical factor in investment decisions
- The best deals often come from contrarian views
- Privacy technologies are essential for the future of on-chain businesses
- Emerging trends like decentralized science are worth exploring
- The vision of DAO5 is to combine investment with DAO principles
- Community is the real currency in the crypto space
- Defensibility in Web3 comes from community trust
- Unique stories are crucial for raising a Web3 fund
- Detaching from social media can enhance clarity of thought