Exclusive Interview with Aptos Foundation Head of Ecosystem Ash: "We don't want to build a closed ecosystem, but rather make Aptos an invisible infrastructure"

Q: This is your first time on our show, could you briefly introduce yourself?

Ash: Hello everyone, I'm Ash. I'm currently responsible for the ecosystem at Aptos Foundation, including liquidity, DeFi, partnerships, and grant projects. Simply put, my job is to set up the ecosystem chessboard properly.

Most of my previous work experience was in consumer internet expansion, including at YouTube and Spotify. Back then, we were always racking our brains thinking: how can we truly align the interests of creators and users? But there were always friction points. Until I encountered Web3, for the first time I felt: wow, the incentive mechanism can finally be aligned here. Whether you're a product developer or a content creator, you can stand on the same side as users. That's why I fell in love with Web3.

Q: DAT (Digital Asset Treasury companies) has been a hot topic in the market recently. What’s your take?

Ash: Let me give you a "fool's perspective." Actually, I think the more DATs, the better, because it forces everyone to think: what model is truly reasonable?

More importantly, DATs attract a completely new audience, whose perspectives are totally different from traditional users.

What I care about most is when the industry will reach a tipping point: when will project teams and foundations start to seriously serve these new users?

For us, it's still "early days." What we need to do is keep betting on the two tracks most likely to drive global GDP: crypto and AI. Don't forget, Aptos's technical DNA comes from Libra/Diem, and many of Meta's core engineers from back then are still on the team. That's why these developments make us especially excited about the future.

Q: What is Aptos's approach to RWA (Real World Asset Tokenization)?

Ash: In one sentence: the technology we've worked so hard on should truly match its ambition.

Back at Meta, our considerations were no joke. We were asking questions like, "Are we ready for trillions of dollars to flow between Instagram and WhatsApp?" So it's no surprise that Aptos can quickly attract institutional interest today.

We are now a completely open network. The next step is to truly bring these assets into DeFi and make them accessible to ordinary users. So we first fill in the basic pieces of the ecosystem, then bring in top partners like Aave and Chainlink to ensure the ecosystem is solid.

What we want to achieve is: Aptos is invisible, as long as "it works," nothing else matters. Let users feel a centralized experience, but with a decentralized foundation—that's the real direction.

Q: Many institutions are choosing Aptos. What do they value most?

Ash: Institutions are very cautious and conduct a lot of due diligence. Our advantages are:

• Team credibility: They knew us since the Meta era.
• Move language: This is a smart contract language developed by Meta to meet institutional-grade security requirements.
• Performance DNA: Designed from the start to support fund flows for billions of users.

Of course, this is also a challenge. Developers are used to EVM and will ask: "I already know EVM, why should I learn Move?" That's reality, but it's also our unique moat.

Q: What is Decibel, which you’ve been focusing on recently?

Ash: Decibel is an on-chain trading platform we are incubating together with Aptos Labs.

Its starting point is simple: if I tell a passerby on the streets of New York, "There are many money-making opportunities in crypto," their first reaction will definitely be: "Okay, so where do I go?"

Decibel aims to give them a single entry point, where they can choose according to their risk appetite in a familiar interface: high-risk derivatives? Passive income? All in one place.

More importantly, Decibel is not a single application, but a product stack. It's more like Jupiter on Solana—integrating multiple applications in the backend, with a smooth frontend experience. This way, it both drives ecosystem team growth and provides users with a seamless experience. Decibel plans to launch on mainnet in the next 6 months, so stay tuned.

Q: Will the new platform "collide" with existing DeFi applications?

Ash: On the contrary, I think this is an accelerator. If you're a smart team, you should seize the traffic and attention Decibel brings and make the most of the opportunity.

Decibel is not meant to replace all DEXs, but is a stacked architecture. Just like the relationship between Phantom and Jupiter: Phantom offers a great frontend experience, while Jupiter provides deep liquidity in the background. It's a win-win for everyone.

Q: Traditional financial giants are advancing tokenized ETFs. How will Aptos get involved?

Ash: We are very focused on the issuance of structured financial assets. But when it comes to selection criteria, we are more cautious: which ones have enough liquidity and adoption? Which can truly enter the mainstream ecosystem?

Another focus is customization. Large financial institutions don't want a "one-size-fits-all" chain—they want a highly customizable experience. We're designing something called Namespace, allowing them to build customized blockchains on Aptos.

The real trillion-dollar opportunity is to connect emerging and developed markets. For example, if a user in Nigeria can buy Tesla stock in one second and enjoy full shareholder rights, that's a huge upgrade for global capital markets.

Q: How big can the RWA market get in the future? Where is Aptos's 10X growth point?

Ash: I think in the next two or three years, the RWA market could reach several trillions of dollars. Aptos has two growth points:

• New demand entry points, such as DAT and Decibel.
• Brand new application layers, such as Shelby.

Shelby is our decentralized real-time cloud initiative, aiming to become a decentralized YouTube/Twitch, supporting the creator economy, AI training, and real-time content distribution.

Think about it: the internet advertising market will reach 1 trillion dollars by 2030, while on-chain trading annual revenue is only 4 billion dollars. The gap is huge. Shelby is the key to bridging that gap.

Q: Why is Shelby so critical?

Ash: The demand for computing power brought by AI is exploding. Oracle's stock price soared because of its partnership with OpenAI, which is the best example. The future cloud must be faster, cheaper, globally accessible, and verifiable.

Shelby is moving in this direction. It's not only the infrastructure for AI, but also the engine for the next generation of the creator economy. We want to bring everything happening on the internet today—including content, advertising, and entertainment—on-chain.

Q: Finally, how do you see the future of Aptos?

Ash: We are already a representative of third- and fourth-generation high-performance public chains, with a stable team, ample funding, and reliable infrastructure.

We won't just chase short-term hype, but will drive liquidity through product innovation like Decibel, open up content and AI markets with Shelby, and make Aptos the core infrastructure connecting finance, content, and AI.

I often joke: "Buy an apartment." That's my metaphor for Aptos—stable, durable, and worth holding for the long term.

Conclusion

From DAT to RWA, and then to Decibel and Shelby, Aptos's layout has already surpassed the simple narrative of a "high TPS public chain." Ash's style is straightforward and humorous, but the logic behind it is clear:

• Aptos aims to be more than just a chain, but invisible infrastructure;
• Product experience comes first, technology only serves the experience;
• Finance and AI are the most important opportunities of the next decade.

He summed it up with an interesting line: "Aptos will not disappear, we will always be here."

Note: This article is a concise Chinese version based on theoriginal English interview recording, with minor edits and merging of expressions without changing the original meaning.