Everyone is talking about AI x Web3
Here’s a list of top reads about AI x Web3 (with links)
– The Convergence of Crypto and AI: Four Key Intersections, Multicoin Capital rb.gy/3pfkt
– Where Artificial Intelligence and Crypto Meet, Metropolis rb.gy/itupd
– Crypto x AI, Serotonin rb.gy/qh88r
– Growing Synergies in AI and Crypto, Messari rb.gy/fe1yt
– The Convergence of AI and Web 3: Opportunities and Challenges, Mohamed Fouda rb.gy/vedp4
– Digital Identity in the Advent of AI, Messari rb.gy/8mbsv
– Blockchain in the age of LLMs, Yellow Propeller. rb.gy/xr80b
– AI as a catalyst for crypto, Hunter Horsley rb.gy/q2edj
– How AI Can Help Build Web3 rb.gy/at28l
– Checks and balances: Machine learning and zero-knowledge proofs, a16z rb.gy/aq198
– Why AI Needs Zero-Knowledge Proofs, Dylan Amadán rb.gy/1rrwq
– The convergence of AI and Blockchain: what’s the deal? Francesco Corea. rb.gy/inefd
– Why Web3 and the AI-Internet Belong Together. CoinDesk. rb.gy/zpdnf
– Cutting Through The Web3 Hype: AI In The Decentralized Web, Forbes rb.gy/ub5zo
– How AI Can Help Build Web3. Crypto.com rb.gy/3vqwl
– Convergence of Blockchain, IoT, and AI. Philipp Sander et al.. rb.gy/pq3cr
– Blockchain for AI: Review and Open Research Challenge. rb.gy/ze9j2
– Fusing Blockchain and AI With Metaverse: A Survey. rb.gy/kfwrm
– Blockchain and AI Meet in the Metaverse. rb.gy/mp8e6
– AI and Blockchain: A Disruptive Integration. rb.gy/whxqj
– The Applications of Blockchain in Artificial Intelligence rb.gy/2pwf0
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To my Web3 friends: A lighthouse report on brands in Web3 & the metaverse – fresh off the press by NFT Tech👇
Take-aways⚡️:
– Real-world adoption is being driven by large corporations
– Unique brand experiences & customer engagement were primary reasons for Web3 moves
– NFTs are still the most common choice of web3 technology so far this year, outperforming Metaverse applications
– Ethereum and Polygon were the most used blockchains for Web3 brand applications
– The number of brands to launch web3 projects in Q1 2023 is up 1.1% year-on-year. Other key metrics are down -50%
– The fashion industry is driving metaverse adoption; 54% of fashion brands launched metaverse projects; 68% released branded wearables for avatars; 34% released NFTs which could be redeemed for physical products
– LVMH was the most active brand in 2022, launching 17 web3 projects across nine subsidiary companies
– Nike chosen as the most creative Web3 brand (and rightfully so!)
I’ll publish a detailed case study on Nike soon. 👀
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Amazing work by the NFT Tech team!
Download the report here: nfttech.docsend.com/view/2fv33uyun4vazdur
#Web3 #branding #marketing
Money crypto vs tech crypto*
After FTX, I’ve been thinking about how we could call the “other” parts of crypto
… that have become independent communities from "investment focused” crypto, or “money crypto”
… that didn’t care much about FTX except to feel ashamed or/and angry about the greed and ignorance that has has smudged the reputation of “crypto” as a whole.
Bill Hughes shared a valuable perspective on that:
“Money crypto has been driving the regulatory discussion, which has led many regulators to overemphasize the investment aspect of crypto. Digital assets are just things you buy low and sell high, they think.
Tech crypto has been in the backseat. Having less capital to throw at lobbying and policymaking, being less sophisticated with the ways of Washington, D.C., and not having as many existential regulatory questions pending, tech crypto has a much lower profile. Most legislators have heard of ether and its meteoric price rise. Few understand that Ethereum is a computing platform. Almost no one understands the protocols being built on it.”
Amidst the regulatory debates, let’s not forget on what this space was built upon: tech crypto.
Link to the article:
www.coindesk.com/layer2/2022/11/07/money-crypto-versus-tech-crypto/
*tech crypto is in my view in large parts overlapping with what I call “Web3”, except that Web3 spans liberal arts, and socio-cultural aspects as well.
