Better Place was a venture-backed international company that developed and sold battery charging and battery switching services for electric cars. It was formally based in Palo Alto, California, but the bulk of its planning and operations were steered from Israel, where both its founder Shai ...

Better Place (company) - Wikipedia

Asia&#x27;s Largest Human Capital SaaS Platform | BetterPlace is Asia’s largest human capital SaaS solution that enables enterprises to manage the entire lifecycle of their frontline workers. goBetter, an all-inclusive full-suite HRMS platform by BetterPlace, caters to the entire value chain of ...

BetterPlace

People-centric HR technology, employee benefits management, upskilling platform and workforce fulfilment solution. We help organisations achieve operational excellence.

Human Capital SaaS Platform - BetterPlace

A little over 13 years ago, Shai Agassi, a promising software executive who was in line to succeed the chief executive at SAP, then one of the world’s mightiest software companies, left the company he’d devoted the bulk of his professional career to and started a business called Better Place.

From the ashes of nearly a billion dollars, Ample resurrects Better ...

This article discusses why Better Place failed and Telsa succeeded.

Why Did Better Place Fail and Tesla Succeed? | by Jeremy Strickland ...

betterplace.org connects. People in need of support meet people who want to help. One to one. Worldwide.

Platform for social projects – betterplace.org

Ample is getting support from Shell for “autonomous robotics” charging. Is the company following in the footsteps of Better Place?

Ample Raises $31M: A Better Place Clone, or a New Way to Charge ...

In 2012, I bought a Renault Fluence Z.E., the 100-percent electric car from Israeli startup Better Place, which aimed to build the world’s first affordable all-electric vehicle. Planning started a full decade before the recent launch of the Tesla Model 3 – that company’s own affordable ...

Valuable lessons to learn from the crash of Better Place - ISRAEL21c

Under the hood, though, the normal 1.6-liter internal-­combustion engine has been replaced with a compact 70-kilowatt electric motor, a conversion overseen by Renault and a ­local company named Better Place. Instead of a gas tank, an enormous lithium-ion battery pack lives between the trunk ...

A Broken Place: The Spectacular Failure Of The Startup That Was ...

The remarkable scope, overwhelming ambition, and epic failure of the Better Place electric-car service in Israel is worthy of a book, or several. But until one appears, Fast Company magazine has produced the most comprehensive article yet on the founding--and foundering--of the great Better ...

