The Quest for a Stable Society (Paolo Ardoino) | DLD26

In an uncertain world, stability depends on democratizing access to financial and digital infrastructure by removing centralized intermediaries, Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino argues in his DLD Munich 2026 presentation. While human history was built on peer-to-peer interactions, in the past 50 years this has dramatically changed, he says. “Both money and information became completely centralized and fully intermediated.” To counter this, Tether is developing an ecosystem based on four pillars – finance, communication, energy, and intelligence – designed as “components of a stable society”. The most immediate tool for this mission is USDT, a digital dollar (also known as “stable coin”) that serves people in emerging markets where national currencies frequently collapse. With over 534 million users, Tether has evolved into a massive social network for value and is now “the 17th largest holder of the U.S. debt as a private company”, Ardoino notes. Watch the video to learn more about Tether’s vision; why the company is currently deploying solar-powered energy kiosks across Africa; building open-source, peer-to-peer communication protocols; and AI that can run locally on mobile phones without the need for centralized servers. Discover inspiring talks from past DLD Conferences and catch the highlights on the this channel. Stay updated with thought leaders, groundbreaking ideas, and key moments from our events! For news, upcoming events and more interesting topics make sure to also visit: DLD Website: https://dld-conference.com DLD on LinkedIn:   / dld-conference   DLD on Instagram:   / dldconference   DLD on Twitter:   / dldconference   DLD on Facebook:   / dldconference