From Cosmos to DeFi, Zaki Manian Keeps Pushing Limits
By: bitcoin ethereum news|2025/05/04 22:15:01
0
Share
Zaki Manian transitioned from studying science history to becoming a major builder in the Cosmos blockchain ecosystem. His bold stance on governance and decentralization often sparks debate in the crypto community. Amid the fast pace of the crypto world full of technical terms and code, there is one name that steals attention not because of sensation, but because of consistency: Zaki Manian. Imagine someone who used to study History and Sociology of Science, then a few years later was involved in building the foundation of cross-chain blockchain technology. Strange? Maybe. That’s just the beginning of Zaki’s unusual story. After graduating from the University of Pennsylvania in 2005, Zaki did not immediately plunge into the world of high technology. Instead, he started on an independent path, learning programming and cryptography autodidactically. In an era when most people were still busy exploring how home computers worked, Zaki was already busy dissecting the logic behind decentralized protocols. He had worked at a biotechnology company and even founded an enterprise blockchain startup called Skuchain in 2014. However, his steps that really led to the crypto industry began when he was involved in projects such as Ethereum, Zcash, and Bitcoin. Zaki Manian: From Cosmos to Sommelier, and One Costly Mistake While Cosmos was gaining ground as a blockchain interoperability ecosystem, Zaki was behind the scenes. He co-founded Iqlusion, a company that provides infrastructure for validating the Cosmos network, while also driving the development of Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC). But, as with anything in the tech world that always has a thorny side, his decisions on the project have caused quite a stir. In early 2023, the FBI approached Zaki with sensitive information: two developers who had worked on the Liquid Staking Module (LSM) project under Iqlusion were identified as North Korean agents. No one expected this, and worse still—this information was not immediately announced to the community. The module was launched anyway. The situation raised major questions about responsibility, transparency, and security risks in the Cosmos ecosystem. However, instead of disappearing, Zaki continued his work with a new project: Sommelier Protocol. This platform combines the Cosmos SDK with Ethereum to create an automated DeFi trading system. More or less, Sommelier functions like a ‘second brain’ that helps organize on-chain financial strategies without having to bother clicking here and there. Imagine having a personal assistant to dive into the world of DeFi—well, that’s more or less the goal. Behind the Tech, a Relentless Voice in Crypto Debates On the other hand, Zaki’s frank communication style also makes him one of the most talked about figures on social media, especially X. He often shares technical insights, while occasionally criticizing the dynamics of governance in crypto projects that he considers too “political.” In several podcasts and forums, he also does not hesitate to discuss sensitive topics such as hidden centralization in projects that claim to be decentralized. Perhaps what makes Zaki interesting is not just his technical intelligence, but the way he maintains his curiosity and courage to take risks. In the rapidly changing and uncertain crypto space, Zaki’s steps are not always smooth. But at least, he keeps going. Sometimes in the spotlight, sometimes with the burden of difficult decisions. Source: https://www.crypto-news-flash.com/from-cosmos-to-defi-zaki-manian-keeps-pushing-limits/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=from-cosmos-to-defi-zaki-manian-keeps-pushing-limits
You may also like

The world belongs to Chinese people who speak English
The world is vast, and only playing half of it is truly a loss.

Why Stop at 126K? Michael Saylor Breaks Down BTC Stagnation and Retail Absence Truth
Bitcoin is digital capital, and I will spend a thousand hours explaining it to you. Eventually, you will understand, but you will still have to endure a 45% crash.

Virtuals Protocol's inaugural Titan project: ROBO aims to give a wallet to a robot
This is a key step in Virtuals expanding the Agent Economy into the Embodied AI and Robotics field.

Stablecoin Latest Report: Actual Distribution and Circulation Much More Notable Than Supply
The Truth about Stablecoin Circulation Speed, Concentration, and Structure After Doubling the Supply

Paradigm's New Arithmetic: When Crypto Can't Hold 12.7 Billion, AI Becomes the Answer
It took Paradigm three years to emerge from the ruins of FTX.

Wintermute Founder: In the Lost Cryptocurrency Market, What Can We Still Do?
This is more like a manifesto, discussing "the very reason we are here."

$1.3 Billion Debt: BitDeer Faces Tough Battle
Wu Jihan is waiting for AI's money to catch up with the speed of debt.

Anthropic's IPO Gamble: At the Most Unlikely Moment, It Chose to Say No
In the AI Era, what is the most valuable thing?

Paradigm's Math Problem: $12.7 Billion, Too Big for a Single Crypto Fund
Emerging from the ruins of FTX, Paradigm took three years

Ethereum Unveils Scaling Roadmap, What's Different This Time?
Short-term improvements to execution efficiency through the Gas mechanism optimization and block validation parallelization, and long-term scalability through ZK-EVM and blobs data architecture.

Anthropic Ban Wave, OpenAI $100 Billion Funding Controversy: What Is the Overseas Crypto Community Talking About Today?
What Have Foreigners Been Most Interested in Over the Last 24 Hours?

Morning News | OpenAI receives $110 billion investment; Solana launches Solana Payments; M0, MoonPay, and PayPal jointly launch PYUSDx
Overview of Important Market Events on February 27

Bloomberg: A Romanian Presidential Election Intervened by Crypto Traders
The puzzle of the Romanian elections under digital manipulation.

Founders Fund, Pantera, and Franklin Templeton join Sentient's "Arena" to stress test enterprise-level AI agents
Sentient is gathering builders and supporters from around the world (including Founders Fund, Pantera, Franklin Templeton, alphaXiv, Fireworks, OpenRouter, etc.) to jointly address the reasoning capability gap in enterprise AI.

Why Retail Is Shifting From Crypto to Equities: Will They Return?
Retail traders are exiting the crypto market and gravitating towards equities. Bitcoin saw a notable reduction in spot…

Canton Crypto Network vs. XRP: Understanding DTCC’s Strategic Approach to Infrastructure and Liquidity
Key Takeaways Canton Network and XRP serve distinct roles in blockchain technology: Canton for asset tokenization and atomic…

Jack Dorsey’s Block to Cut 4,000 Jobs in AI-Driven Restructuring
Key Takeaways Block’s significant job cuts aim to streamline operations for AI-driven growth. The company’s stock surged over…

Axiom Crypto Uncovered: ZachXBT Reveals $400k Insider Trading
Key Takeaways Allegations of insider trading at Axiom Crypto involve approximately $400,000 and a complex scheme where employees…
The world belongs to Chinese people who speak English
The world is vast, and only playing half of it is truly a loss.
Why Stop at 126K? Michael Saylor Breaks Down BTC Stagnation and Retail Absence Truth
Bitcoin is digital capital, and I will spend a thousand hours explaining it to you. Eventually, you will understand, but you will still have to endure a 45% crash.
Virtuals Protocol's inaugural Titan project: ROBO aims to give a wallet to a robot
This is a key step in Virtuals expanding the Agent Economy into the Embodied AI and Robotics field.
Stablecoin Latest Report: Actual Distribution and Circulation Much More Notable Than Supply
The Truth about Stablecoin Circulation Speed, Concentration, and Structure After Doubling the Supply
Paradigm's New Arithmetic: When Crypto Can't Hold 12.7 Billion, AI Becomes the Answer
It took Paradigm three years to emerge from the ruins of FTX.
Wintermute Founder: In the Lost Cryptocurrency Market, What Can We Still Do?
This is more like a manifesto, discussing "the very reason we are here."