Open Markets Podcast

BitKarrot has spent years building across Bitcoin, Lightning and Nostr, from LNbits integrations to HiveTalk and a long list of projects behind the scenes.

We get into how Nostr standards actually move, the realities of open-source funding, HiveTalk’s new paid relay model, L402 versus x402, AI-driven development, the responsibility to maintain what you build, and how open market operators might create sustainable businesses.

--- QUICK PROGRAMMING NOTE: Every guest brings a different conversation, and this one naturally ran long. Rather than rush the discussion, we skipped our usual V4V readout this week. To ev...

Eric and Sync are joined by Rev Hodl and Reed, the hosts and builders behind Local Bitcoiners, a podcast and growing community focused on finding, building, and strengthening local Bitcoin culture through meetups.

We begin with project updates and a follow-up to our conversation with Gzuuus about reliable group communication on Nostr. The group compares CORDN, Armada, 0xChat, Buzz, and other approaches, then explores what Nostr-native community tools still need: dependable notifications, native applications, portable identity, AI agents, and an experience that works without sacrificing the protocol’s open foundations.

From there, the conversation moves th...

Eric and Sync are joined by Gzuuus, an early Nostr builder whose work connects several important threads in open markets… from Plebeian Market and the Gamma Markets specification to ContextVM and now CORDN.

We begin with community updates, recent security incidents in the Bitcoin ecosystem, and a larger question: Is Nostr primarily a social network, or is its real potential as an open foundation for useful applications?

From there, Gzuuus takes us through his journey building on Nostr and the lessons connecting each project.

Topics include:

Eric F.J. and Sync are joined by guest Max Hillebrand to discuss the current state of decentralized marketplaces, the shipping problem, privacy technology, and the evolving ecosystem of Nostr-based e-commerce.

https://towardsliberty.com/

https://github.com/marmot-protocol

https://www.whitenoise.chat/

Project Updates:

https://nostrhub.io/

Shopstr Updates:

https://shopstr.store/

Conduit Updates:

https://conduit.market/

Aug 17–22, 2026 🏝️ Próspera, Roatán, Honduras

https://bitcoinvibe.camp/

Napplets:

https://napplet.run/

https://kehto.git...

Eric and Sync sit down with Thomas, the Amsterdam-based illustrator behind NoGood, for a conversation about Bitcoin art, Nostr, old hardware, open-source culture, physical media, and building a creative life outside the algorithm.

Thomas recently released NoGood Volume 1, a self-published book collecting five years of illustration work, sketches, process, and context around the world that shaped NoGood.

Topics:

Value for Value

We open with zaps, boosts, and streams from Cyphermunk House, NoGood, Mr. Bullish, Shadrach, Permanerd, and other friends of the show. Sync also explains why streaming sats through apps like...

Bitcoin in London, Madeira, and the Periphery

A short episode recorded at the Cyphermunk House in London, exploring what it means to “do Bitcoin” in a place like London and the wider UK, compared with more peripheral Bitcoin hubs such as Madeira.

We talk about the trade-offs between building in major financial and cultural centres versus smaller, more experimental communities. The conversation touches on local Bitcoin scenes, infrastructure, sovereignty, Nostr-native tools, and the different kinds of energy that emerge when builders gather in physical places.

People

Eric

npub10xvczstpwsljy7gqd2...

Featuring special guest Oshi, Nostr merchant, to discuss various technical updates in the Nostr and Bitcoin ecosystem, merchant experiences, and the philosophical underpinnings of decentralized commerce.

www.oshigood.us

Oshi: npub1uzt238htjzpq39dxmltlx60vxym9fetk9czz6kddq6fhvkf4z3usy9qtrh

Escrow Links:

https://github.com/Colabonate/nips/blob/colabonate-freedom-protocol/115.md

https://github.com/nostr-protocol/nips/pull/2323

A non-custodial Nostr marketplace:

https://switchboardgo.com/

Open Markets Podcast website:

https://openmarkets.pub

THE FULL MARKET PLACES LIST:

...

Open Markets Podcast | Episode 8: Born To Be Free

In this episode, Eric FJ and Sync are joined by Nadja and John, founders of Born To Be Free, the first merchant guests on the Open Markets podcast. Born To Be Free makes tallow-based, non-toxic skincare rooted in health, sovereignty, Bitcoin values, and regenerative sourcing.

