About Me
Journey
Welcome to my corner of the internet! I’m Gajesh Naik, a Research Engineer at Eigen Labs with a passion for tackling complex challenges in blockchain, DeFi, and emerging technology. My journey has been fueled by curiosity, innovation, and an unshakable determination to learn something new every day. Here’s how it all began:
Early Beginnings
I started coding at the age of 7, driven by my love for games. My first creations were built in Scratch, and as I grew older, I dove into “hard” programming languages like C, C++, Java, and more. This early exposure taught me to explore, experiment, and keep pushing boundaries.
Venturing into Tech
By 10, I landed my first internship at a multinational company, where I developed a chatbot—one of my earliest forays into AI and automation. At 12, I became the youngest person to complete the Google Foobar challenge in just six hours. Although I was too young to be hired, the experience only deepened my passion for tech.
Discovering Blockchain
At 13, I explored the world of blockchain, taking on freelance gigs for three months before launching Gaj Finance, an experimental DeFi and NFT platform that reached $7 million in total value locked within two months. This success propelled me to keep innovating and thinking big.
Internships and Startups
In April 2022, I joined Solana Labs for a rewarding internship that helped me refine my skills. Shortly after, I launched Taksh, a gamified cross-chain yield aggregator. By 14, I had raised $1.3 million in pre-seed and seed rounds, and eventually Taksh was acquired. I briefly relocated to the Bahamas to work with FTX, assisting with high-quality dApp development until the company went bankrupt in November 2022.
Recent Pursuits
After FTX, I joined Telegram Wallet as a Founding Software Engineer and also contributed to Solana Labs and LayerZero Labs.
In July 2023, I became part of Eigen Labs, where I’m helping build the coordination engine of the future—an audacious goal, but one I’m excited to pursue.
Looking Ahead
Technology never stands still, and neither do I. My journey continues with fresh challenges, new collaborations, and a relentless drive to transform ideas into impactful solutions. I invite you to follow my adventures, insights, and occasional experiments right here on my website. Together, let’s make the digital world more accessible, innovative, and connected.
Associated Links:
October 9, 2024: The Tales of Web3 with Gajesh Naik
March 2, 2023: Discussed about my journey & thoughts on web3 on Logan Jastremski Podcast
January 27, 2023: Launched Season 2 on The Gaj Show, sponsored by Zeta Markets
April 30, 2022: The Block published an article about my internship at Solana Labs
February 3, 2022: Went on NDTV (India's CNN) to discuss about Crypto Mining
December 18, 2021: Went on Ivan on Tech to discuss about Moralis
October 28, 2021: The Defiant Panel about "What makes DAO a DAO?"
October 19, 2021: Featured in Congratulatory Motion for our Achievers of Goa in Goa Legislative Assembly
August 26, 2021: Discussed about "How To Evaluate A Coin?" on Rohan Joshi's (Top 5 Indian Standup Comedians) Podcast
July 14, 2021: Chatted about Covalent and data availability on Crypto Slate.
July 2, 2021: Coindesk wrote an article about me building PolyGaj (my experiment DeFi project)
June 27, 2021: The article by Decrypt made every crypto biggie (from Balaji to Robert Leshner to i don't know a shit ton of people) talk about me.
Note: Some info in the Decrypt article is false.
September 15, 2020: Discussed my opinions about AI & automation stealing iterative jobs on Hackernoon Podcast