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The 40 Under 40 Fueling Spain's Startup Economy

40 অনূর্ধ্ব 40 স্পেনের স্টার্টআপ অর্থনীতিতে জ্বালানি দিচ্ছে

Die 40 unter 40 treiben Spaniens Startup-Wirtschaft voran

Los 40 menores de 40 que impulsan la economía de las startups en España

Les 40 de moins de 40 ans alimentent l'économie des startups espagnoles

40 अंडर 40 स्पेन की स्टार्टअप अर्थव्यवस्था को बढ़ावा दे रहा है

スペインのスタートアップ経済を支える40歳未満の40人

스페인의 스타트업 경제를 촉진하는 40세 미만 40세

Os 40 abaixo dos 40 impulsionam a economia das startups na Espanha

40 Yaş Altı 40, İspanya'nın Startup Ekonomisini Güçlendiriyor

Nhóm 40 Under 40 thúc đẩy nền kinh tế khởi nghiệp của Tây Ban Nha

40 位 40 岁以下的人士推动了西班牙的创业经济

The discipline which birthed Bitcoin, blockchains, and the burgeoning ecosystem called Web 3.0 The word ‘cryptoeconomics’ sounds cool, but doesn’t inherently scream a definition. For people looking for a way to understand Bitcoin, blockchains, and everything else your friends and questionable investment advisors are saying, cryptoeconomics is the place to start. Here, you’ll understand how the “ ” industry works from the ground up — not only technically, but via economic incentives. technology blockchain The purpose of this article is to define cryptoeconomics, call out by name some current tools available, and to review some interesting use cases of these designs in live projects. Standing on the shoulders of thinking giants like ( ) and ( ), the goal of the article will be to open up the conversation about the fundamental tools which were used to create Bitcoin, and how they are being re-used and built upon in other blockchains. Kahneman “Thinking Fast And Slow” Munger Mental Models Furthering cryptoeconomic research is the best way to ensure the community has knowledge of the tools available when designing the next generation of the world wide web. Now is the time to build and iterate on these tools — when user counts are in millions, not billions ( ). thanks Jeff Coleman , for that thought A little pre-history As the name suggests, ‘cryptoeconomics’ is a coming together of fields: cryptography, computer science, and economics. Cryptography Cryptography evolved from ancient ciphers written by Hebrew scholars, the Spartan military, and other early civilizations. One famous early cipher was the ‘Caesar Cipher’, where each letter in a string was shifted forward a fixed amount. For example, if the shift is 3, and the letter is ‘c’, it becomes ‘f’. In this Caesar Cipher, “cryptography” → “fubswrjudskb”. This simple example displays the main feature of cryptography: . Cryptographic systems are much more difficult to crack than to use. : Give your friends “fubswrjudskb” and tell them to figure out what you mean. the defender’s advantage To test Today’s cryptographic systems have evolved. It is now the goal of cryptographic systems to be resistant to attack, even if their inner workings are known. While someone could easily figure out “fubswrjudskb” by threatening one person, a cryptographically secure system should stand even if this person (or even, let’s say, 25% of the network) was independently compromised. Such strength leads to to even bother trying to break the code. disincentives Speaking of incentives… Mechanism Design Mechanism design is a field of economics dedicated to the study of mechanisms to (dis)/incentivize actions. If game theory is the study of different possible actions in a game, mechanism design is the study of creating a game. A game designer must consider a) what tools are available to create a game, b) what to incentivize in the game, c) how to learn from these rules, and d) how to iterate along the way. It is the job of the designer of the game to lead to actions which lead to a fair, secure game. To bring this to light, I’ll bring up my favorite game — . basketball Some of you proud Canadians may know James Naismith. In 1891, Naismith created the thirteen original rules of “basket ball”. The first game was 9-on-9, no dribbling, 15 minute halves with a five minute break for halftime. The main goal of the game? Make more shots into the peach basket than the other team. The first game ended with a strong score: 1–0. The original rules incentivized players to put the ball in the hoop. Players were constrained by their ability to only move the ball by passing. In the original version, 18 basketball players shared physical space, endured athletic strain, and communicated with teammates…all in efforts to to score the basketball and win the game. As time went on, the ‘beta’ version of basketball has shifted quite a bit. The peach basket was traded for a metal hoop, backboards and nets ( infrastructure updates). Rules were changed. Dribbling was added, increasing the ability for players to move around the court and adding complexity (and beauty) to the game. Eighteen players on the court was reduced to ten. A three point line was introduced, to add a one-point incentive to players to practice, take, and make long-distance shots. More recently, rules on fouls became more stringent. This update made the role of the defender harder, thereby increasing the scoring in games. read: Black magic… These ‘mechanism updates’ have been ways for the NBA to continuously improve the viewer experience and the game itself. The basketball we know has changed based upon changes in the rules of the game. We’ll come to find that designing a blockchain protocol like Bitcoin isn’t too far off from designing the game of basketball. While economics obviously has a long history, the field of mechanism design is rather new — about 50 years since inception. Only in 2007, a year before Satoshi Nakamoto published the Bitcoin whitepaper, , , and won the Nobel Prize in Economics “for having laid the foundations of mechanism design theory.” It is an interesting field which I hope to delve into further in the future. Leonid Hurwicz Eric Maskin Roger Myerson _On Monday, Leonid Hurwicz, Eric Maskin and Roger Myerson were awarded the 2007 Nobel Prize in Economics for their…_voxeu.org Nobel Prize: What is mechanism design and why does it matter? Cryptoeconomics Now that we have defined ‘mechanism design’ and ‘cryptography’ more broadly, we