With Ether (ETH) hitting 380 USD as of August 2nd and surging past the 30% price mark for 2020, many are claiming that the highly anticipated blockchain boom is finally on the horizon. This is not because of the price of the token per se, but it is rather due to the implications of this surge in price mark percentage. While stock prices within the centralized financial world serve to quantifiably reflect a company’s performance, crypto prices are still heavily influenced by unpredictable qualitative factors, especially the “trendiness” and “hype” of a certain coin.
Although all new technologies do require initial momentum, a product’s hype is normally amassed either by surpassing competition or the lack thereof: both conditions, however, yield “deserved” hype. Due to the sheer number of applications that blockchain encompasses, and the current lack of technical understanding, the hype surrounding the crypto domain is scattered, unreliable, and often short-lived.
Emerging blockchain projects tend to either build over and improve an already existing platform, venture into a new and unexplored territory, or both. In either scenario, each firm is offering a unique service/product with the main goal being the monopolizing of a specific branch of blockchain before the technology’s imminent boom. Firm-specific services, combined with the current high barrier to entry (operational costs, lack of technical information, required capital reserves, etc.), effectively narrow the competitive scope for blockchain startups. According to Art Malkov, the CDO of Blockchain Driven, approximately 1 out of every 3 (33%) blockchain startups were being funded in early 2017; For reference, the average high-tech VC funding ratio is roughly 1/350 (0.3%).
To further delve into the shaky foundations of the blockchain hype, take a glance at the before/after stock price scenarios of the following notorious blockchain firms that rode, and subsequently drowned, in the ephemeral hype wave: Longfin Corp (fintech), NXT-ID Inc (IoT) and Long Blockchain (beverages):
Stock price aside, Ethereum’s true value lies within the blockchain community. Due to their commitment to developing a blockchain that encourages the creation of decentralized applications (DApps, DeFi ecosystems) and 'smart contracts' through its virtual machine (EVM), Ethereum has progressively become vital for blockchain development. As Microsoft’s principal blockchain architect, Marley Gray mentioned when opting for Ethereum (project Azure):
“[w]hile a platform like Bitcoin has many great uses specifically as a Cryptocurrency, Ethereum provides the flexibility and extensibility many of our customers were looking for”
Having a rudimentary understanding of both the structure and function of various blockchain platforms like Ethereum, R3 Corda, and Ripple is unfortunately no longer impressive. One needs to develop almost a sixth sense for interconnected ledgers across varying technological platforms.
At the most basic level, interoperability is the “ability of computer systems or softwares to exchange and utilize information.” Blockchain interoperability, therefore, is the ability to share data/information across multiple blockchain platforms and networks (p2p). As demonstrated by the figure below, an interoperability blockchain will allow for the constant and immediate exchange of data between several separate pre-established blockchains, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum:
“The Internet of Things is transforming the everyday physical objects that surround us into an ecosystem of information that will enrich our lives. From refrigerators to parking spaces to houses, the Internet of Things is bringing more and more things into the digital fold every day, which will likely make the Internet of Things a multi-trillion dollar industry in the near future.”
Conclusion:
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Wouldn't it be a good idea to create a course?
