Forbes Argentina: Gavin Wood in Buenos Aires: Crypto, Freedom, Milei and the Challenges of Artificial Intelligence
November 27th, 2025
Visiting the country, Gavin Wood, one of the most prominent crypto figures today, analysed the direction of the sector, Milei’s ideas and the challenges posed by AI.
Gavin James Wood, one of the most influential names in the global crypto ecosystem, set foot in Buenos Aires as part of Devconnect, the event that brought together the leading developers of Ethereum and Web3. Wood is not merely a foundational figure in the sector: beyond co-founding Ethereum alongside Vitalik Buterin, he is the creator of Polkadot and founder of Parity Technologies, two technological pillars seeking to reimagine the digital infrastructure of modern societies.
In that context, Wood granted an exclusive interview to Forbes Argentina, where he spoke about the “second era” of Polkadot, digital sovereignty, the role of artificial intelligence and freedom, his perspective on Argentina under the new political climate, and the future of decentralised networks. What follows is the full conversation.
Gavin Wood, co-founder of Ethereum and Polkadot, spoke about the current state of the industry.
You have just announced what you define as a “second era” of Polkadot. What does that mean and what is the next step for the project? It is very simple. We spent around nine or ten years conceiving, developing, implementing and iterating Polkadot. The original idea emerged at the end of 2016. The reason we launched the project was to deliver core technology, the lowest level of a platform capable of enabling information-age societies. In the beginning we relied on third parties to build infrastructure and products because at Parity we were very busy developing the base technology. Now that is much less the case, and we can focus on the platform, the infrastructure (name services, portals, apps) and on products. That is what I call the second era of Polkadot: realising the potential that remains undeveloped.
What kind of products do you believe users need today? Ultimately we are talking about the sovereign individual, someone who wants to live on their own terms. Reasonable, sensible people, but tired of a “one-size-fits-all” social contract that is ambiguous and poorly enforced. They are looking to reclaim sovereignty at sensible levels. The tools and code we are creating are the foundation for that. We do not judge: it is up to people to use the tools however they wish.
When you speak of freedom, are you referring to economic freedom, identity, social networks? All of them? There is sovereignty that is officially ours, legally ours, but not in practice. The ability to function economically is a human right. Yet banks exclude people without reasonable cause. Society requires banking access for basic needs, but the nation-state does not guarantee that. Until it does, I suggest people turn to alternatives such as Bitcoin, which removes intermediaries that no longer serve the individual. Money is just one example: we depend on the state, banks and corporations for many things administered by structures that do not always concern themselves with serving each person.
How do you see the situation in Argentina, especially with a president like Javier Milei who speaks of economic and individual freedom? I read something over the past year and I understand the general direction of the country. I even read a lengthy interview with the current president. Many things strike me as sensible. I believe people need more freedom to prosper and that the traditional social contract of the nation-state is broken. To the extent that Argentina can limit it to the essentials, security and keeping external threats at bay, that is a positive thing. Everything else should be the facilitation of information and comprehensible basic rules. I also believe in voluntary social contracts, such as communities or ecosystems where one chooses to participate, like Polkadot. I see Argentina as an interesting example where a reduced social contract would allow other optional social contracts to occupy a greater space.
Another world leader who backs crypto is Donald Trump. What is your opinion of him and what is happening in the United States? I rarely offer strong opinions on people I have met, so I will refrain from doing so. But I can say that I have not seen an American president who has truly impressed me. All of them have led the country towards greater uncertainty, regulation and ambiguity. Some say Trump is arbitrary and chaotic, but the country was already arbitrary and ambiguous before him. I am not certain he is causing as much damage as people suggest.
Who is Gavin Wood?
Gavin Wood is one of the fundamental architects of the Web3 ecosystem. Known for co-founding Ethereum, where he wrote the Yellow Paper, created the Ethereum Virtual Machine, and developed Solidity, the language that made smart contracts possible, Wood subsequently drove key projects such as Polkadot and Kusama, as well as founding Parity Technologies. His combination of mathematical rigour, philosophical vision regarding digital sovereignty and obsession with decentralisation made him a global reference point for the new internet infrastructure. As of April 2025, his estimated net worth ranges between USD 400 million and USD 900 million, derived primarily from his holdings in DOT, KSM and his stake in Parity.
Born in 1980 in Lancaster, England, Wood studied Computer Science at the University of York, where he obtained a master’s degree and a doctorate in formal verification and programming language theory, academic foundations that defined his contribution to the secure development of blockchains. Before entering the crypto world, he worked as a research scientist and software consultant. Following his departure from Ethereum, he proposed Polkadot as a scalable, interoperable multichain system and launched Kusama as its “canary network” for rapid innovation. Today he remains one of the most influential thinkers in the sector, focused on on-chain governance, cross-chain messaging (XCM) and the evolution of decentralised infrastructure.
How do you think Artificial Intelligence will affect our freedom? AI is a curious technology. I have contact with it, for instance in music software that allows one to separate tracks and do things that were previously impossible. But it can also be used by unscrupulous individuals, greedy CEOs or actors who prioritise money over social good. Like nuclear weapons: the cat is already out of the bag and we have to deal with that. My warning is that people be mindful of what they surrender: their identity, their intentions, their personality. Many services conceal what they are capable of behind endless legal agreements that nobody reads. If you surrender your curiosity, your intelligence and your capacity to judge the world for yourself, you also surrender your prosperity.
To close: how do you imagine the future of Polkadot over the next 5 to 10 years? Polkadot will be the platform through which you interact with your friends, your family, your communities and society at large. That is where we are headed. We want you to do it with joy. Only nature itself could prevent it.
Source: Forbes Argentina