The Epic Failure Of Better Place, As Covered By Fast Company

betterplace

With Bitcoin hitting $1 trillion in market value and cryptocurrencies’ potential to disrupt the global financial system, it is not news that crypto is everywhere nowadays. Digital coins are increasingly held as investments, and early investors in Bitcoin have made fortunes. Some consider cryptocurrencies and crypto payments a democratizing force that puts up a fight against central banks, Wall Street, and governments. There are bitcoin ATMs, digital art piece auctions, crypto-only dealership platforms for cars, and much more. Nevertheless, knowledge about blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and how it all works isn’t mainstream yet. It is, however, obvious that the blockchain, cryptocurrencies, and crypto payments are changing and challenging the world we live in. Shifting toward decentralized banking is the talk of the town. Already, crypto has been adopted as legal tender in El Salvador. Some governments are embracing cryptocurrencies. Central banks worldwide, including the U.S. Federal Reserve, are considering introducing their own digital currencies. There is talk of Bitcoin becoming a medium of exchange in Afghanistan. The New York Stock Exchange even offers an exchange-traded fund tied to the cryptocurrency. So, it is safe to assume that cryptocurrencies and related services, such as crypto payments are already changing the world as we know it. The main attraction of any crypto payment is that blockchain is a truly innovative technology that enables transactions only using digital identities, which means you no longer need a national central bank or a trusted intermediary such as a commercial bank or credit card provider. All transaction information and digital account balances are recorded on public digital ledgers, visible to anyone with internet access, maintained by multiple computers across the network. In other words, blockchain means secure, transparent, and tamper-proof transactions. Crypto payments have a lot of advantages for ordinary users. All parties are equal, and the fees are substantially lower in comparison to the traditional payments systems, especially when it comes to large sums. Crypto payments were initially conceived as a democratic and open type of payment, providing an alternative for centralized financial systems. This is not a simple process, but global leaders are showing an increasing interest in crypto, though continuing to be cautious. Tech giants, such as Amazon, Google, Microsoft, and PayPal, are also joining the game. Amazon is planning to accept bitcoin for payments; Google Pay users can now make payments using cryptocurrencies; Microsoft also accepts digital coins; PayPal clients from the U.S. can use cryptocurrencies for their payments; Mastercard announced its plans to support some of the cryptocurrencies in its network. So, there’s progress in this regard, and it is undoubtedly obvious that blockchain technology is the driver of significant change around the world. However, there might be some confusion in understanding how the volatile crypto market with hundreds of cryptocurrencies for sale on the exchange work. Indeed, blockchain isn’t perfect and has its flaws, but the technology is maturing, offering new cryptocurrencies that could be the game-changer in the low-cost digital payments world, making them widely accessible. It will give many low-income families with no credit card or bank account access to digital payments. Moreover, new possibilities offered by crypto payments internationally could make money transfers cheaper, quicker, and easier to track. Everybody will profit from these changes, including consumers, businesses, as well as exporters and importers. Why Cryptocurrency Payments Are The Future According to some forecasts, the scope of trans-border cryptocurrency payments will increase by 25 times within the next three years, reaching $4.4 trillion in 2024. Many will feel that cryptocurrencies are the catalyst for the newest payment revolution. However, before cryptocurrencies are adopted for payments worldwide, there is some troubleshooting and overall tuning up to be done. Also, a clear path for its realization should be laid out. This is where payment apps and portals come in, and the future of money and payment is heading. Last year, digital and mobile wallets accounted for about 45 percent of global e-commerce payment transactions. Some payment apps, such as Circle or Square, already offer their users the chance to buy and sell cryptocurrency, making digital tokens very similar to virtual cash. However, it is too early to use cryptocurrency on a mass scale for such purposes. There’s still a lot of work to be done in this direction. These apps should make cryptocurrency transactions clear and understandable for everyone, thus helping the adoption of cryptocurrencies into the mainstream market. Some banks have already started to incorporate elements of blockchain distributed networks to revamp their services, hoping to attract new customers and promote the use of cryptocurrencies as a currency. However, it will likely take a long time for people and banks to accept cryptocurrency as a day-to-day payment means. To turn cryptocurrency into a mainstream payment method, people should be able to use it in their everyday activities. To begin with, a transition from crypto to traditional money will be required. Retailers and business owners will not be willing to accept the transfer cost themselves or accept the currency fluctuation risk. Thus, payment companies will play a crucial role in facilitating this transition. Exchanging Payments Multifunctionality is the keyword when it comes to cryptocurrency wallets and exchanges. Cryptocurrency-based payment solutions should be versatile, offering various additional services such as investment management tools or safe storage. Just being a great cryptocurrency exchange or isn’t enough. Companies will have to offer an entire ecosystem that people will use in their everyday lives. cryptocurrency payment system The Crypto Future Isn’t So Bright. Or is it? However, there are some concerns. As cryptocurrencies face bans in more than 50 countries and critics say the new technology is wildly unregulated and empowers criminal groups, terrorist organizations, and rogue states, questions arise. Do cryptocurrencies have a future? The answer is complicated. Cryptocurrencies will hardly topple the dollar or other major central bank-issued currencies, but their technology will change how we conduct payments, banking, and other financial transactions. These changes will bring many benefits. But it is governments that will play a key role in making crypto payments widely available and accessible for consumers to see the benefits.

Will Crypto Payments Make The World A Better Place?

