Dialogue with MEXC Product Director Vivien: How to drive the next evolution when AI trading enters the "co-pilot" stage?

Compiled by: momo, ChainCatcher

Guest: Vivien, MEXC Product Director

At the Coinfest Asia 2026 event in Bali in August, the Alpha Arena S03 trading competition sponsored by MEXC Ventures had just concluded, with 20 traders from 12 countries battling it out in real-time, and a Japanese contestant clinching victory at the last moment.

Outside the competition arena, MEXC Product Director Vivien Lin discussed another, much longer "competition": how exchanges can capture the influx of users and funds amid the wave of AI and RWA integration.

Before joining the crypto industry, Vivien Lin worked at Morgan Stanley in foreign exchange and complex derivatives. Her combined background in traditional finance and crypto allows her to better understand the significance of this integration and transformation.

She observed that with the introduction of perpetual contracts in traditional finance, the capital between the two markets has been interconnected, and user behavior is also converging. When BTC prices are low, funds in the crypto circle flow into stocks and stock derivatives; when the market warms up, funds flow back into the crypto market. Changes on the product side are equally evident, as users inquire on MEXC AI about the differences between Nvidia and Intel, and hesitate over the authenticity behind tokenized stocks.

This change is also reshaping her product design logic. Vivien Lin initially considered creating two separate interfaces for two types of users but later realized that they are more like different stages of the same group. Following this line of thought, MEXC has refined its user profiling, moving from a "one-size-fits-all" approach to a more layered "tailored experience" for dozens of user types.

The explosive growth of AI is also rewriting users' trading habits and scenarios. In Vivien Lin's view, AI has transitioned from being an "assistant" to a "co-pilot" for traders. MEXC's AI initiatives go beyond mere concepts, from acting as an information steward with MEXC AI to AI strategies capable of backtesting, and to AI search that directly accesses all functions with a single phrase, these features have quietly integrated into users' daily trading.

Recently, in an exclusive interview with ChainCatcher, Vivien Lin elaborated on how her traditional finance background shapes her product perspective, how to layer services for two types of users, the conversion logic of invisible product design and AI tools, and the changes in exchange product forms over the next three years.

1. From Investment Banking to the Crypto World: Changes in Product Perspective

1. ChainCatcher: You previously worked in foreign exchange and derivatives products at large investment banks like Morgan Stanley. How has this traditional finance background shaped your product perspective? Which traditional financial logics can be seamlessly applied in the crypto world, and which must be discarded?

Vivien Lin: Traditional finance provided me with excellent financial training, making me more aware of risks. I traded complex derivatives and had to monitor Greek letter risks daily, many of which lacked ready market hedging tools, making me very sensitive to even small data changes. This sensitivity helps me notice minor points when developing trading products.

It also instilled a sense of reverence for the market and regulation. At the intersection of traditional finance and crypto, familiarity with regulation brings unique product insights. When designing compliant products, I better understand what regulators focus on and how to maintain user experience while meeting regulatory requirements, creating products that are both compliant and user-friendly.

However, the pace of traditional finance does not work in the crypto space. Developing a new product there can take 6 months to a year, allowing time to ponder user needs and business models; whereas the crypto world operates 24/7, forcing you to quickly judge based on intuition about the market, user psychology, and the product itself, while rapidly coordinating resources from support departments and within the company to push products out quickly.

2. ChainCatcher: In the past year or two, many traditional financial platforms have expanded into crypto, with "super accounts" becoming a trend. In contrast, what are the shortcomings and barriers of crypto-native exchanges?

Vivien Lin: First, let’s discuss shortcomings. Early on, crypto market product design prioritized speed and lacked regional regulatory requirements, essentially offering a single product globally. Now, regulatory requirements vary by region, and users are more diverse, including novices, high-net-worth individuals, professional institutions, arbitrage funds, and those coming from traditional finance who are unfamiliar with crypto but have strong learning abilities. Whether we can solidify the infrastructure while accommodating diverse user needs and regional regulations will be the core challenge for exchanges to build their competitive moat in the next 1 to 2 years.

