Welcome to Beyond the Code, the podcast where we dive into the legal, regulatory, and ethical issues surrounding emerging technologies. Each week, we bring you in-depth conversations with industry experts, discussing the latest advancements in technology and their implications on society and the legal system. From artificial intelligence to blockchain, we'll be exploring all the hot topics in the field. Your host, Yitzy Hammer, a lawyer and tech enthusiast, is joined by a diverse group of experts, providing valuable insight into the complex and ever-evolving world of technology.
Listen to episodes
60 recent
June 11, 2026Episode 10317 min
CS6: Mike Bacina (NXT Law) on Why Boutique Law Firms Are Winning the AI Race & Our First-Ever Sponsor
A milestone episode, recorded live at Consensus Miami 2026: after three years, Beyond the Code has its first sponsor — and there's a good story behind why it's FirstRead. Yitzy is joined by returning guest Mike Bacina, now a partner at NXT Law leading the firm out of Cayman, to talk about how boutique firms are gaining a real edge with AI, why the billable hour quietly works against adoption at big firms, and why "AI will take your job" is the same fear lawyers have had about every technology before it.Sponsored by FirstRead — AI-powered contract help for lawyers. 10% off with code BYNDTHECODE10: https://first-read.com/signup?ref=BEYOND2026
June 9, 2026Episode 10239 min
E102: From Celsius Crash to Crypto Compliance: Snir Levi on Building Nominis
Snir Levi is the founder and CEO of Nominis — a crypto compliance and blockchain intelligence platform. Before building Nominis, Snir was inside Celsius Network during its rise and sudden collapse, working in the security department with no warning of what was coming.In this episode, Snir walks us through what it was actually like when Celsius froze withdrawals, how he turned that experience into a company, and what Nominis is uncovering today — including IRGC activity, sanction evasion through crypto, and why tracking inflows and outflows to Iran is the wrong way to look at the problem entirely.We also get into the future of stablecoins, the slow death of the token economy, and where AI is reshaping compliance workflows.🔗 Try Nominis: https://www.nominis.io/ — use code DLTLAW5 for 5% off.🔒 Sponsored by FirstRead — AI-powered legal contract review.Try free at https://first-read.com/signup?ref=BEYOND2026 | Code BYNDTHECODE10 for 10% off.
June 8, 2026Episode 10122 min
CS5: Sam & Sarah (Swivul) — Mariah Carey, a Token Dump, and Building the Travel Platform for Web3 | Consensus Miami 2026
Sam Krichevsky and Sarah Figueroa are married, co-founders, and some of the most fun people I've met in this space. We sat down at Coindesk's Consensus Miami 2026 to talk about their whole journey - from Sarah mining Ethereum in 2017 and founding GeoJam (a social music platform whose biggest investor was Mariah Carey) to watching it collapse after a single exchange dumped over 10% of their token supply in one night.Now they're building Swivul - an all-in-one travel and entertainment booking platform built specifically for the Web3 and crypto industry. One-click checkout, crypto payments, concierge service, and, crucially, tools to actually measure the ROI on your travel and entertainment spend. Travel and entertainment is your second-largest controllable expense on a P&L, and almost nobody tracks it.We also get into what it's really like to build a company with your spouse. Honest, funny, and worth hearing if you're considering it.This episode is brought to you by FirstRead, the AI-powered legal contract assistant. Use code BYNDTHECODE10 for 10% off at https://first-read.com/signup?ref=BEYOND2026
June 4, 2026Episode 10014 min
CS4: Shiba Inu Co-Founder Russ Davis on Meme Coins, Vitalik & What's Next
Live from Consensus 2026 in Miami, we're joined by Russ Davis - "In Russ We Trust" - one of the co-founders of Shiba Inu, the meme coin that changed everything.Russ tells the full story: from passing on Doge in 2016 (a decision that would've been worth $15 million), to taking over Shiba's marketing in February 2021 when it was stuck at a $2M market cap, to watching it explode to $40 billion in eight months.This episode is sponsored by FirstRead — the AI-powered legal assistant that reads, marks up, and chats through contracts right inside your Word document. If you're a founder, builder, or anyone dealing with legal agreements, FirstRead is a game-changer.🔗 https://first-read.com/signup?ref=BEYOND2026Use code BYNDTHECODE10 at signup for 10% off.In this episode, we cover:- The exact post that started it all and why $100 turned into $2M- Why most of his friends sold at $5,000 and kicked themselves in October- Shiba Physicals — NFC-chipped collectibles and the post-NFT pivot- The DeLorean partnership and what's dropping in Q2- How meme coin communities actually work (and how Shiba avoided becoming a dumpster fire)- Hopium: the Clarity Act, TradFi adoption, and the path back up
June 3, 2026Episode 9912 min
CS3: Crypto Law & Lessons Learned: Jacqueline Cooper on Bitcoin Mining Hacks, Legal Education & Digital Estate Planning
Live from Consensus 2026 in Miami, we're joined by Jacqueline Cooper , also known as CryptoMom2 (we already had CryptoMom No. 1 on this show) ,— partner at Cogent Law Group, co-founder of the Blockchain Legal Institute, and a 10-year veteran of the blockchain space.Jacqueline shares her unexpected origin story (a chance encounter in Scotland), what it felt like to lose two years of Bitcoin mining rewards to a company collapse, and why she built a centralized library of legal resources for the decentralized world.We also get into something most crypto holders ignore: what happens to your digital assets when you die? If your wallet access is biometric-only — and you're gone — your family may never touch that generational wealth.This episode is sponsored by FirstRead — the AI-powered legal assistant that reads, marks up, and chats through contracts right inside your Word document. If you're a founder, builder, or anyone dealing with legal agreements, FirstRead is a game-changer.🔗 https://first-read.com/signup?ref=BEY... and use code BYNDTHECODE10 at signup for 10% off.In this episode, we covered:- The difference between knowing enough and knowing too much as a client- Why the Blockchain Legal Institute exists and who it's actually for- How blockchain is being used by FedEx, McCormick, and global supply chains- The TradFi/crypto convergence and payment rail risks- Not your keys, not your crypto — a firsthand story- Digital estate planning: wills, cold wallets, and backup accessFind the Blockchain Legal Institute at: https://bli.tools/