As the dawn of Decentralized Finance continues to look brighter each passing day, new projects are launching, with each showing unique potentials. Currently, there are dozens of reward tokens, payment solutions, synthetic asset networks and Dexes, and many other aspects of DeFi. Although there are many entities within the DeFi space, DeFi charity projects have become stellar examples of consumer activism and social sustainability. These crypto initiatives introduce the concept of philanthropy into the blockchain space. The number of charity DeFi projects has been growing exponentially in the recent past. Since the early crypto days, top charity organizations have recognized crypto as an essential tool in financing philanthropic activities. Some DeFi charity projects have donated as much as . $1 million The major driver to the fast rise of DeFi charity projects is the need for accountability. Red Cross Australia was under fire a few months ago for not being able to account . Such incidents can be circumvented by integrating blockchain technology, which will ensure that funds are safe and charities uphold transparency. for donations worth $90 million So, what are some of the most impactful DeFi charity projects? This guide looks into the biggest projects that incorporate charitable incentives within the DeFi network. What are DeFi Charity Projects? DeFi charity projects are those that allocate a proportion of their revenue for charitable causes. They may also offer unique value propositions in addition to supporting charities. These projects could have been launched to reward investors as well as set aside a percentage of their tax for charity. So, what charities can they focus on? Environmental protection Carbon-free world Access to clean drinking water Bridging income gaps due to growing wealth disparity Managing pests Finding cures for diseases Solving hunger problems in impoverished countries Fighting gender-based violence Top 5 DeFi Charity Projects to Follow 1. Aquari.io A charity token recognized currently is the network. This platform works as an environmental conservation network, using crypto to restore the earth to its good health. Aquari.io Like Munch, the Aquari token also sets its tokenomics to help ensure they properly reward the average investors. The network charges a 10% tax. Out of the 10%, 3% go to rebates for token holders. The network burns another 4% to ensure this token remains deflationary in the long term. Finally, 3% of every transaction goes to a charity's donation wallet. The amount aids in funding the entire project's non-profit functions. 2. TipsyCoin takes a spot as a leadingDeFi project focused on charities that protect and nurture children and animals. Their platform has a native token dubbed $tipsy that supports a network dedicated to helping children break away from the poverty cycle. TipsyCoin TipsyCoin’s smart contracts have been designed with unique tokenomics to sustain non-profit initiatives. But how do their innovative tokenomics work? The project has a maximum finite supply of 100 billion tokens. Out of this, 3% - equaling 3 billion tokens - will go to charities. TipsyCoin’s mechanics feature a burn protocol and as the token supply decreases, it corresponds to an increase in the value of their tokens. Once the project releases its revolutionary game, TipsyVerse, the adoption of $tipsy would rise exponentially since the game would be among the first in the DeFi space to integrate VR technology. When $tipsy hits $0.01, the 3 billion charity tokens would be worth a total of $30 million and this would have an enormous impact to improve the world. This would be among the largest donations in the crypto scene. As a DAO (Decentralized Autonomous Organization), owners of $tipsy will be able to vote on charities of their choice, weighted by the amount of $tipsy they hold. TipsyCoin’s vision is not far-fetched. In fact, the project is already associated with Anja Ringgren Lovén (2016 world’s most influential person) who has about them. TipsyCoin has saved 81 Nigerian children by providing them food, shelter and education. tweeted There is a superstition in many parts of Africa where children are considered to be demons and are ostracised by their families; TipsyCoin’s founder also has a relationship with Anja from some time back through collaborative vaccination efforts involving Pfizer. Even before launching TipsyCoin in Q1 of 2022, it is evident that this project truly cares about humanitarian efforts and this lends added credibility. Most recently, Paradise Wildlife Park (a registered charity based in the UK) has confirmed that TipsyCoin has adopted 50 penguins. 3. World of Waves focuses on revolutionizing the idea of charities around the globe. According to their website, they intend to make the world a sustainable place using NFT and DeFi. World of Waves The network introduces a $WOW token, a BEP-20 protocol to provide the charity options. This token charges a transactional tax of 11%. Out of the tax, 3.3% is distributed as rebates to token holders as a token of encouragement to hold more. Another 3.3% goes to liquidity pools. The last 4.4% tax is autonomously sent to the $WOW charity wallet. Every month, the network will be utilizing some amount from the charity wallet for philanthropic activities. They intend to focus on aquatic wildlife and ocean conservation. 4. Save The World is a Binance based ecosystem that puts philanthropic efforts into solving different global issues. This network has a native token, Save, which helps charities. In every buy and sell transaction, a tax of 10% is charged. 5% goes to token holders as rebates, while 2% goes to daily operations. The remaining 3% goes to charities. Additionally, they developed a “donations wallet” for well-wishers to donate BNBs. Save The World The first phase of the funds, which was about $1.7 million, went to help India in her battle against Covid 19. The network also contributed towards the GBV fight in South Africa and donated some funds to the American Cancer Society. Other beneficiaries included Africa Rising and Shawn Mkhize among others. 5. Munch is one of the DeFi projects proving to be highly influential, especially in charities. The platform, which was lightly mentioned earlier, launched in 2017. Munch The network uses the Munch token to raise funds for its operations and charitable activities. It charges a 10% tax. Out of the 10%, half rewards the token holders for hodling, while the other half of the assets are converted to Ethereum and autonomously sent to charities. The Munch ecosystem allows community members to select the charity they want to support accordingly. Final Thoughts This guide has outlined the concept of charity DeFis. The organizations featured are doing a noble job of protecting the environment and its people from mounting complexities created by factors such as global warming and growing income disparities. Munch, Aquari.io, WOW, Save and TipsyCoin all have addressed different challenges faced by our world.