The conversation covers what it means to be a merchant on Nostr today, how decentralized marketplaces can give businesses resilience beyond Shopify, Meta, and other centralized platforms, and why Bitcoiners are often some of the most intentional customers. Nadja and John also...

This episode features hosts Eric FJ and Sync, joined by Yo from Sovereign Engineering, to discuss recent updates in Nostr marketplace development, gamma markets call, the controversial topic of on-chain zaps, and the unique environment of Sovereign Engineering.

T-shirt Competition

https://primal.net/e/naddr1qvzqqqr4gupzp4stmtgrg684lry9kxcsmwthuvg2t2h6kvm4phadkd6g3vptljxhqqdx6atg94n8y6trw35k7m3dv3hhs7rfdenj6mn0wd68yxdpm38

https://sovereignengineering.io/

Ready for adventure? Sovereign Engineer Cohort 8

Experience, build, and alpha-test the future of self-sovereign technology in beautiful Madeira...

Next Gamma Markets Call May 19th !

Eric: npub10xvczstpwsljy7gqd2cselvrh5e6mlerep09m8gff87avru0ryqsg2g437

Sync: npub1equrmqway3qxw3dkssymusxkwgwrqypfgeqx0lx9pgjam7gnj4ysaqhkj6

Followup:

Open Markets Website:

https://openmarkets.pub

Nowhere:

https://hostednowhere.com

Alby 🐝:

https://getalby.com/blog/agentic-commerce-a-guide-to-l402-x402-and-mpp

Conduit Build

https://codex-market-identity-hydrat.conduit-market-coo.pages.dev/

Clave:

https://github.com/DocNR/clave

https://primal.net/e/nevent1qqsrm3afy4dzk53k9yzvyd3358ey65kasmmhzn9dah...

Last 2 weeks followup, discussing the FIPS project, a network designed to decentralize internet connectivity and enhance local community resilience.

Eric: npub10xvczstpwsljy7gqd2cselvrh5e6mlerep09m8gff87avru0ryqsg2g437

Sync: npub1equrmqway3qxw3dkssymusxkwgwrqypfgeqx0lx9pgjam7gnj4ysaqhkj6

Arjen: npub1hw6amg8p24ne08c9gdq8hhpqx0t0pwanpae9z25crn7m9uy7yarse465gr

Fips:

https://fips.network

https://learn.fips.network

Followup:

Open Markets Website:

https://openmarkets.pub

Milk Market Campaign:

https://invest...

In this episode of the Open Markets Podcast, Eric F.J. and Sync catch up on boosts, unpack the latest developments around Gamma Markets Call, and explore bringing fiat payments into Nostr Boutique’s decentralized commerce ecosystem.

🔗 Links

In this episode of the Open Markets Podcast, Eric FJ and Sync sit down with Calvadev — a true OG in the open markets movement — for a powerful conversation on decentralized commerce, freedom tech, and why Nostr could reshape the future of e-commerce.

https://invest.timestampfinancial.com/offering/shopstr/details

https://primal.net/p/nprofile1qqsdxm5qs0a8kdk6aejxew9nlx074g7cnedrjeggws0sq03p4s9khmq5n372u

https://primal.net/e/nevent1qqsrskxuk0dz77cv2c4kg5um75lnx9nq34hyw2nsy35jhny62pp65mchw0w9r

They kick things off...

Eric and Sync kick things off with some follow-up from the last episode, then get into a frustrating Amazon purchase gone wrong before diving into Sync’s latest experiment—vibe coding a Nostr-native shop experience. From there, the conversation expands into Nostr Boutique, a new kind of app built on Nostr, and eventually heads into a bigger question: what does it actually mean—legally and practically—to build on an open protocol like Nostr?

Links:

https://nostr.boutique

https://github.com/OpenMarketsFoundation/Agent-Skill

https://github.com/OpenMarketsFoundation/Gamma-Napp

Followup:

ht...

We kick things off with a few follow-ups from last episode—links to the Gamma Market repo, marketplaces building in the open, and a quick nod to TakeMySats. If you’re on Nostr, drop a comment and join the conversation.

Then we dive into the big idea: the Agentic Commerce Age.

As AI agents become the interface for buying and selling, two paths emerge:

We break down why Bitcoin and Nostr—as open protocols—offer a credible alternative to platform capture...

In this episode Eric FJ & Sync go over the goal of the podcast, the Nostr Gamma Markets commerce specification and the state of the current Nostr Commerce state of the network.