can define cryptoeconomics. And I quote, from : Vlad “Cryptoeconomics is the application of incentive mechanism design to information security problems. ” Cryptoeconomics brings home the idea that through cryptography and properly-aligned incentives, we can secure protocols like Bitcoin and Ethereum. Bitcoin is a dazzling showcase of cryptoeconomics. For the first time, someone answered how to fit together these important, abstract puzzle pieces ( ) in a way that worked to create a digital currency which works. tools **But…**we have some learning to do before we get there. First, the cryptographic primitives. Then, how they work together in Bitcoin. Cryptographic Primitives Cryptographic primitives are judged on their ability to achieve three qualities: The message truly came from the stated sender Authenticity: Private data remained so during the transfer process Confidentiality: Data (public or private) was unchanged Integrity: A good example, modified slightly from a good Stack Overflow answer: Suppose Alice and Bob are talking to each other. would mean that messages received by Alice are actually sent by Bob. means that on the route from Bob to Alice, the message has not changed in between. Authenticity Integrity In general, authenticity would imply integrity but integrity wouldn't imply authenticity. For example, the message may retain its integrity but it could have been sent by Mallory instead of Bob. [Added by me]: holds that private information of both Alice and Bob remained so throughout the process. Confidentiality We’ll start with the primitives which allow Bitcoin to work, which have been around for decades. Cryptographic Hashes A takes an input (like “hello”) and turns it into a complex, hard-to-recreate output (like , but longer). To test yourself, type in ‘hello’ and then ‘hello…’ . Almost as big of a difference as receiving ‘hello’ vs. ‘hello…’ from a significant other. cryptographic hash 2cf24dba5f0a30e26e83b2ac5b9e9e1b161e5c1f984 at this link The hash is easy to verify if you know the input. If you don’t know what you’re looking for, it won’t be easy to find — even with the help of a large computer. In computer science, this is called a , and underlies security of many systems we use today. one-way function A one-way function is easy to compute on every input, but hard to invert given the image of a random input. There are many types of cryptographic hashes, dubbed the Swiss-army knife of cryptography for their varied use in the field. The example above is a ‘SHA-256' hash — our first Bitcoin cryptographic primitive. Digital Signature A digital signature is cryptographic proof that the person who signed off on the transaction was really the person it claims to be. Similar to our real-life signatures (formally known as ), signatures should be unforgeable. scribble-scrabble is how this is done. Each actor, and (get used to these homies) both have a public key — which is used to share their account address with the world — and a secret (private) key. Public-key cryptography Alice Bob The three important algorithms are with a private key and to prove a transaction**.** a) generating a public-private key pair, b) signing c) verification From Arvind Narayanan’s seminal book, ‘Bitcoin & Cryptocurrencies’ An example would be Alice sending $10 to Bob. To do so, she sends her (a combo of the $10 message + her private key) to his public key. digital signature When Bob receives the message, Alice’s signature is cross-referenced to her public key. If a match is verified, the $10 exchanges hands. Designing Bitcoin With hashes and digital signatures alone, it is possible for a transaction to be made and securely sent from one party to the next. We’re building something here... From Satoshi’s Bitcoin White Paper From here, computer science — — help organize these transactions neatly into ‘blocks’, and links them together to form a . The same ability to ‘hash’ information comes in handy here: each block is represented by a hash, which ties it to the next block. The fact that the hash changes drastically with even the tiniest data modification allows us to check (very easily) whether data has been changed. linked lists and Merkle trees blockchain Now that we see the primitives from both cryptography and computer science which allow for a blockchain to function, let’s see how economics brings this model home. The Game Inside The Game: Proof-Of-Work Consensus Satoshi, the Bitcoin creator, had to create a way for every computer in the Bitcoin network to agree on the transaction history in this ledger. He also had to decide how to introduce new bitcoin into the network. Eloquently, ‘proof-of-work’ ( ) accomplishes both of these goals. repurposed from Hashcash Proof-of-work uses the primitives above — leaning heavily on hashes (+ ) — to create a game for all the computers on Bitcoin’s network. The game creates a) competition for the chance to add the next block to the Bitcoin blockchain and b) provides an economic incentive for the block proposed to hold accurate transactions. nonces The competition starts with using your computer power to solve an incredibly difficult math problem, where the goal is to find a hash smaller than the target . To solve the puzzle, there’s not much your computer can do but iterate through millions of hashes to get to the answer. While computer plays this game, all the computers are playing, too. Collectively, these computers are the Bitcoin ‘miners’, working for digital gold (bitcoin). difficulty per second your If the miner wins the race, then their block is valid, and can be sent around to other miners. The winning miner has a great chance at winning a reward — bitcoin (12.5 bitcoin, in 2017 — worth ~$75,000)! To get this reward, however, your block should only include valid transactions: no funny business. If you propose even one transaction in the block which is invalid, it’s likely your block will not make it onto the main Bitcoin blockchain because no one wants to build on an invalid block. This means no more bitcoin for you… and who knows when you’ll get your next chance? You are thus to have a honest, accurate block. The miners incentive to be honest makes the Bitcoin network move