Building Mantra and Returning to Development Principles w/ Kgothatso Ngako
In this episode, Frank sits down with Kgothatso Ngako (KG), founder of Machankura, Exonomia, and now Mantra — a tool that can be used to translate Bitcoin texts.
In the first part of the discussion — which is for the more technical-minded out there — KG provides an overview of how Mantra works, who it's for and why he employed tech like Nostr, Frost, and the Marmot Protocol in its design. He also shares how his work on Mantra will ultimately inform upcoming development for Machankura.
In the latter half of the interview, Frank and KG discussion what it's been like to stay alive during this era of Bitcoin-related tech vulnerability exploits, why it's important to keep building despite setbacks, and how everything is essentially open-source now, which means that almost all software is susceptible to hacks.
In listening, we think you'll see what we see in KG in that he's one of the most creative and thoughtful developers in the Bitcoin and freedom tech space.
Enjoy!
Timestamps:
0:00 Highlight
0:20 A Word from Frank
3:39 Introduction
5:58 Building Exonomia and Mantra
18:35 Who Mantra Is for
20:14 How Mantra Works
37:18 Why KG Created Mantra
45:24 Why KG Used Nostr for Mantra
49:01 Who Exonomia Has Reached
53:20 Open-sourcing Translation
55:17 Mantra as an Experimental Project
1:00:11 How Proposed South African Bitcoin Regulations Affect Machankura
1:04:34 How Mantra Informs Machankura
1:06:57 Surviving This Era of Bitcoin Software Hacks
1:13:35 We're Not Going Anywhere
1:15:34 A Return to Principles
1:21:30 Taking a Step Back
1:23:35 Everything Is Open-source / Reverse Engineering
1:30:04 Social Engineering
1:31:55 Final Thoughts
bitcoin #africa #translation #language #nostr #southafrica #machankura #opensource #zulu #xhosa #sotho #swazi #lightning #lightningnetwork #mantra #money #developer #developers #developerlife #principles #engineering
4 Sept 2026
Bitcoin as a Catalyst for a New Kenya w/ Robert Kirubi
On this episode of new renaissance capital, Frank sits down with TALO Africa Chairman and Kenyan Bitcoin advocate Robert Kirubi to discuss the work that is still to be done to get Kenya, its government, and its businesses to embrace Bitcoin.
Frank and Robert touch on the many incredible Bitcoin programs and initiatives that already exist in Kenya — including Gridless, Bitcoin Dada, Afribit Kibera — and how, in the wake of Kenya's National Treasury gazetting Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASP) regulations, the country is now primed for broader adoption.
They also discuss how Bitcoin mining can catalyze infrastructure development in Kenya and how much work still needs to be done behind the scenes for bigger businesses and institutions in Kenya to begin utilizing Bitcoin.
With people like Robert working behind the scenes to facilitate greater Bitcoin adoption in Kenya — which has already established itself as a 'Bitcoin country' — one can only believe that the future for Kenya is bright.
Follow Robert on X: https://x.com/rkirubi (https://x.com/rkirubi)
Follow Robert on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-kirubi-222b801/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/robert-kirubi-222b801/)
Follow Frank on X: https://x.com/frankcorva (https://x.com/frankcorva)
Follow Frank on Nostr: https://primal.net/frank (https://primal.net/frank)
Follow Frank on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frank-corva/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/frank-corva/)
Follow new renaissance capital on X: https://x.com/newrencap (https://x.com/newrencap)
Follow new renaissance capital on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/newrenaissancecapital/ (https://www.instagram.com/newrenaissancecapital/)
Timestamps:
0:00 Highlight
0:34 Introduction
3:02 VASP Regulation in Kenya
10:10 Did M-Pesa Prime Kenyans for Bitcoin?
12:02 The Afribit Kibera Impact
18:12 How Bitcoin Mining Catalyzes Infrastructure Development
27:45 How Everyday People Benefit from Bitcoin
31:40 Coordinating for Broader Bitcoin Adoption among Kenyan Businesses
36:14 Bitcoin Mining and Infrastructure
41:59 Reducing Dependence on Loans from Abroad
46:57 A Deeper Understanding of Bitcoin Is Still Necessary
bitcoin #btc #bitcoinmining #kenya #africa #eastafrica #money #finance #economics #empowerment #education #opportunity
21 Aug 2026
The Fight Against Chat Control in the EU w/ Lyudmyla Kozlovska
On this episode, Frank sites down with Lyudmyla Kozlovska, president of the Open Dialogue Foundation, to discuss why Chat Control must be stopped in the EU and how to stop it. Kozlovska watched up close last month as the European Parliament pushed Chat Control 1.0 through via a last-minute vote, and now she's determined to stop something like this from happening again with the Chat Control 2.0 vote, which is scheduled for next month. That said, she can't stop Chat Control 2.0 on her own. She needs your help! In this conversation, Lyudmyla lays out what's at stake with chat control (as well as with current financial repression measures and AI data sharing practices), and shares ways that you can help in this fight. Please listen and then act. Below are the resources she mentions in the video:
Follow Lyudmyla on Social Media:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lyudakozlovska/ (https://www.linkedin.com/in/lyudakozlovska/)
X: https://x.com/LyudaKozlovska (https://x.com/LyudaKozlovska)
Nostr: npub13ajk3hhvqys2ev4y68jwxywgs8fsdsuk4y5gkzs874jdyrccvf5qak2yd9
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lyudmylakozlovska/ (https://www.instagram.com/lyudmylakozlovska/)
Fight Chat Control: https://fightchatcontrol.eu/ (https://fightchatcontrol.eu/)
Donate to the Open Dialogue Foundation: https://en.odfoundation.eu/how-can-you-help/ (https://en.odfoundation.eu/how-can-you-help/)
The Rise of Transnational Financial Repression Report: https://www.thefreedomfrequency.org/p/the-rise-of-transnational-financial (https://www.thefreedomfrequency.org/p/the-rise-of-transnational-financial)
Timestamps:
0:00 Highlight
0:39 Introduction
4:18 Chat Control 1.0
9:50 Chat Control 2.0
15:45 How Chat Control 1.0 Was Pushed Through
20:13 The Vote for Chat Control 2.0 in September
24:23 What You Can Do to Help
28:18 Transnational Financial Repression Report
36:45 The FATF
42:48 AI and Property Rights
50:53 Making Sure the Good Guys Have access to Frontier AI Models
55:36 Final Thoughts / Call to Action
privacy #data #surveillance #chatcontrol #eu #europeanunion #europeanparliament #advocacy #policy #politics #regulation #money #finance #nostr #signal #freedomtech #freedom #repression #financialfreedom #transnationalrepression #nationalsecurity #bitcoin #research
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Apple Podcasts (US)
4.9 / 5
11 ratings
Spotify
5.0 / 5
10 ratings
Contact new renaissance capital w/ frank corva
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