5 Best DeFi Charity Projects that are Making the World a Better Place

Do you honestly believe that when the clock strikes midnight tonight, 2020 will be gone for good?! I'm afraid that we will still have to deal with the aftermath of 2020. Unfortunately, I didn't take a screenshot of the best tweet in 2020. So, I'm doing my best to paraphrase it. All credits to a guy who made this ingenious observation. It goes something like this: The most tragic (worst) typo in human history - 2012! Maybe I didn't quote it in the most precise way, but you get the point, don't you? I don't know. I guess that a Mayan priest or priestess in charge of calendar stuff just had too many coca leaves or whatever they were using to "communicate" with the ancient gods. Thye screwed us big time or maybe we failed to interpret their doomsday prediction the right way. Either way, Hacker Noon made history by refusing to break the tradition of annual Noonies awards because of the pandemic. I'm grateful not because I won one of the awards, but because the Noonies made me forget completely about all the madness and troubles of 2020 - even for a moment. That's really something, isn't it? But, my dear Noonies loonies, that's not the best thing Hacker Noon did. "COVID-20+" Rule To The Rescue! My memory doesn't serve me right these days. I became a walking & talking pharmacy thanks to my wife, a lucky COVID survivor, who makes sure I'm taking enough vitamins and God knows what every single day. So, I can't remember who exactly shared a story about the Hacker Noon "COVID-20+" rule, but it was definitely one of their staffers. So, what's this rule all about, and why it is so important to write and share a story about? First things first, why COVID-20+, and not COVID-19? What's that even supposed to mean? Well, the Hacker Noon staff decided to increase the tips they leave to the local small businesses during the pandemic. Plain and simple, the "COVID tips" have to be at least 20%, and even more whenever and wherever possible. Don't get me wrong. We all give how much we have and can afford at the moment. And, it's not about the money at all. It's about the message and vibes you're sharing and spreading. Right? The Less I Have - The More I Give Yeah baby, that's my version of Metallica's "Wherever I May Roam." The less I have the more I gain More than I can count, I came back home without a single cent left in my wallet, but with a full heart. Cheesy phrase alert! On very rare occasions when I was allowed to enjoy a coffee in my favorite bar for a strictly limited time, the last thing on my mind was the bill itself. I felt like Rockefeller while ordering and paying for the new rounds of drinks for all guests know and unknown. Rest assured, I wasn't the only one, and the virus of universal generosity spread quicker than the actual virus. The waiters and waitresses treated us a royalty. Nobody knew when the next lockdown is going to hit and how long it's going to last. The special treatment and most generous tips were reserved for the food delivery guys. The look on their faces when you leave a tip that's almost half of what's been ordered was and still is - priceless. Just to clarify. You don't have to be rich to be generous beyond your means. I mean, let's face it, you aren't traveling. You don't buy new things. What's the point of saving for rainy days in the world that may end (hypothetically and literally) at any moment? Right? At one point, it hurt more to see a sign "out of business" in your neighborhood and heard the bad news that your friend lost a job than to read and listen about the number of new COVID cases. I mean no disrespect to people who weren't sure that they're going to make it because of severe pneumonia, like my wife, or those who lost their loved ones, like two of my first-door neighbors. I'm not a scientist. I can't invent a vaccine. I'm not a doctor. I can't cure you. And, we all know, there are no filthy rich freelancers. So, I can't go around and save businesses, but at least, I can give and share what I have. You may say, but what's the point, your tip is just a drop in the ocean. True. But, it's also true that solidarity and selfishness can move the mountains. As If There Is No Tomorrow Today is the New Year's Day. Nobody is asking or expecting you to be a superhero. Just don't be a COVIDiot. Does it make you feel special if you go to some forbidden secret COVID party? Can you live with yourself? One of the doctors who worked in a hospital around the clock where my wife had to stay for a night - died. He was only 45-years-old. My age. You don't have to go crazy with your money and live la vida loca. Just give away a little bit more than you used to. That's all. Don't be a COVID fool, stick to the COVID-20+ rule, as much as you can and want. Happy New Year! Say no to fear! Above all, don't skip to leave a generous tip!