Regarding barriers, the strength of crypto-native exchanges lies in retail products; this market started with retail investors, and institutions have not entered for a long time. Traditional financial institutions understand finance and risk better, but they do not comprehend retail investors as well as native exchanges do; native exchanges are built on a deep understanding of users, iterating quickly, while what they need to learn from traditional finance is professionalism.

2. User Behavior in Crypto and Traditional Finance is Converging

3. ChainCatcher: There are significant differences in trading interfaces and functional needs between crypto-native users and traditional finance users. How does MEXC balance the experience conflict between these two types of users when creating a one-stop platform covering stocks and ETFs?

Vivien Lin: The first principle of the product team is to provide users with a smooth experience. Based on that, the key is to observe what users truly need. I often cite two examples.

One is copy trading, a product very native to the crypto space. For seasoned crypto users, it’s an old play, but for traditional finance users, it’s a new tool; they need to find trustworthy experts to guide their trading. So, on one hand, we provide selection criteria to help users determine what kind of traders are considered experts; on the other hand, we introduce more assets to give these traders greater room to operate. This offers a fresh experience for traditional finance users.

The second is our newly launched RealStock, which caters to the demands of traditional finance users. Crypto users care about leverage and smooth operations, while traditional finance users first care about whether they are genuinely acquiring the stock when they buy it. With many tokenized stocks on the market, they always have a question mark in their minds, which can hinder their experience. After realizing this, we discussed it repeatedly and ultimately decided to directly connect with traditional brokers to gain real stock exposure. This was a technical path chosen to address users' core concerns.

4. ChainCatcher: Real stocks and traditional finance perpetual contracts are key directions MEXC is currently promoting. Based on current user data and product feedback, what are the behavioral differences between the two types of users regarding these products? What optimizations has the product team made in response to these differences?

Vivien Lin: Research indicates that the overlap between traditional finance and crypto users exceeds 60%, but our own experience hasn’t reached that number yet.

However, after the introduction of traditional finance perpetual contracts, the capital between the two markets has indeed been interconnected. Recently, when BTC was sluggish, a lot of crypto money flowed into stock tokens and stock perpetuals; now that the crypto market is picking up, funds are flowing back from stock positions to mainstream crypto assets.

With the capital interconnected, behaviors are also converging. Two years ago, we began promoting the integration of traditional finance and crypto users and products. At that time, traditional finance users criticized crypto mainly for its lack of transparency and being all concepts. Many platforms have launched index products like QQQ or stock ETF-type products, but they did not believe in the authenticity of the underlying trades and merely observed from the sidelines. Now, more and more traditional users are proactively seeking to understand how perpetual contracts settle, and with our AI-assisted learning tools, the understanding cost is not high. Some of my friends who are traders even say that this mechanism directly solves the cumbersome issue of leveraging in traditional finance.

We once considered creating two separate interfaces for the two types of users. Later, we found that users' thinking actually follows the attention given to assets. When the AI sector is booming, many crypto users also ask on MEXC AI about the differences between Nvidia and Intel. Thus, the product logic shifted from serving two groups to serving different layers of the same group, categorized by maturity such as novice or experienced traders, rather than by asset type.

5. ChainCatcher: MEXC now covers over 170 markets. How do you design layered experiences and growth systems for different levels of users?

Vivien Lin: There are two parts: what users can perceive and what they cannot.

The part that cannot be perceived relies on more powerful analytical tools and big data technology. As soon as users enter the platform, we can determine their entry point, whether they are closer to a traditional finance profile or a risk-seeking type, whether they are trading-oriented or deposit-oriented. In the past, user profiling was very coarse, essentially divided into three categories: novices, institutions, and VIPs. In fact, many VIPs' operational habits are already very close to those of institutions, but at that time, the data and analytical tools were insufficient, and the entire industry had a very coarse granularity regarding users. Now, profiling can be detailed into dozens of categories; for example, a conservative user who only trades BTC and Ethereum and cannot tolerate large drawdowns, we recommend AI strategies that focus on mainstream trends or reversal signals, with small drawdowns and backtesting support.