forward truthfully and honestly. x strongly incentivized Monetary Supply Every 210,000 blocks, the bitcoin reward for mining and proposing accurate blocks halves. Satoshi and team also decided that 21 million bitcoin would be the total supply for the currency. _Bitcoin Block Reward Halving Countdown website_www.bitcoinblockhalf.com Bitcoin Block Reward Halving Countdown This decision, as with others, comes with tradeoffs. Bitcoin that are lost — are simply lost, deflating the currency slowly, long-term. Ethereum, a protocol with a different goal than bitcoin — decided on a monetary base which adds Ether to the system every year, but slightly less year-over-year. explains their thought-process in an early Ethereum blog post: disinflationary Joseph Lubin One of Bitcoin’s great value propositions (is) the algorithmically fixed total issuance of the currency which mandated that only 21,000,000 BTC will ever be created. In a time of profligate legacy currency printing in an exponentially doomed attempt to patch over the fact that there is too much debt in the global economic system (with more debt), the prospect of a universally accepted cryptocurrency that can serve eventually as a relatively stable store of value is attractive. Ethereum recognizes this and seeks to emulate this core value proposition. Ethereum also recognizes that a system intended to serve as a distributed, consensus-based application platform for global economic and social systems, must strongly emphasize inclusiveness. One of the many ways we intend to foster inclusiveness is by maintaining an issuance system which possesses some churn. New participants in the system will be able to purchase new ETH or mine for new ETH whether they are living in the year 2015 or 2115. We believe we have a achieved a good balance between the two goals of fostering inclusiveness and maintaining a stable store of value. Mining is not in Ethereum’s long-term vision anymore, but the original choice to increase monetary supply (slower and slower) remains, as an example. All in a day’s work designing an game… Economic Costs The competition aspect of mining proves to be important for security reasons, as well. It makes the system expensive to attack. To effectively ‘take-over’, an attacker would need to buy enough equipment and take on enough electricity costs to control more than 51% of the network. See what a cost of a 51% attack would be, today (over ). $3 billion _Calculation of the cost of a 51% attack on the Bitcoin network_gobitcoin.io Cost of a 51% attack — GoBitcoin Note that some miners already are close to spending $3 billion, so this may not be as infallible as we want it to be, ideally. Along with this monetary baseline**,** there are against an attacker. additional lines of defense A Giant Book Of Transactions The net result is a giant book, maintained by the global community — where everyone is in agreement on the state of transaction history (thanks , for this analogy). This book tells the ‘story of money’ in a non-tamperable way. Naval Why is this important? Because today’s money is also a story, which we trust to be non-tamperable due to the trust we have in our governments — who issue and control the money. These governments have done a good job in a lot of cases. , perhaps less so. In other cases The Next Generation Of Games The Bitcoin game was the first of many blockchain based games. came along in 2014 and is at the forefront of many cryptoeconomic ‘updates’, including , sharding, and state channels. If you’re excited about cryptoeconomics, here is from , co-founder of Ethereum. Ethereum Proof-of-Stake consensus Cryptoeconomics 307 Vitalik Ethereum and Bitcoin are base-layer protocols (games), Lots of tools are being built (Plasma, Lightning, 0x Protocol) to directly affect and surround this base-layer. People are also building tokens on top with cryptoeconomic incentives. Many are early, given the work still to do on the ground level — but some will be right on time. There is lots of work to be done, starting here. both still tinkering with cryptoeconomics to find what’s right. _Contribute to Ethereum research development._github.com ethereum/research In , the protagonist, Ender, plays ‘a game’ which turns out to massively shape reality. As with all great sci-fi, this has already shown to be a true story in reality. Ender’s Game Cryptoeconomics is helping us create games which lean on the (semi)rationality of man + security provided by computers. For those who protect the rules of the game, rewards are given. For attackers, large financial walls are put up to disincentivize bad behavior. For every bad actor out there — we remember, cryptography helps us . heavily favor the defender In future posts, we’ll explore cryptoeconomics in new protocols, and dive deep into novel research. Ideally, we find novel ways to use old, tested economics and cryptography in new, interesting ways. Diving deeper into well designed economic systems of the past and learning quickly from the first applications here will be important. The future of blockchain universe is being built today. It’s possible these systems, one-day, will seem as entrenched as the Federal Reserve does today. There will come a time where a future group sits down, looks at the work done around 2017, and asks questions about the implications of our decisions on how money and information flows. It’s better to make mistakes now, before we reach a critical mass. For a growing group, cryptoeconomics seems like the right place to focus attention, as a result. All viewpoints and ideas are helpful at this stage — the more divergent thoughts, the better. Hopefully, this article gives you footing to be a part of the ride. Thanks to L4 Ventures founders Josh Stark and Jeff Coleman for the inspiration for this post, as well as Nate Rush , Adi Kancherla , and Connor Davis for their early feedback. About the author: Vivek Singh started Kryptos Studio to share thoughts on cryptoeconomics and to highlight projects and thinkers working on the blockchain. He writes and builds in the blockchain space, and has a laugh which more resembles a prolonged chuckle. Follow him and reach out anytime @vsinghdothings on Twitter!