How Can Hacker Noon's "COVID-20+" Rule Make The World A Better Place In 2021

“In these unprecedented times…” People build unprecedented products, and contribute to the internet in unprecedented ways. Go on, make a fellow human’s day and nominate the best YOUR best of 2020’s tech industry for a 2020 #Noonie, the tech industry’s most independent and community-driven awards: NOONIES.TECH. One such impressive human is from Thailand: 2020 Noonie nominee in . Songtham Tungkitkancharoen Future Heroes and Technology categories Scroll on through for their take on what’s trending in tech today... 1. Tell us a bit about yourself. I'm a product person that wants to make the world a better place. Driven by the infinite mindset, I see technology as a means for creating global change and have had the incredible opportunity to work with amazing companies in my hometown of San Francisco and in my current residence of Bangkok. 2. Tell us about the things you make / write / manage / build. SaaS, Cloud, PM 3.  What are you most excited about right now? Incoming Corgi puppy! 4. What are you worried about right now? Financial stability 5. What's the most useful advice you've ever given somebody? Get over 6. How has the pandemic changed your life and/or career? My life has been changed by a permanent WFH policy at work, increasing my use of technology to stay up to date and connected to friends and loved ones. 7. If we gave you $10 million to invest in one thing right now, where would you put it? Elon Musk 8. What's an opinion you have that most people don't agree with? Wu Tang is for the children 9. What or Who are you keeping an eye on in 2020? Kanye 10. Which apps can't you live without? Chrome, Gmail, YouTube, LINE, Spotify 11. What are you currently learning? Account Management For much the same reasons Hacker Noon decided not to put good ideas behind pop-ups or paywalls — nor abuse your personal data to target you with creepy ads — we also decided that you don’t have to be a #thinkfluencer or have 50k followers on Twitter to earn the recognition that comes with a 2020 Noonie Nomination. Make somebody’s day and nominate them to be recognized in the internet’s most independent and community-driven awards: . NOONIES.TECH

"I Want To Make The World a Better Place" - Songtham Tungkitkancharoen, 2020 Noonie Nominee

