Show notes
I sat down with Mehow, founder of American Fortress, right here in Miami during Consensus week, and this conversation genuinely blew my mind. Michal has been a hacker since age 15 and has spent four and a half years and 13 patents building something the crypto industry has never had before — a universal identity and privacy protocol that makes sending crypto as simple as typing a name. We go deep on why crypto addresses are still the root cause of most theft and fraud, how stealth addresses and zero-knowledge proofs work together to give you PayPal-style usability without sacrificing privacy, why institutions like Brinks are already on board, and what wrench attacks and kidnappings in France have to do with on-chain transparency. We also talk quantum computing, the confidentiality machine, and why perseverance is the only real entrepreneurial lesson that matters. This one is packed.--- CONNECT ---Website: https://americanfortress.io Twitter/X: https://x.com/Americanfort_io Web3 with Sam Kamani: https://www.web3pod.xyz --- KEY POINTS WITH TIMESTAMPS ---• [00:01:32] Michal shares his background as a hacker since age 15 and what drove him to build American Fortress• [00:03:14] The core problem: crypto addresses are confusing and exploitable, leading to rampant theft and fraud• [00:06:09] User journey walkthrough — how Fortress Knok lets you send crypto by name, like PayPal, with no address interaction• [00:08:00] How stealth addresses work and why only sender and recipient ever know where funds went• [00:09:00] Zero-knowledge proofs running through encrypted chat to confirm sender identity and defeat address poisoning• [00:10:00] How cryptographic KYC via Sumsub is tied directly to transactions, the first protocol to do this• [00:14:00] Why on-chain transparency is a physical safety risk, kidnappings in France and the Ledger executive story• [00:15:44] The confidentiality machine, one button to hide your balance while still proving your identity to the recipient• [00:17:39] Quantum resistance built in automatically when you use the privacy shield, with no extra steps for the user• [00:26:15] MetaMask integration as a Snap, you don't need the American Fortress wallet to use Fortress names• [00:29:00] Four and a half years of grinding on $9 million raised, 15 engineers, launching on 12 chains simultaneously• [00:34:10] What's next, Austin office, token launch in 4–6 weeks, Brinks as a customer, and a potential Series ADisclaimer:Nothing mentioned in this podcast is investment advice and please do your own research. It would mean a lot if you can leave a review of this podcast on Apple Podcasts or Spotify and share this podcast with a friend. Be a guest on the podcast or contact us - https://www.web3pod.xyz/