The part that users can perceive is the new VVIP system. Traditional VIPs are generally divided into 1 to 9 levels based on deposit amounts and trading volumes, while VVIP innovatively introduces the M Score. It does not only classify users based on assets but also converts all behaviors after users enter the platform into scores, resembling a loyalty card. Daily logins, participation in activities, and trying new products all accumulate loyalty. The more loyal users are, the more opportunities we provide for new product experiences, high-yield financial products, and higher cashback ratios for MEXC cards. The entire VVIP system and user profiling system are linked to M Score, with relatively transparent rules, making it one of the more advanced, user-perceptible tiered products in the market.

6. ChainCatcher: Can you share a specific localized feedback case? How did it drive the iteration of core functions?

Vivien Lin: In the past three months, we have invested a lot of energy into something that users may not necessarily perceive: optimizing internal operational tools. Previously, operations colleagues could only configure activities based on personal understanding, leading to significant generational differences; a 10-year veteran and a new operator, or an 80s and a 00s individual, have completely different perceptions of users. Covering over 170 countries and regions with users of different ages and risk preferences makes precise operations by human effort nearly impossible.

We utilized AI and big data to refine user profiling, and through data engineering, we established a set of atomized internal products that allow operations colleagues to quickly launch and configure activities.

Now, configuring an event that aligns with current hot topics and community characteristics for different countries and partners takes less than an hour. Previously, writing copy, producing images, and translating into multiple languages would take two to three days. For example, yesterday the market surged; previously, it would take at least two to three days from concept to launch, but now the entire process can be completed within half an hour, allowing users to participate in the market at the right moment, complemented by promotional offers to fully enjoy the rise.

7. ChainCatcher: Besides what users can see, what other invisible product designs have played a key role in MEXC's retention and conversion?

Vivien Lin: We have done a lot beneath the surface. First is the technical optimization; we are undergoing a major system upgrade. After the upgrade, users will directly feel two things: the App opens and switches faster and smoother. Sensitive users might say it’s a bit faster, while most users just feel more comfortable; they can’t quite pinpoint what’s better, but for the underlying infrastructure, this is a transformative effect. The new infrastructure can accommodate a larger transaction volume, ensuring that the system does not crash during extreme market conditions, and it also supports our future exploration of lending and options products. This provides users with a sense of psychological security from the product research and development team.

Another aspect regarding the account system and trading requirements may not be perceived by users. For example, AI strategies; users see that even in a deep bear market, the strategies you promote yield decent returns. Where do these strategies come from? Behind them is a product team of four or five people who spent three months studying the trading strategies and styles of investment masters throughout history, and then localized them based on the changes and volatility characteristics of crypto assets to refine the product.

III. How will trading scenarios evolve in the era of AI?

8. ChainCatcher: MEXC has launched several AI tools. Based on data and user feedback, what actual transformations have they brought, and have they increased trading frequency?

Vivien Lin: AI products can be divided into several categories. The ones that users can perceive and have clear intentions are MEXC AI and AI strategies. MEXC AI is more information-oriented, like an information steward, gathering global news and the technical indicators you need to see. Its design purpose is very clear; we look at how many users are actually using it. Users vote with their feet; if they think you’ve done well, they will come back every day to ask and check. If they treat it as part of their daily information source, we have more opportunities to recommend popular coins and trading opportunities to them, making it more likely they will see and ultimately convert.

The intention of AI strategies is more direct; users basically need to reach the order placement step to build a trading system. We mainly look at two indicators: first is the repurchase rate; if users are happy with it, they will use it repeatedly; second is how many users actually build strategies and run backtests. This also deepens our understanding of platform users—how many are more professional, and how many come in, find it difficult, and leave. The latter needs to distinguish whether it’s a product issue or if they were never the target users.

There are also efficiency-oriented products, such as AI news, AI search, and the command line interface we are about to launch, which are part of the early layout for the next generation of product experiences. Taking AI search as an example, it solves the end-to-end jump problem. Previously, if you wanted to find a financial product from the homepage, you had to first find the button for the financial entry, then scroll through a long list; if you wanted to find niche assets, the list would be long, and you might miss similar names; on mobile, the limited page space makes users reluctant to scroll through several pages, and many useful products are actually hidden behind. Now, if you enter BTC in the search bar, it will directly give you the three most important news items, the current price chart, technical indicators, ongoing activities, and whether there are financial or yield products for BTC—all in a small search box that gathers a wealth of information. This cannot be achieved through manual hard coding; now, the underlying components, interface calls, and content presentation are, to some extent, intelligently filtered by AI. When users search for a term, they can see almost everything related to it on this platform.

