Source: Tako

On March 7, 2025, Tako hosted a flash interview with Teacher Du Jun @DujunX on the platform. The interview focused on Teacher Du Jun's donation initiative and his reflections on the industry and life.

This is the second time on Tako after the previous text flash interview with Vitalik that an OG in the industry has hosted a flash text interview. In the future, we will invite more OG figures in the industry who are committed to continuous development for interviews.

Donation and Investment

Q1

Mable: What aspect of the future world do you hope will be shaped/influenced by the projects you donate to?

Du Jun: In the short term, I hope to donate to some industry tool products with poor revenue but good usability. In the medium to long term, I hope that the projects I donate to fall into the following categories:

1. Financial fairness, such as cross-border remittances for third-world country migrant workers, allowing retail investors to purchase high-quality high-yield financial products from institutions, etc.

2. Research efficiency, such as decentralized academic publishing platforms to reduce journal subscription and publication fees.

3. Social governance, such as donations and knowledge bases based on blockchain technology to enhance transparency and credibility.

Q2

Mable: When it comes to donations, do you value the direction of the work or the team behind it more? Do you plan the amount of a donation, or do you go with the flow?

Du Jun: Generally, it's because I see the work first that I become interested in talking to the team, and then I see if the team's capabilities match the work. The work accounts for 70%, and the team accounts for 30%. At this stage, it's mainly going with the flow, so I'm recruiting an assistant specifically to help me screen donation projects. The person needs to have industry knowledge, passion, and, more importantly, empathy for entrepreneurs.

Q3

Mable: What impressed you about Chain_FM and Funes, the projects selected for the first and second stages of the donation plan?

Du Jun: The nature of donation and investment is different. Because the current funding for donations comes from me personally, it more reflects my personal subjective judgment and preferences.

The emphasis of these two projects is different: For the first project, ChainFM, I really like its product design—elegant, simple, lightweight. Its functionality is highly focused, and its growth approach also aligns well with the logic of communication, which makes me have a strong sense of identification with it.

As for the second project, Funes, I was deeply moved by the team's passion. From the history of world architecture development to the transitions of religion, divine right, and royal power, and then to the project's ambitious goal of modeling the whole world, the team has shown a broad knowledge base and deep passion. This idealistic pursuit touched me.

Q4

Mable: After completing the donation, how will you interact and stay in touch with the team? Will you chat with them regularly, or will they contact you when they need you?

Du Jun: Donation is just a pure donation, with no strings attached and no need for me to endorse the project. So, I usually do not proactively contact the team for communication. However, the team can always reach out to me proactively, whether for online communication or offline meetings; I am very welcoming of that. When I hear updates on their progress, I feel happy inside, thinking it's a pleasant connection.

Q5

Anon_tako: If ten years from now you find that 30% of your donation funds were used for a project completely contrary to your original intentions (such as a hype-driven NFT project), do you think this is more likely a case of "evolutionary loss of control" in the crypto world or a "idealist loophole" in your own screening mechanism?

Du Jun: Donation is about the present. How the donor uses this funding is not currently constrained. However, we will try our best to select teams with passion and dreams for donation.

Investment

Q1

Mable: You mentioned on Twitter that the only thing that can make you lose money in this cycle is ETH, and many community members are curious about your secondary market investment portfolio distribution.

Du Jun: Sometimes I feel this may be a kind of punishment, punishing me for not seriously listening to Vitalik talk about his dream back then, and not investing in Ethereum, so now I always think about increasing my holdings—of course, this is just a joke. Currently, Ethereum accounts for about 10% of my portfolio, but my holdings have no reference value because I basically don't trade much and haven't made much money through trading.

Q2

Mable: Apart from the $1 million donation, you also mentioned that you hope to invest $100 million this year. Currently, the market doesn't actually have that many worthwhile investment opportunities, so do you think it will be challenging to deploy the $100 million?

You previously mentioned having observed later rounds of Open AI; will this $100 million be allocated to projects outside of Web3?

Du Jun: The overall size of the crypto industry is relatively small, with the Asian market being even smaller. In the primary market, we expect to be able to invest around $30 million annually. For the remaining $80 million, we plan to purchase some tokens with long-term value that are in a lock-up period through the primary-semi market this year. Additionally, we are also looking at AI projects in the Web2 space to further expand our investment portfolio.

Q3

Anon_tako: I entered the space as a newcomer because of Trump's coin issuance, and seeing others making money, I followed the trend. However, as soon as I entered, I encountered a major setback. Now I am confused; I have tried everything from contracts to spot trading to yield farming. Now, I came to Tako to see what some veterans are doing. Du, as a newcomer without any guidance and having been deceived several times, how can newbies be retained in the space? Web3 is like a dark forest, very challenging to navigate.

Du Jun: From the moment you left the campus, everywhere is a dark forest, especially Web3. The only competitive edge is learning and adaptability—quickly learn from lessons and adjust strategies. Play less or simply avoid contracts; the risk is too high. Do not hold meme coins overnight; quick in and out without lingering in battle. Read more institutional research reports to fill gaps with a professional perspective. In terms of fund allocation, try 80% long-termism, investing in assets with fundamental support, enduring through cycles; take 20% to speculate, seize short-term opportunities but avoid greed.

Personal and Industry Reflection

Q1

Mable: In your life, what values do you care about the most?

Du Jun: In this world, the values I probably care about the most are authenticity and curiosity.

Authenticity is crucial because only based on facts and reason can meaningful conversations and solutions be built. I chat with many people, but if they are not authentic, I usually quickly end the conversation and cease further communication. Curiosity, on the other hand, is the driving force behind discovery and growth. I hope that through our efforts, the industry and the world will become better and better.