Cryptoeconomics In Context

273 Stories To Learn About Venture Capital

Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs) are an emerging technology within the blockchain space, and it seems like new use -cases are coming out every day. Today I am speaking with Marom Yvgi from LEAP and he tells us about how NFTs can be used in the sports talent discovery sector. Hello! Who are you, and what do you do? Hey! My name is Marom Yvgi. I am an entrepreneur and a Blockchain Business Advisor based in Tel Aviv. I specialize in business development within the crypto sphere and am the founder of the video discovery platform Middle Block. In June this year, I joined the LEAP team as a VP of blockchain to ensure its successful engagement in the crypto market. What's your backstory, and how did LEAP come about? I come from a belief that viewers from around the world prefer the authenticity and reliability of the independent creator as opposed to the traditional news, culture, and leisure providers, especially when it comes to sports. When I first came across LEAP, I saw it as the link between these talented individuals, not necessarily athletes, and major firms and audiences. After meeting with LEAP CEO Omri Lachman, I saw how revolutionary the idea was. LEAP is not just another Play2Earn App with NFTs. It is offering a new definition of talent, one who probably won’t play in professional sports leagues, but rather one who strives for a secondary route to stardom via becoming a digital talent. And new, decentralized economic models enabled by blockchain technologies make it, not only possible but accessible to all. I joined LEAP to make it happen. Describe the process of launching or preparing to launch LEAP. I won’t go into details before the platform is actually launched, but just imagine you are preparing to start the new new era for all the young athletes worldwide. It’s definitely very exciting and challenging at the same time because we need not just test the technical side of the app, but create the blockchain-driven in-game economy, build the shadow token mechanism to allow talents to benefit from the App without directly interacting with the cryptoworld, and many more processes that we are running simultaneously. Being on the frontier of building this unique next-generation platform for talents is a fulfilling mission for me. Take us through your daily process of what it is that you do. Besides the daily challenges, my work at this stage mainly concerns everything around LEAP’s token generation event, such as working with legal consultants, blockchain\smart contract developers, exchanges, market makers, contract auditors, etc. In addition, I am also using my connections and skill as a BizDev to build relevant B2B collaboration in the crypto sphere. What has worked to attract and retain users or customers? The key to successful retention efforts lies in understanding what people want and what keeps them entertained. LEAP is built by sports enthusiasts for sports enthusiasts, for those who love competition, fun, and a gamified experience, as well as those who enjoy discovering, living, and breathing sports. LEAP offers a full emotional journey. Unlike games with fictional characters, LEAP's Talents are all real-life individuals. These individuals are leveling up in their playing abilities, encouraged by fans and other users voting on their skills. These talents want to improve and succeed to get their NFTs minted based on their Karma and Stamina scores. They want to get the in-game tokens, backed by real crypto-assets, which they can use in the LEAP Meta-Market to purchase real-world products and services to improve their athletic development. All of these keep them coming back to the platform for more. Why did you choose to focus on Blockchain tech for LEAP? Leveraging the full capabilities of blockchain technology allows LEAP to provide the foundational layer where the next generation of athletes and their fans will come and grow together. By utilizing new Web3 capabilities such as Play-to-Earn (P2E), Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), Utility Tokens, a new wave of social media channels, and LEAP’s proprietary Ranking & Discovery Engine, we at LEAP are trailblazing new ways for players, talent seekers, fans, and others to interact in the entertaining and lucrative sporting world. How are you doing today, and what does the future look like? Let's talk numbers! I truly believe in the potential and the utility of LEAP's product, and I’m delighted to be part of this revolutionary project. We are in the pre-alpha stage, building an early-adopters community to bring them on board when the platform is released. Together with our international partners in Mexico, Israel, Spain, and Africa, and with access to millions of sports enthusiasts worldwide, we are preparing to offer the world a new sports economy powered by Web3 and the possibilities it enables through P2E, NFTs, the metaverse, and more. Regarding the future, we don't have a crystal ball, but some things are obvious—despite the current turbulence, blockchain technology is a definitive part of the future. And LEAP is going to be a part of it by allowing a smooth onboarding of "newcomers" into Web 3 without any of the technological barriers that usually come with embarking on a new technological space. As a result, we will see an increase in non-native crypto users joining the platform, willing to contribute and participate in LEAP's economy in the long run. Furthermore, LEAP's welcoming and fun environment, together with the shared goals of both talents and talent seekers, makes  LEAP a platform that looks to keep its users in the ecosystem for years to come. Through launching LEAP, what is something you have learned that surprised you? The thing that surprised me the most is how such a big problem, like the one LEAP is trying to solve, didn't have a solution until today. The core of the problem is that the sports industry, mainly because of its centralized nature, is missing a lot of a "raw material," called talent. Many ventures were trying to approach it from the angle of talent discovery through online scouting platforms and apps. They facilitated the process but didn't offer a real solution, leaving 99% of talents untapped. That's why we started to look for a way for a talent of any age and from any background to thrive with his, or her, skillset. We approach the definition of talent from a completely different perspective, striving to create a new generation of sportsmen and sportswomen who will lead their unique paths and career through Web 3.0. In LEAP, we are democratizing the space by ensuring that every person engaged in sports activities has an equal shot to introduce themselves and start building a journey. Mistakes were made. What were they and what did you do? It’s not a mistake but rather a wish. It could be great to go one year back and launch LEAP then enjoying the 2021 bull market could help LEAP grow faster. What have been the most influential things in your life that affected your project? This can include books, podcasts, or people? I'm not sure if it's the most influential, but this has definitely affected me. The COVID-19 pandemic influenced the way people work and socialize today, including in sports. And that's why one of the missions of LEAP as a sports talent discovery platform is to help talents, fans, and talent seekers connect in a fun new way. Do you have any advice for other creators, entrepreneurs, or developers who want to get started or are just beginning? My best advice is to always work and create for something you believe in. There is nothing better than spending time on something that will achieve life-changing results. Where do you see the blockchain, cryptocurrency, P2E, and decentralization space going in the next 5 to 10 years? 2021 proved to us that blockchain and crypto are here to stay and the industry will grow. It’s only a matter of time. As a big believer in blockchain technology and as a gamer, I am confident that Blockchain will revolutionize the way gamers play in the future. Even ten years ago, gamers used to trade in-game assets for real money. Blockchain can make this way more accessible and efficient. Where can we go to learn more? You can visit our website: https://www.playleap.io/ Or check a short video to see how the platform will look like from inside: https://youtu.be/OecSl6FMFYM