9. ChainCatcher: Based on the development of AI, can you share a representative future trading scenario?

Vivien Lin: I understand the development of AI in three stages.

The first stage is the assistant stage, where you ask a question, and it answers a question.

We are now entering the second stage, which is the copilot stage, a phase that is closely integrated. Under a prior authorization agreement, AI knows what I am doing. It will observe me; for example, if it finds that I tend to be impulsive during a market crash, the next time I feel impulsive, it will remind me: instead of buying a high-leverage product here, why not buy spot, or I have a high-interest deposit here; would you like to secure a guaranteed return first?

Looking further ahead, it will be about the intelligence of operations, bringing a completely new experience. Currently, if we want to find a function, we have to open the App and scroll to the corresponding page; in the future, there will be a unified entry point, such as embedding MEXC’s assistant into the phone system, connecting to Siri. You can directly tell Siri: "Today BTC seems to be rising well; can you help me make 1000 dollars?" Siri calls our command line interface, connects to all backend services, including backtesting, and then assesses whether it is possible to make that 1000 dollars today based on my current asset reserves, and then executes directly, or if it’s uncertain, it gives me three options to choose from.

This will approach the highly intelligent world depicted in "The Matrix." The technical barrier mainly lies in computing power. What application layer companies can do is make calls more efficient, cost-effective, and precise. We cannot solve hardware and infrastructure issues, but once the infrastructure problems are resolved, the product experience will undergo a disruptive change, which I believe we will see within one to two years.

10. ChainCatcher: Looking ahead to the next year, what are MEXC's core plans for AI exploration and functional upgrades?

Vivien Lin: From a product perspective, AI technology has permeated every aspect of our products and research and development. However, the externally visible products that users can perceive must return to the first principles: user-centric. We do not need to showcase that this platform uses AI the most; rather, we hope to subtly integrate our understanding of AI and users into every small function and every piece of information. You may not realize that you are using many AI features; you just feel that this platform understands me better, which is the picture we want.

To achieve that picture, we need to do a lot of foundational work first. First, we need AI to better understand assets, which requires continuous learning of the market; second, we need AI to better understand users, which relies on user profiling and big data. AI solves analytical problems; it cannot handle data storage, organization, and standardization without a large amount of manpower laying the groundwork for it, allowing AI to leverage its strengths.

The product direction will also follow the market. Recently, the market has been relatively sluggish, and trend-based products have not been well received by users, which is also why we are developing AI strategies. AI strategies include both trend-based strategies and strategies for earning price differences during bottom consolidation periods. It is precisely because of the prior technical and data groundwork that the product has been relatively smoothly pushed out.

11. ChainCatcher: Looking ahead to the next three years, as Crypto merges with traditional finance, what fundamental changes will occur in the product forms of exchanges? What next-generation trading scenarios is the MEXC product team preparing for in advance?

Vivien Lin: Our biggest core is to serve the users coming from traditional finance to the crypto space in the future. Customer service, business development, partners, and product strategy will now spend more effort understanding what assets these users want, what tools they need, and whether our technical infrastructure can be upgraded to provide them with a speed and variety of experience comparable to traditional finance. This is the most important strategy from this year to next.

Under this strategy, the operations team needs to look at traditional financial assets, and the business development team needs to strive for traditional financial users and channels. For the product team, a significant challenge is to fill in the gaps for products that are very handy in traditional finance but are not yet available in the crypto space. The major categories are generally not lacking; what is missing is the details, such as iceberg orders, which are a very popular order type in traditional markets, but some exchanges in the crypto space have them, and some do not. We need to quickly fill in these small points so that when users who truly engage in traditional finance come to the crypto space, we can meet their needs and serve them well.