The Bitcoin whitepaper on ~200 million Macs.
OpenSea Pro launches. And “1000 true fans” becomes reality with ticketmaster.🔥
My most recent obsessively curated field notes👇
📚 Key Reads
– Building psychological attachment — not Just ownership — into Web3. shorturl.at/txGL5
– NFTs, music, and ownership. Some key perspectives on ownership, which also apply to other verticals. It’s all a bit more complicated. shorturl.at/bno58
– NFT regulatory issues - a 2022 review and 2023 preview. Again, it’s all a bit more complicated. shorturl.at/cmrC1
– Go-to-market in Web3: new mindsets, tactics, metrics. shorturl.at/ipLW3
– Difficulty of user acquisition in Web3. shorturl.at/aiyU5
– The dark matter of finance: trust. shorturl.at/tFKMZ
– ARK's The Bitcoin Monthly shorturl.at/fDSY2
🚨 What caught my eyes
✨ Web3 + NFTs
– OpenSea, now the 2nd biggest NFT marketplace behind Blur (according to volume), launched OpenSea Pro. Boom. After losing ground to Blur in recent months, which lured in users with lower fees and BLUR airdrops, OpenSea now strikes back. Similar to Blur, OpenSea Pro focuses on NFT traders. Meanwhile, fees are in a race to the bottom, and marketplaces compete for market share and volume (which comes from traders), because that’s where they make money.
David Phelps called it the paradox of exchanges: a) go after the 1% of users who represent 99% of transaction volume. b) or go after the 99% of users who represent the 1% of transaction volume. Some argue that the focus on traders and lower (royalty) fees destroys NFTs' artistic and cultural esteem and crowds out creators - the ones who’ve built all this.
– Ticketmaster, the largest ticketing company globally, introduced “token-gated ticket sales”, allowing artists to offer exclusive access to concert and event tickets to eligible NFT owners. This will be a no-brainer for superfans (they receive priority access, seat selection and the best prices, with no bots and no waiting) and artists alike (they can price discriminate). Here we go: The “thousand true fans” theory is at play.
🌎 Crypto & Macro
– Renowned law firm Cooper & Kirk PLLC issued a paper on Operation Chokepoint 2.0, describing how federal regulators are acting “arbitrarily and in capricious fashion” against the crypto industry. This is the first time that this claim, initially brought forward by Nic Carter, is taken up outside of crypto.
– Apparently, the Bitcoin whitepaper is hidden on every Apple Mac computer manufactured since 2014 (~200 million). To find it, open Terminal on your Mac and type: 𝙤𝙥𝙚𝙣 /𝙎𝙮𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙢/𝙇𝙞𝙗𝙧𝙖𝙧𝙮/𝙄𝙢𝙖𝙜𝙚\ 𝘾𝙖𝙥𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚/𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙞𝙘𝙚𝙨/𝙑𝙞𝙧𝙩𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙎𝙘𝙖𝙣𝙣𝙚𝙧.𝙖𝙥𝙥/𝘾𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨/𝙍𝙚𝙨𝙤𝙪𝙧𝙘𝙚𝙨/𝙨𝙞𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙚𝙙𝙤𝙘.𝙥𝙙𝙛
Why? 🤯
That’s all for now, folks.
Back to building! 🚀
– Marc
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#web3
The biggest Bitcoin conference is around the corner.
And I got some discounts! 🎁👇
Bitcoin 2023 will once again take place in Miami Beach 🏝️ from May 18-20.
I still remember when I arrived back in Switzerland last year, dazzled by the energy of the over 20’000 fellow Bitcoiners, builders, and big names of the space.
Nick Szabo, Adam Back, Lyn Alden, Alex Gladstein, Michael Saylor, Jack Mallers, Catherine Wood, Arthur Hayes - they’ve got them all.
If there’s one Bitcoin conference of the year you should go to – it’s this one.
I will be there too!
🎉Here’s a link for 10% off all tickets👇
See you in Miami! 🇺🇸🌎✨
#bitcoin2023
We are experiencing a new super-cycle that is user-powered and community-centric. Here’s what it means for brands. 👇
💬 “It’s the first time in my life I’ve seen Hollywood to be more excited about a technology than Silicon Valley.”