Greetings, humans. I remote chat this afternoon with Rohit Jha , the CEO & Co-Founder of Transcelestial Technologies, a startup building light speed communications infrastructure for the next 100 years. Prior to founding Transcelestial Technologies, Rohit has worked on cutting-edge projects in autonomous vehicles, hardware and software engineering projects - including working on secure, low-latency, communication and distributed software systems in financial institutions where he received multiple accolades, one as the youngest Associate in The Royal Bank of Scotland’s Asia Pacific team. Hello Rohit! How are you coping with our (Singapore’s) partial lockdown situation so far? Nothing new. Basically ‘University Life’ all over again, except for the serious number of hours spent working on 😃 . Difference is, that was self-isolation and this one is by the government. Although, I’m very saddened by the situation of our friends from India, Bangladesh and other places are in, in the worker dormitories. Hope they are being taken good care of. Transcelestial Yes, our community cases has really lowered in the past weeks, but the transmission numbers remain high on the foreign workers’ side. It is more like there were so many attack vectors for Covid-19 and so many possible variations of spreading, edge cases were bound to creep in. It is the same story you see repeating over and over in other countries. When I was studying in Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, they were renovating big chunks of our halls so my friends and I have had the chance to go and visit some of these dormitories back then - social isolation is just impossible there. Given that most countries will start re-opening next month, what is one thing everyone can do to solve this societal issue? There is no other solution than a medical one. We must work collectively to fund and fast track vaccine trials. If you look at pandemic propagation and re-attack scenarios, both from historical occurrences and computer models, there are predicted to be waves of highs and lows of outbreak. Social distancing and mask-wearing is like going to the gym before summer break. You do it occasionally, to conform to trend, but if exercise is not part of a daily routine for a longer period of time, one will fall out of habit. Only a joint funding initiative, injected by the government and executed through industrial-academic partnerships, will help resolve this situation fast and cheaply. I’ll hope to see our societies jointly working towards this solution, then. I wanted to know more about the stage of development that Transcelestial is in this year. The last we met in late 2018, your product, CENTAURI, was emerging from prototype, into on-ground application? A lot has happened in a year! Seriously - the last year feels like 2 years! Yeah, so to put in context what we are trying to solve - what we are building is aimed at solving the Global Distribution Challenge in Internet Connectivity. The Internet is delivered to your handphone or computer, or VR glasses through 3 main steps: 1. - Data hosted in other countries or continents is channeled through massive fiber pipes sitting at the bottom of the ocean. They carry almost 95% of the world’s data. Undersea Cables 2. - Once these undersea cables come up on a continent, telecoms and governments build 100s of kilometres-long fiber cables to carry this data to large cities and towns. Inter-city fiber 3. - ISPs, telecoms, and other companies then take this data and using a mix of fiber and wireless technologies (4G for instance), plug this to cell towers, homes, offices, hospitals, schools, and so on. Last Mile Connectivity All 3 parts of this chain have severe costs and physical bottlenecks which has resulted in more than 50% of the world still unconnected or connected with very poor Internet speeds. So our wireless laser communication technology is being developed to address all 3 of these distribution challenges for at least the next 50 years of human expansion. CENTAURI is our initial attempt to attack the easiest of the 3 steps - Last Mile Connectivity. When we last met each other back in late 2018, we had just tested our R&D product with SK Telecom in South Korea, and demonstrated remarkable potential for commercial and technological success. In the last year (2019), we spent time on: Redesigning the entire product for commercial manufacturing Reduced dimensions and costs by almost 60% by fully vertical integrating the various subsystems. Starting a production line with one of the world’s top contract manufacturer We launched two models of the product: CENTAURI 1Gbps (for the 4G world & enterprises) and CENTAURI 10Gbps (for the 5G world). We have also expanded to 5 countries in total where we have deployed and tested our technology with leading telecommunications and other partners. It sounds like a massive undertaking for sure. Were there any fundamental design changes; in using wireless lasers to speed up communication? It was mostly massive engineering design decisions. For instance, the previous R&D device was a pretty much a ‘giant, heavy Vader helmet’. But as we were productizing it, Step 1 was to make the external aesthetics to be the smallest, lightest design ever made for such a technology, including