Inside the race to rebuild blockchain before transparency becomes a liability.

Crypto was supposed to protect users. Instead, it may have accidentally exposed them.

In this episode of The Privacy Podcast, host Ben Schiller sits down with Azeem Khan and Bobbin Threadbare, co-founders of Miden, to unpack a hard truth: most blockchains today are not private, and that’s a massive problem.

What many users believe is anonymous is anything but. And as AI rapidly advances, the illusion of privacy is collapsing even faster.

“In the next two years… you type in someone’s address and get their full history.”

This conversation explores why privacy isn’t just a feature upgrade, it’s a requirement for survival and how Miden is building a new generation of blockchain designed to fix it.

Why This Matters

Right now, every transaction on most blockchains is permanently visible. That means your salary, your spending habits, your assets, all exposed. And the consequences are already showing up. From targeted attacks to real-world safety risks, transparency at this level isn’t empowering, it’s dangerous.

“Transparent blockchains are almost perfect surveillance tools.”

Azeem and Bobbin make it clear: if privacy solutions don’t scale quickly, the industry risks undermining its own foundation.

What We Cover

Why most blockchains today are fundamentally not private
How AI is accelerating the collapse of pseudo-anonymity
The real-world risks of exposing financial data on-chain
What makes Miden a third-generation blockchain
How zero-knowledge proofs unlock privacy + scalability
Why computation is moving client-side instead of on-chain
The trade-offs between decentralization, privacy, and security
Why launching centralized first may actually be safer
The future of blockchain: from finance to healthcare and beyond

Privacy is existential for crypto, and without it, adoption will stall or potentially fail. What many consider anonymity today is largely an illusion, as AI is rapidly making deanonymization cheap and nearly instantaneous. At the same time, full transparency introduces real risks, exposing users to surveillance and even physical harm. Zero-knowledge technology offers a path forward by enabling privacy without sacrificing trust, and the next generation of blockchains is already being built with these principles at its core.

The Bottom Line

Crypto promised a better system. But without privacy, it may recreate something worse.

Azeem and Bobbin aren’t just building another blockchain, they’re building infrastructure for a future where users don’t have to choose between transparency and safety.

Because the next phase of this industry won’t be defined by speed or scale…

It will be defined by whether users can exist without being exposed.

🔗 About the 👤 Guest

Azeem Khan

LinkedIn:
https://www.linkedin.com/in/azeemkhan
X (Twitter):
https://x.com/azeemkhan

Bobbin Threadbare

X (Twitter):
https://x.com/bobbinth

🌐 Miden
Website:
miden.xyz

About the Show

The Privacy Podcast by Miden explores the intersection of privacy, identity, and emerging technologies. Hosted by Ben Schiller, the show brings together builders, regulators, and thinkers shaping what comes next in a world where data is power.