The Future of Toys is Digital

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4.7 • 698 Ratings

🗓️ 13 October 2025

⏱️ 33 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Will Weinraub, CEO and Co-Founder of OnChain Studios, is redefining play by merging toys, gaming, and blockchain to create immersive, collectible experiences with iconic brands like Disney and Star Wars. In this episode of Gen C, Will Weinraub, CEO and Co-Founder of OnChain Studios and creator of Cryptoys, shares how his daughter’s passion for toys inspired him to build digital collectibles on the blockchain. Weinraub explores the declining traditional toy industry, the rise of digital play through Fortnite and Roblox, and why he believes blockchain-based digital ownership represents the future of how people of all ages will collect and interact with their favorite characters. Links mentioned from the podcast: Will's Twitter OnChain Studios Twitter Cryptoys Website Follow us on Twitter: Sam Ewen, CoinDesk From our sponsors: Break the cycle of exploitation. Break down the barriers to truth. Break into the next generation of privacy. Break Free. Free to scroll without being monetized. Free from censorship. Freedom without fear. We deserve more when it comes to privacy. Experience the next generation of blockchain that is private and inclusive by design. Break free with Midnight, visit midnight.network/break-free Bridge simplifies global money movement. As the leading stablecoin issuance and orchestration platform, Bridge abstracts away blockchain complexity so businesses can seamlessly move between fiat and stablecoins. From payroll providers and remittance companies to neobanks and treasury teams, Bridge powers payments, savings, and stablecoin issuance for thousands – like Shopify, Metamask, Remitly, and more. Visit https://hubs.ly/Q03KGbRK0. - "Gen C" features host Sam Ewen. Executive produced by Uyen Truong.

Transcript

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0:00.0	Toys are unfortunately a declining industry right now.
0:02.8	They're declining like almost 10% year over year while digital play is dominating.
0:08.0	Fortnite Roblox Mindcraft is like, how do we still protect the toy industry and get them ready for the future?
0:12.9	It's not a physical versus digital.
0:14.6	It's a physical and digital future.
0:16.6	And how do we really enable that in a smart way that's good for all ages?
0:24.6	Yeah. And how do we really enable that in a smart way that's good for all ages? Okay, Sam here.
0:29.3	We just got back from a three-week journey that took us to Rio, to Seoul Korea, to Singapore, all to different crypto events.
0:41.8	A lot of stuff came out of that. My thoughts haven't even cohered completely.
0:46.3	But one of the things that I noticed, especially in Asia, both Seoul and in Singapore,
0:51.7	was still the kind of how much people are obsessed with toys,
0:57.9	with IP brands that are, you know, based in worlds of like anime, you know,
1:03.3	whether it's like a one piece or Tekken Titan, all that stuff is still so popular.
1:07.6	You go to any Pop Martin Asia, it is packed.
1:09.9	People are buying everything they can when it
1:12.1	comes to not just loboos, but really all this different IP in the toy universe. And I thought it'd be
1:17.7	interesting for us to have a conversation with someone who is focused on the evolution of toys,
1:22.7	specifically digital, because there was a big run-up 21, 22, 23 in digital collectibles and toys on chain.
1:30.7	And that sort of quieted down a little bit.
1:33.8	We're starting to hear some rumblings of that coming back.
1:36.3	While we were out in Asia, got to spend some time with Will Rine Rob from Crypt Toys.
1:40.4	One of the first groups that raised a bunch of money and was trying to work through how this
	...

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