a design which would instantly invoke a sense of space-age futurism. This, I think, was probably the coolest part of the external changes. Internally, there were some hardcore improvements in our state-of-the-art laser pointing and tracking system which is a combination of self-learning and heuristics-based methods. Also, major advances in our precision optics, optoelectronics and opto-mechanical sub systems. Because our team is mainly comprised of ex-space folks - we brought in many techniques used in cutting edge space tech, military tech and academic learnings into in-house calibration and production workflow. Like, how to align optical axis with micrometer precision, so that even when being transported across rough seas and sitting out in typhoons and scorching heat, these systems perform to a micron level of accuracy for many years. Your team from Entrepreneur First’s (They were in the inaugural cohort, in Singapore) has had the largest seed funding round in Southeast Asia when you started? At that time - yes. Suspect it probably was the largest seed round for startup in Southeast Asia, but since then, many have gone on to raise bigger seed rounds. I feel extremely invigorated by this. Deep tech has previously taken a back seat to E-commerce in this region, but seeing such massively renewed interest in deep tech companies with large seed rounds  (Kind of a necessity for deep tech companies) is quite commonplace now. I even joined in the round for one of them! any Yes I agree, when we worked together back in end 2018 where I worked with niche or deep tech companies exclusively, there wasn’t much public interest in such applications. Even today, smaller consumer applications seem to get so much more hype than the people building really visionary communications technology. I think it really boils down to who the investors are, what promises of return they have raised their funds on, what is the risk appetite of their LPs, etc. Take this Covid-19 situation for example. Traditional retail and B2B businesses are taking massive sales hits. Companies who were confident before about raising $5 - 10 million are now looking for C-notes to keep things going, because there are stories of investors backing out even after term sheets and investment agreements were concluded. In this period of time, deep tech - and specifically early stage deep tech, it makes total sense to invest in these areas. 1.Most of the money will go into R&D and core tech development. 2. The founders can make better use of that money to get in better talent at cheaper compensation - liquidity of talent is higher too. 3. No real urgency to go out and search for clients for that nasty MRR metric. 4. Price per share is probably going to be lower as founders have lesser expectations of valuation - hence investors can end up getting more bang for buck. And then there are specific industries which will continue to matter 10 years later even if the world changes dramatically - telecommunications, food, medicine, education, tighter social networks, games, content, energy and transportation. And if you are really really scared that this is the end of the world, then there is an even more perfect industry to invest in - space tech. Because then if things do get to that point, leaving is the only option! Space is the final frontier after all. All valid points -  I know you will announce your Series A round later this month; was the process largely the same with raising the seed round? Well, it’s definitely way shorter! Our seed round took 9 months end to end! If it wasn’t for some amazing angels wiring cash upfront, it would have been tough to continue. Fundraising rounds are like different levels in a game. To defeat every ‘level’ and ’level’s boss’, you often need a completely new strategy. Largely for deep tech, seed rounds are all about trying to convince everyone on 3 things: 1. Can you technically build it? 2. Can you hire the right people to help you build it? 3. Is the final potential market large enough, for instance, at least worth a few billions, if not more. At Series A, you already have great answers for those. So for a deep tech company the questions are now: 1. Is it really for commercial application yet? If so, what attempts were made for product market fit? 2. Do you have some kind of excel model which explains how you can get to Series B without running out of cash and hopefully by then, demonstrating to your early market that this product is good? 3. How defensible is it? And of course, there were many learnings from our seed round fundraise that we employed this time. The one which helped save the most time was starting casual conversations with folks you want to raise from, months before you actually want to. In fact, the first term sheet we got was from a fund who decided to not join in the seed round but we had kept talking to them every few months since then! This is often not understood - or overlooked, by new founders. 