How NFTs Can Be Used In Sports Talent Discovery

Cómo se pueden usar las NFT en el descubrimiento de talentos deportivos

Comment les NFT peuvent être utilisés dans la découverte de talents sportifs

खेल प्रतिभा खोज में एनएफटी का उपयोग कैसे किया जा सकता है

スポーツの才能発見における NFT の使用方法

Como os NFTs podem ser usados na descoberta de talentos esportivos

Cách NFT có thể được sử dụng trong khám phá tài năng thể thao

NFT 如何用于体育人才发现

AI is on the rise. In some ways it was always inevitable. But ask any researcher who suffered through the 1990s in AI research and they might not agree. AI and neural networks in particular were considered a backwater for researchers for decades. If you wanted a dead end career go into neural nets. In the 1990s, one of the leading thinkers behind neural networks, . Nobody came to his classes. He worked on his ideas in isolation. Geoffrey Hinton, could barely get funding So few people have strong histories in AI now that big companies like Google and Facebook can’t find enough of them or hire them fast enough. Top AI researchers are making . The shortage will continue for some time, since people just weren’t studying this stuff. to pick up the mantel. Frankly, that’s probably the best bet nowadays anyway. more money than pro athletes That leaves it to the kids who don’t bother with college and just figure it out for themselves with open source tools Geoffrey Hinton and his colleagues always knew the math would work behind the algorithms. They just didn’t have the hardware to make it a reality. That would take decades and the rise of massive clouds to make it possible to run the huge calculations behind neural networks. And yet, even that wasn’t enough. It took the ascension of a different industry to really allow it to take off: Video Games. The relentless acceleration of graphics processing power led to ever more parallel processors to deal with the constant calculations of drawing more and more photorealistic graphics in real time. Now computer scientists are to make the giant matrix calculations of AI work faster and faster. tapping banks of those GPUs So where’s this idea you’re talking about Dan? I want to make billions. All right here you go. Fifteen years ago, I proposed a revolutionary concept to my friend, . He went on to become one of the top angel investors in Silicon Valley, but at the time he was just getting his start in investing, working at a company called and starting his first company that I built the Linux servers to power, a company that was eventually purchased by McAfee and became . I was playing a lot of games back then as many young techies tend to do. They had graphics cards and were even starting to have physics cards, but they seemed to be missing the brains of the operation: AI. Computer opponents were dumb and easy to defeat. They couldn’t think like people. So I said: Chris Dixon Bessemer Venture Partners Site Advisor Why don’t we build an AI card for video games? We could accelerated path finding and any other calculations that made the enemies smarter. He went away and did some research. After a bit he came back and said “I think this is a great idea. Let’s do it.” And you know what happened? I chickened out. I didn’t think I was old enough, smart enough, or tough enough to make it a reality. In short, I was a coward. I don’t look back in life with regret very often but this is one of those moments that I had the chance to change my life and the world forever and I failed. When I think about how much further along this industry would be right now, I’m really sad. We might already be close to General Artificial Intelligence (GAI). We almost certainly would’ve had Siri, smart phones and AlphaGo a decade earlier. But with that said, I don’t regret it too much. In hindsight, it was the right decision. I wasn’t really meant to do that or I would have had the courage and monomaniacal focus to make it happen. That doesn’t happen for many things in life and it did not happen for me there. Without that kind of relentless focus it’s impossible to bring that kind of radical idea to life. So there you have it. My focus is not tech companies anymore, it’s writing. That’s what I really want to do. That is my monomania. So maybe it wasn’t a mistake. Maybe it was just the universe saving me from myself. The universe has a way of incorporating our “mistakes” along with our “successes” into who we are today. It all works out in the end. And yet it’s still a damn good idea. Nobody has done it yet. So I give this idea to you, my faithful readers. Take it run with it. Frankly, it’s amazing to me that nobody else thought of this. Usually, I think of something and a few days later find out someone has been working on it for years or it already exists. That said, the industry is starting to move in this direction though so get rolling fast. A bunch of companies are focusing on building AI silicone, but mostly for business apps. but it’s not really for games even if it is cool. , with a suggest price of $299 (but you can only buy them in quantities of 1000 or more.) The open source software out there is a great place to get started. If you wanted to build an ASIC, find some designers in China and see if you can accelerate those open source tools. Fathom just released a USB neural compute stick Nvidia just built a card designed for AI They are all missing the big boat: video games. The calculations in video games are what will make this surge to the next level. Those are different from the math needed to power machine vision or self driving cars. There’s still time to take this idea and run with it, but believe me, someone is already out there trying to make it happen. Beat them to it. So what do I want for the idea? Nothing. (Well if you want to give me an honorary position at the company and pay me for hanging around and drinking from your water cooler, I’m game.) But seriously, I ask for nothing, only that one day say that it was me who inspired you. AI game cards. This idea is officially open source. Now go make me proud. A bit about me: I’m an author, engineer and serial entrepreneur. During the last two decades, I’ve covered a broad range of tech from Linux to virtualization and containers. You can check out my latest novel, an epic Chinese sci-fi civil war saga where China throws off the chains of communism and becomes the world’s first direct democracy, running a highly advanced, artificially intelligent decentralized app platform with no leaders. You can also check out the Cicada open source project based on ideas from the book that outlines how to make that tech a reality right now and you can get in on the beta.