This statement from Benjamin Bouygues, Ventures & Innovation Director at Kering, stuck with me. Why?
It implies that Web3 is not only a new technology paradigm for the next Silicon Valley unicorns, but also a cultural phenomenon.
Web3, the first digital layer of trust for the internet, is sparking a cultural revolution and transforms the relationship amongst users, assets, and businesses.
“Not so fast!”, you say.🤔
Let’s start again with technology.
Blockchain enabled digital ownership. And we are just starting to understand the implications of this.🤯
What does “owning” something actually mean?
To “own” something means I posses it, and someone else doesn’t. It’s exclusive. It makes me stand out and unique. It also gives me more agency in the projects, communities and ecosystems we participate in. Ownership turns into a tool of self-expression, the basis of identity.
Identities build and form communities. Communities create culture, culture reinforces communities.
🚨 For the first time, community and culture can be built on a digital, decentralized layer of trust and owned by the users.
💡So, what does this mean for brands?
Future brands will be built around the purpose, utility and cult around them, with ownership built in. Brands and communities will collaborate for shared growth and value creation.
I’ve built a Web3 community formula for brands with all I know so far.
More in the full article (linked in the comments).
I’m still figuring it out & would love your feedback!🙌
__
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#web3 #Community #Culture #branding
Blockchain's $4tn opportunity. Adidas launches ALTS. 🔥
Web3's AI moment. Disney cancels the metaverse. 🤯
My most recent obsessively curated field notes👇
📚 Key Reads👇
– Money, tokens, and games. This is a must read folks. shorturl.at/bqyK3
– “The meme-utility spectrum.” The dichotomy between the tangible and intangible value of tokens. shorturl.at/wAKUW
– “Revenue? In this economy?” A closer look at Web3 business models. shorturl.at/oAES2
– What’s going on with Web3 NFT tech. shorturl.at/gpyzK
🚨 What caught my eyes👇
✨ Web3 + NFTs
– Gucci announced a partnership with Yuga Labs, the company behind CryptoPunks. As funding and royalty fees decrease (cf. royalty fee wars between NFT exchanges), IP owners & NFT communities are looking for new revenue streams by growing beyond their Web3 communities into mass media brands. Yuga Labs is doing exactly that.
– adidas launched “ALTS by Adidas”, its third and final phase of “Into The Metaverse.”, which focuses on identity and PFP. Chapter 1 of this new phase begins in April 2023 at NFT.NYC token-gated launch event.
– Bored Ape Yacht Club owner Yuga Labs' Otherside Second Trip metaverse demo with 7k+ players. This was a rare glimpse of how future “metaverse experiences” could look and feel like.
– Disney eliminates its metaverse division as part of a broader restructuring to reduce head count by 7'000. The unit, once seen as developing a new form of storytelling, had about 50 employees. Disney still has a metaverse team within ILMxLAB, Lucasfilm's immersive entertainment studio. I wouldn’t take this as a directional decision (similar to Meta or Microsoft).
🌎 Crypto & Macro
– The Bitcoin hash rate reached an all-time high last week. BUT: Miner revenue decreased YoY. Neither of this is a direct function of the overall network’s security, but it’s an indication among a set of many variables (e.g. amount of miners, mining efficiency, and the distribution of mining power).
– CFTC charges Binance and its founder, CZ, with willful evasion of federal law and operating an illegal digital asset derivatives exchange. Wow. First Coinbase, now Binance. This is a potential fatal blow to Binance.
💡Word on the street: 👇
Back to reality.
While we’re celebrating the small wins within our space, fighting regulatory battles on the merit of building a “fairer” system, let’s remember:
95% of people still don’t know what a wallet is, how an NFT works and why this all matters.
AI (and ChatGPT) took the world by storm and became the fastest-adopted tech product of all time. Why? Because it’s easy and accessible.
Let’s not forget to step out of our bubble once in a while.
What Web3 needs is an AI moment.
That’s all for now, folks.
Back to building! 🚀
– Marc
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"It is the job of the creator to explode. It is the task of the academic to walk around the bomb site, gathering up the shrapnel, to figure out what kind of an explosion it was, who was killed, how much damage it was meant to do and how close it came to actually achieving that."