Q2

Anon_tako: How do you view the previous report on you titled "The Mastermind Du Jun"? Now, many years have passed, looking back on this incident, what would you like to say? In a recent statement you made on Platform X, you said, "It's not a bear market right now, it's just sending garbage back to the trash can." Do you think you've ever invested in garbage, and what have you learned?

Du Jun: Regarding the report titled "The Mastermind Du Jun," to be honest, when I first saw it back then, I felt quite helpless. At that time, the industry was still in its early stages, and people's understanding of blockchain and cryptocurrency was limited. Media outlets inevitably used sensational headlines to attract attention. Looking back now, I feel that article was more a reflection of the times rather than a complete picture of myself. After all these years, I prefer to focus my energy on doing things, such as investing and driving industry development, rather than getting caught up in past labels. People always need to move forward, right? If I must say something, perhaps it would be gratitude for that experience, which made me clearer about my direction and taught me how to stay focused amidst the noise.

Recently, I said on Platform X, "It's not a bear market right now, it's just sending garbage back to the trash can," mainly to express that the market is actually self-correcting by filtering out things of no value. As for whether I have invested in 'garbage' myself, haha, I've invested in too many projects that seemed very lively but later didn't deliver, all ending in tears. Not only did I lose money, but I also took the blame. The lesson learned is that one's vision needs to be more long-term, not just focusing on short-term hype, but looking at the team, the technology, and the ability to actually deliver results. Now, I prefer to invest in projects that can truly solve problems and create value, not chasing trends but focusing on the essence.

Q3

Anon_tako: Have you ever thought about leaving the industry? If one day an event in web3 made you consider leaving this community, what event do you think would most likely lead to that?

Du Jun: To be honest, the thought of leaving the industry has crossed my mind several times. Starting from buying Bitcoin in 2012, after more than ten years of ups and downs, my mindset has become as resilient as the BTC hash. During the lows, such as the 2018 bear market or the 2020 platform heavy regulation, the pressure was so great that I wanted to take a break. But to truly exit, it would have to be a scenario where Web3 devolves into a "zero-sum game" — innovation stagnates, only hype and money-grabbing remain, and trust collapses. I might consider leaving then. However, as long as the potential of decentralization remains, as long as someone is earnestly working on it, I won't leave. Perhaps when I'm old and can't contribute much, then I might exit.

Q4

Anon_tako: Hello, as a veteran of the industry, what contributions do you think you have made to the industry over the years? If possible, please give your top 3 most satisfactory examples.

Du Jun: Having worked in the industry for 13 years, I feel that what I have gained is far greater than what I have contributed. This is also what drives me to continue donating, investing, and starting businesses in the industry. If I have to talk about contribution, it might be during my time as CMO in the early days of Huobi when, through promotion and education, I made millions of Chinese users aware of Bitcoin and encouraged them to start buying. I consider this a small contribution to the industry.

Q5

Community Named Question: How to establish long-termism in web3/crypto and invest and support accordingly? As we approach an industry inflection point, what are the urgent issues we need to address?

Du Jun: This discussion is very meaningful. The biggest issue in the current Crypto industry is the lack of value consensus. As an early industry, it has not yet formed a mature valuation system, and prices often reflect market sentiment rather than intrinsic value. Gold and bubbles coexist, junk projects can also temporarily dominate, but I firmly believe that garbage will eventually return to the garbage heap, and bubbles will inevitably burst.

Therefore, as leading players in the industry, exchanges and top-tier investment institutions should abandon the speculative mindset of "price equals product," promote value investment, guide the industry towards maturity, rather than fueling bubbles and short-term speculation. This is also why I am internally averse to "tap to earn" and meme coins. I even feel that the current internal assessment criteria for coin listings on exchanges—measured by the number of trading users brought in by the new coin—have serious issues. This standard not only fails to promote the healthy development of the industry but may instead lead the industry into the abyss, amplify speculative bubbles, and weaken long-term value.

Q6

Mable: What drives you to continue being active in the industry across so many cycles and supporting projects in various ways?

Du Jun: Since participating in the founding of Huobi in 2013, over the past decade, my team and I have been promoting the value of Bitcoin and blockchain to the public. Even today, mainstream society and media have not eliminated their biases and doubts about our industry, so I hope that by investing in some blockchain companies that can create industry and social value, more people can understand the potential of its decentralized trust mechanism, allowing technology to transition from abstraction to practical use, and from a speculative label to an engine of social progress. Blockchain can do more than create coins, speculate, or run exchanges; it is a global innovation in trust and efficiency, allowing blockchain technology to truly serve society.

Q7

Mable: Generally, focusing on a specific direction makes it easier to succeed. Do you ever feel that your focus is somewhat scattered right now?

Judun Du: Generally speaking, focusing on a specific direction does make success easier. However, I do not feel that my energy is scattered. Although I am involved in multiple things, the core is always the blockchain industry, focusing on driving technology adoption, ecosystem development, and value creation, rather than unrelated fields.

As for how to manage multiple businesses, my personal approach can be summarized in three points: clear direction, finding the right talent, and mastering the pace. Once these issues are resolved, efficiency naturally increases. I spend most of my time on these three things, with finding the right people being particularly crucial.

Furthermore, I use AI extensively. Many of my current tasks are delegated to AI for processing, leading to significant improvements in efficiency and results.

Q8

Anon_tako: Among the failed projects you have seen, what is the most staggering move towards self-destruction?

Judun Du: I have not been shocked yet, and I hope I will not be in the future.

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