Steal This Idea and Make a Billion Dollars: AI Video Game Accelerator Cards

By James McDowall, Founding Partner, Arcanum Capital In the world of traditional finance, private equity firms have long been known for their old-school approach to investing, characterized by large capital deployments into established companies with the aim of generating substantial returns over a relatively long period. However, as the financial landscape undergoes a seismic shift with the rise of Web3 technologies and decentralized finance (DeFi), there is a growing realization that private equity firms need to adapt their strategies to remain competitive in this new era. More than almost anything else, private equity firms – especially in nascent, hyper-growth tech spaces – can benefit from the approach, which involves selecting projects that are strong in most areas but may be missing one piece that can be supplied by the network and resources of the VC group. Y Combinator One of the key advantages of operating this way is the newfound ability to open up engagement and focus on early-stage investing in startups and nascent companies. In the Web3 era, where disruptive technologies such as blockchain, decentralized applications (dApps), and non-fungible tokens (NFTs) are reshaping industries, the Y Combinator approach provides firms with the foresight and tools to identify and ultimately invest in promising early-stage projects. By shifting focus towards early-stage investments, private equity firms can gain exposure to innovative technologies and business models that have the potential to deliver outsized returns in the long run. Of course, you don’t need me to tell you that the Y Combinator has been wildly effective in the modern era, with Y Combinator itself being one of the most successful venture capital firms in the world. The firm’s success can be attributed to its unique approach to investing, which involves providing startups with a range of resources, including mentorship, funding, and access to a vast network of investors and entrepreneurs. approach This approach has helped Y Combinator identify and invest in some of the more marquee startups in the world, including Airbnb, Dropbox, and Reddit, to name just a few. In response to this success, venture capital firms are now applying a similar structure and mentality to their investment strategy, with their reach extending beyond capital commitments. By providing startups with the ancillary resources they need to succeed, VC firms can help ensure their investments are as successful as possible, generally leading to greater returns. They can also proliferate their own circular economic ecosystem, which grows more important every day. Within their self-created and sustaining network, VC firms are then able to get more creative, thoughtful, and forward-looking with their projects, considering companies that lack the already proven mature growth and revenue traditionally needed and still need a few gaps filled within their model; for example, investing in great groups that may have amazing vision, but have largely ignored marketing/pr strategy, or one that lacks an advisory board or a few particularly-focused developers, or even one that is still searching for another key piece of their GTM and/or infrastructure. This approach is especially effective in global blockchain startups, where a hands-on, activist approach is critical for investors dealing with brilliant, but sometimes less-than-organized teams who are flying the plane while it's being built, so to speak. Let’s get granular here with great examples from a couple of Arcanum Capital’s portfolio companies: Two Case Studies: Kandola and Cross The Ages Kandola Kandola’s value proposition hit us right where we live: Building a decentralized data-as-a-service platform that guarantees data security, data integrity, and data privacy while catering to the real-time storage and retrieval needs of applications, transcending today’s digital economy with new opportunities for innovation and growth across sectors. The challenges reside in being able to handle the sheer volume, variability, and velocity that general purpose data transactions are known for and delivering on the Web3 promises of greater security, transparency, and accountability. Their platform brings data closer to Web3 smart contracts and DApps by enabling real-time analytics and AI training and deployment on unified data views (data lakes) that span across application-generated data, blockchain data, and outside-world data. What they are building is not only applicable to Web3, but it also caters to the storage and retrieval needs of IoT, healthcare, social, and gaming. In their case, it was primarily infrastructure, on top of our usual hands-on guidance