Variant's Jesse Walden on why the crypto VC now invests in 'autonomy', not automation

On USV's Slow Hunch podcast, shared by Fred Wilson, Variant founder and managing partner Jesse Walden explains the thesis behind Variant 4, the $222 million early-stage fund announced in June: the firm has widened its founding focus on digital ownership into 'autonomy', meaning technology that gives users more agency. He contrasts autonomy with automation, citing TikTok's algorithm as automation that strips users of agency, and argues AI agents could deliver the composability crypto promised, because services whose APIs are not open to agents risk becoming invisible. Variant's portfolio includes Uniswap, Morpho, Phantom and agent-memory startup Honcho.