May 25, 2026Episode 981 hr 14 min
E98: After 25 Years Fighting Crime at the MET, Jonathan Benton is Recovering Your Stolen Crypto
Jonathan Benton spent 25 years at London's Metropolitan Police - running undercover operations straight out of "The Wire," investigating homicide and counterterrorism, and ultimately leading international corruption cases that took down politicians laundering hundreds of millions through London.In one of his biggest cases, his Nigerian counterpart was taken to a basement and offered $18 million in cash to shut the investigation down.After leaving the Met, Jonathan advised George Clooney and Brad Pitt's NGO The Sentry on war crimes investigations in South Sudan and the DRC. He now runs iSanctuary, a company pioneering a remarkable legal-tech innovation: serving court orders directly onto the blockchain to freeze and recover stolen crypto.We talk Met Police war stories, the reality of fraud in modern London, how on-chain investigations actually work, and what victims of crypto scams can do today.Learn more: isanctuary.ioThis episode is sponsored by FirstRead — the AI-powered legal assistant that reads, marks up, and chats through contracts right inside your Word document. If you're a founder, builder, or anyone dealing with legal agreements, FirstRead is a game-changer.🔗 https://first-read.com/signup?ref=BEY... and use code BYNDTHECODE10 at signup for 10% off.
May 20, 2026Episode 9615 min
CS2: Karen Knox on Converting to Judaism, Living in Israel & Insuring Crypto
Recorded live at Consensus Miami 2026, I sat down with Karen Knox, digital assets insurance specialist at Howden, for one of the most unexpected origin stories I've heard on this show. From Andy Griffith's hometown in North Carolina, to converting to Judaism, raising her daughter in Tel Aviv, and becoming one of the go-to names in crypto insurance — Karen's path is anything but straight.This episode is sponsored by FirstRead — the AI-powered legal assistant that reads, marks up, and chats through contracts right inside your Word document. If you're a founder, builder, or anyone dealing with legal agreements, FirstRead is a game-changer.🔗 Try FirstRead here and use code BYNDTHECODE10 at signup for 10% off.
May 19, 2026Episode 9953 min
E95: Delphine Forma on Crypto Compliance, DeFi Regulation & Why Degens Need to Grow Up
I sat down with Delphine Forma — Head of Policy Europe at Solidus Labs, founder of the largest crypto compliance Telegram group in existence, and one of the most well-traveled compliance professionals in the space. From Sciences Po in France, to finding loopholes in French tax law, to moving to Tokyo for a guy who dumped her three months later — this one is a ride.This episode is sponsored by FirstRead — the AI-powered legal assistant that reads, marks up, and chats through contracts right inside your Word document. If you're a founder, builder, or anyone dealing with legal agreements, FirstRead is a game-changer.🔗 Try FirstRead here and use code BYNDTHECODE10 at signup for 10% off.
May 18, 2026Episode 9525 min
CS1: Ari Redbord on Crypto Crime, Compliance & Building TRM Labs
Recorded live at Consensus Miami 2025, I sat down with Ari Redbord — Global Head of Policy at TRM Labs and former federal prosecutor at the DOJ — to talk about following illicit money through the blockchain, the Beacon Network, AI in law, and why human connection matters more than ever in the age of automation. Plus: shoes.This episode is sponsored by FirstRead — the AI-powered legal assistant that reads, marks up, and chats through contracts right inside your Word document. If you're a founder, builder, or anyone dealing with legal agreements, FirstRead is a game-changer.🔗 Try FirstRead here and use code BYNDTHECODE10 at signup for 10% off.
April 27, 2026Episode 941 hr 13 min
E94: Itai Kanot: How BeeHero Is Using AI to Save Bees and Reinvent Agriculture
In this episode, Yitzy sits down with Itai Kanot, CGO and Co-Founder of BeeHero, the company using IoT sensors, AI, and machine learning to monitor beehives and deliver precision pollination at global scale. Itai grew up in southern Israel as the son of the country’s largest beekeeper. What started as a childhood surrounded by hives, honey, and long days on the farm eventually became BeeHero: an agtech company tackling one of the least appreciated but most important systems in the global food supply.They discuss why bees are far more than honey producers, how pollination underpins a huge share of modern agriculture, and what most people still do not understand about the “superorganism” inside a hive. Itai also shares the origin story of BeeHero, how the company evolved from precision beekeeping to pollination-as-a-service, and why selling into agriculture requires much more than good software.They also get into colony collapse, varroa mites, why beekeeping is under real pressure, and what BeeHero is building next.Topics covered:Why bees are one of nature’s most extraordinary creaturesThe role of pollination in global food productionItai’s upbringing in a commercial beekeeping family;How BeeHero was born at Reichman University;The shift from serving beekeepers to serving growers;What “precision pollination” actually means;Why agtech is a trust business, not just a software business;The challenges facing bees, including varroa mites and rising colony losses;Building a global company while raising a family far from home;
Is this your show?
Claim this listing to keep it up to date, reach guests who want to pitch you, and manage bookings with Guestify.