with things like branding, that has really propelled them forward: Siddharth Banerjee, Founder and CEO of Kandola, said, “We are incredibly fortunate to have Arcanum Capital as one of our key VCs and early investors. Their unwavering support has been instrumental in propelling our project to new heights. Beyond providing crucial liquidity and financial backing, Arcanum has been a pillar of guidance and a bridge to invaluable network connections. Notably, their and especially James's proactive involvement in linking us with the node provider network during our testnet phase exemplifies his commitment to our success. James and Lucia consistently dedicate time to understand the intricacies of our project, offering insightful feedback and strategic advice. Their extensive connections within the Web3 community have opened doors for us, establishing our project in a well-respected circle. Working with Arcanum has been more than a financial partnership; it's been a collaborative journey filled with mentorship and support. We're grateful for their ongoing commitment and consider ourselves fortunate to have such a seasoned and well-connected ally in our corner.” Cross The Ages Arcanum Capital met Founder Sami at a conference in Lisbon and knew almost immediately we needed to back Cross The Ages (CTA). The on-the-spot pitch was captivating and compelling, and we quickly formed a strong long-term vision for what we needed to do with CTA. We advised them to build on Polygon, which they ultimately chose to do, giving us the leverage to approach Polygon Studios with the recommendation they follow us in with investment. They initially said no, but we were so confident in the company and our vision for it that we managed to convince them to overturn their decision and join us in backing CTA. Other investors who have followed Arcanum into Cross The Ages now include major game publisher Ubisoft, game-focused blockchain investment firm Animoca Brands, and in more recent news, covered by Cointelegraph, multi-billion dollar Japanese gaming goliath Square Enix, who also joined as an investor and strategic partner. The funding is being put towards game and app development programs, talent retention, and go-to-market activities, and with such high-caliber backers and top writers and artists from franchises such as Star Wars and Game of Thrones, we expect a very bright future for this portfolio company. Cross The Ages has been topping the App Store charts across several categories and geographies for several months, and we expect a significant uplift in valuation when it lists. "I have had the pleasure of working with Arcanum as a VC partner, and I can confidently say that their approach to investing is refreshingly different. Unlike typical predatory VCs, Arcanum is dedicated to adding value and support beyond just writing a cheque. I highly recommend Arcanum for any founder looking for a true partner in their journey to success." Said Sami Chlagou, Founder & CEO of Cross The Ages. About James McDowall Following a career as a professional athlete, James has been researching, investing in, and advising early and growth-stage technology entities since 2017. He has played pivotal roles in creative and strategic direction and business development and is experienced in conveying technological solutions to governments, regulators, and financial institutions. He gained invaluable alternative asset management knowledge and portfolio management experience during his CAIA studies and tenure with Swiss asset manager Tavis Digital in Zürich and has sat on the advisory board of the Swiss Impact Investment Association. He then Founded Arcanum Capital in 2020 and successfully raised and deployed Arcanum Emerging Technologies Fund I and has managed this successfully over the past 4 years. James excels in leveraging his strong global network of investors, entrepreneurs, and capital markets professionals to help finance and scale cutting-edge technology ventures. About Arcanum Capital is a venture capital firm focused on supporting enterprising and forward-thinking teams that are establishing decentralized networks and applications for the global blockchain ecosystem. Arcanum Capital's team consists of experienced investment professionals who understand what it takes to evaluate, incubate, and scale promising teams and ideas. Arcanum Capital We have been on the ground as operators, investors, and incubators in frontier and emerging markets, including India, since 2013, and have worked with startups, decentralized networks, and publicly listed companies. During this time, we have cultivated powerful networks and partnerships that are invaluable in helping our portfolio entities transition from idea to market and scale on the global stage.

