Base Founder Jesse Pollak Posts Recap: Focusing on Global Finance, 2026 Priorities Are Trading, Payments, and AI Agents

Base founder Jesse Pollak conducted an in-depth review of strategic mistakes over the past year. He frankly admitted that previously betting on the social sector (Farcaster, Zora, creator tokens, etc.) was the wrong direction. The comprehensive collapse of the social market had a significant negative impact on Base, causing it to lag behind competitors in key sectors such as perpetual contracts and prediction markets. Jesse stated that Base applications have been handed over to Coinbase, with @cobie taking over, while he himself is refocusing on building the chain itself and re-establishing the core direction—building Base into a global financial blockchain. He outlined three major strategic priorities for 2026: • Trading: Covering all asset classes including tokenized stocks, Meme coins, application tokens, etc. • Payments: Driving the adoption of stablecoins globally for individuals and enterprises. • AI Agents: Accelerating both of the above, as cryptocurrency is naturally suited for AI and computer-native currency needs.