AI, Networks, and What Makes Consumer Products Win

with @cdixon @illscience

Welcome to web3 with a16z crypto. Today’s episode digs into the forces shaping the next generation of consumer software — from AI-driven tools to the new economics of apps.

Joining is Chris Dixon, a16z crypto founder and managing partner and one of the firm’s original consumer investors. He sits down with a16z General Partner Anish Acharya to explore how exponential forces — like Moore’s Law, composability, and network effects — help determine which products ultimately win.

They talk about what it takes to build enduring consumer apps, how tools evolve into networks, and why niche communities like early crypto and open source movements can trigger massive technological shifts.

Topics covered:
- What exponential forces define tech progress
- Moore’s Law, composability, and network effects
- How tools evolve into networks
- The new economics of paid consumer software
- Investing in “movements” — from 3D printing to crypto
- What makes niche communities powerful
- AI as a platform shift and the “idea maze”
- Native vs skeuomorphic tech — and what’s next for AI interfaces
- The future of open-source AI and decentralization

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