How Venture Capital Firms Can Thrive by Tapping the Y Combinator Approach

কীভাবে ভেঞ্চার ক্যাপিটাল সংস্থাগুলি Y কম্বিনেটর পদ্ধতিতে ট্যাপ করে উন্নতি করতে পারে৷

Wie Risikokapitalfirmen durch den Y-Combinator-Ansatz erfolgreich sein können

Cómo pueden prosperar las empresas de capital riesgo aprovechando el enfoque Y Combinator

Comment les sociétés de capital-risque peuvent prospérer en exploitant l'approche Y Combinator

वाई कॉम्बिनेटर दृष्टिकोण का उपयोग करके वेंचर कैपिटल फर्म कैसे आगे बढ़ सकती हैं

ベンチャーキャピタル企業が Y コンビネーターのアプローチを活用してどのように成長できるか

Y Combinator 접근 방식을 활용하여 벤처 캐피털 회사가 성공할 수 있는 방법

Como as empresas de capital de risco podem prosperar aproveitando a abordagem do Y Combinator

Как фирмы венчурного капитала могут процветать, используя подход Y Combinator

Risk Sermayesi Firmaları Y Kombinatör Yaklaşımından Yararlanarak Nasıl Başarılı Olabilir?

Làm thế nào các công ty đầu tư mạo hiểm có thể phát triển mạnh bằng cách khai thác phương pháp kết hợp Y

风险投资公司如何利用 Y Combinator 方法蓬勃发展

200 Black Women In Tech To Follow on Twitter {2021 List}

As massive as the wealth creation and corporate disruption is going to be as a result of crypto (aka blockchain, cryptocurrency, and decentralization), the potential is even greater for those technologies to impact social good. From solving for identity for the who currently lack identity papers (ID), to solving for climate change, crypto is enabling amazing new ways to tackle the world’s biggest problems. 2.4 billion people With close to $200B in wealth created by bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, the crypto community has accumulated wealth at an unprecedented rate. Holding more crypto than could ever be spent in a lifetime has lead many to look at how they — and the technology they built their wealth on — could do more for the world. For example, the UN has established 17 Sustainable Development Goals, covering key development targets like access to food, gender equality, and sustainable cities. Remarkably, there are blockchain applications for nearly all of the 17 Goals aiming to end poverty, guarantee universal education and much more, by 2030. Whether you’re a crypto investor looking for , your thinking about doing a social impact ICO, or you just want to get smarter on the social crypto ecosystem, a lot of what will be discussed on this call will give you great encouragement that crypto is going to make the world a better place for a large number of humans. double or triple impact We’ll hear from a panel of four experts who are applying blockchain technology to solve climate change, increase financial inclusion, create an open ledger of verified impact data, and support the needs of children in some of the least developed places on earth. After the four panelists are done with their formal comments, we’ll have plenty of time remaining for questions from the audience. Click here to register for the call at GoToWebinar Our four esteemed speakers are: Chris led the launch of the $11M UNICEF Venture Fund in 2015, creating the first fund of its kind in the United Nations. The Fund uses a venture capital approach to invest in startups working on frontier technology like virtual reality, machine learning, and crypto-currency that can have a positive impact on humanity. Christopher Fabian (@hichrisfabian) — Co-founder of the UNICEF Innovation Unit, current lead of UNICEF Ventures, and Principal Advisor in UNICEF’s Office of Innovation. which is enabling the collection and verification of high quality data needed for sustainable development. Anne is also the Vice Chair of Blockchain Canada and has been an active part of the global blockchain community since 2012. She previously worked with Doctors Without Borders Canada in Central Africa, and currently serves on their board of directors. She is Faculty at Singularity University and was honored as one of CBC’s 12 Young Leaders Changing Canada. Anne Connelly (@anne_connelly) — Founding Team Member at the ixo Foundation , which will be used for things like improved carbon emission trading, better clean energy trading, enhanced climate finance flows, and better tracking and reporting of greenhouse gas emissions reduction. Francisco started his first company in 1995 at the age of 16, an online bookstore in Spain., and has since created additional startups in the renewable energy and Internet space. Francisco is also a long time banker focusing on M&A, including in the fintech and blockchain sectors. Francisco Benedito — Co-founder of CLIMATECOIN, a tech company at the nexus of digital identity, community and financial inclusion. Born and raised in South Africa, Calvin has had a passion for innovative solutions for financial inclusion and poverty alleviation. A Bachelor of Commerce from the University of South Africa and a Thomas Edison Innovation Nominee 2017. Calvin has a passion for Behavioral Economics and Psychology which fuels his drive with the Fummi app to use Blockchain to provide ID and conversely help the underserved and underprivileged starting in New York City. He is also a former Olympic pent-athlete and board member of YNG New York. Calvin Bradley — Co-founder of BlockchainForChange, Click here to register for the call at GoToWebinar 0.00000001 Bitcoin If you got at least worth of value from this post or enjoyed the video, go ahead and “Clap” below .

Crypto For Social Good — Conference Call, November 14th, 2pm-3pm EST

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