👏 That’s really interesting. Oh one more thing - during the whole time fundraising, I was almost external to the company with Danesh (our co-founder) even taking over most of CEO duties, like sales and other projects. We would have weekly catchups on company progress so i didn’t totally lose touch. I think in the end after the first 1-2 months, because of just the phase we were in, I still had to plug back in almost 30% of my time. But if you can stay disciplined in total, and have an unrelenting focus on fundraising, you can run a tight, quick round. Yes, I understood from so many CEO founders that running the business and a venture funding round concurrently was simply not effective. I mean you hear people saying that fundraising is a full time job, but in reality as founder or CEO, it’s impossible to detach from those duties. So the usual split ends up being 60% fundraising & 40% sales and other stuff. Which just means putting your leg in just another boat. It’s very, very difficult to fully detach and focus. But this is 100% needed. And for that you need a great co-founder, sales team, engineering team and operations team who understands why. You’re a young founder yourself and this is your first venture. How did you know how to make such a mindset and process change in the first place? As they say in the novel Anna Karenina, - the same Internet that we are helping build out also is the largest storage of our collective experiences, wishes, dreams and ambitions. “Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way” If you are not good at something or its your first time, usually it is a good practice to read relevant experiences and talk to the right people to understand what it takes to do something efficiently. Obviously, our seed round investors (Entrepreneur First, Wavemaker, 500Startups, airtree, Michael Seibel from YC, our angels) were a tremendous help in terms of explaining the mindset and preparation needed to undertake a new fundraising round. But also like almost everything, if you think from basic principles, it naturally comes to you. I also collectively spent more than 100 hours reading general feedback and advice coming out of blogs, interviews, articles, news content of B2B hardware or software founders who have walked the path before me. A good example which I recommend to a lot of founders is Front CEO’s Mathilde’s retrospectives on her fundraising rounds which has consistently been very tightly run. Eventually it boils down to having 1-1s with Danesh (our co-founder) on the upcoming course of action, and us both discussing on the best way to do it, the Vulcan way. 🖖 Live Long And Prosper. Which one in your team is the Spock of Transcelestial? Haha, I don’t know. Maybe ? (An Engineer in the team.) Spock has been so many things over time that its difficult to pin down his personality. In the Star Trek original, he was very much Spock the science officer - calm, composed, wise, emotionless mostly, but empathetic. In , he is much more passionate and risk taking and adventurous, A-type personality. In the new discovery series he is the lone genius type with hero complex. Max Star Trek Kelvin Timeline So it seems that your journey as a lonely, fundraiser person is coming to an end, synchronizing with the re-opening of offices, from our earlier partial lockdown status due to the pandemic. What is one of the first things you plan to do when the lockdown ends? Eating dumplings from the Michelin-reviewed Smith Street Food Court dumpling and noodle shop! From Transcelestial’s perspective, we actually had anticipated a lockdown like this. So 2 weeks before the start of the original period, we had started discussing how the hardware engineers could continue working from home and stay productive. What the team has been preparing for mainly is to kickstart mass production of our current CENTAURI models. Good old ‘economies of scale’ is the best way to bring the prices down for a new technology. So next week onwards, we start setting up our major production line for our first mass-produced CENTAURI devices. Also, we have tons of projects overseas which have been on halt due to various travel bans. So we have some extremely busy deployment schedules coming up this month and the next 2-3 months with our regional telecom partners. Finally, we are working on hiring, and an office move. We are ramping up our business teams to scale the product market fit. So if you know about some great offices with discounted pricing, let me know! We’re going for the industrial high ceiling, trendy lair vibe! Chinese dumplings with noodles are always delicious. Sure, I would love to help to grow Transcelestial again. I’ll catch you later in the month then! As long as we wear masks and maintain social distancing! Singapore, July 3 2020 : Transcelestial Technologies, a Singapore-based startup building the future of Internet Distribution, today announced that it has closed USD 9.6M in Series A funding, co-led by EDBI, a Singapore Government investment arm, and Wavemaker Partners. Disclosure : I am consulting for Transcelestial Technologies currently.

The Space Tech Startup Making Our Internet A Better Place With Lasers🖖 

By Better Place — Shai Agassi, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=47787552 Between 2005–2014, . In 2009, he taunted the incumbent auto companies, suggesting he would disrupt their $60k luxury car segment by building $20k electric vehicles that would pull up to battery swapping stations around the world. Shai Agassi graced the cover of every tech magazine worth its salt (including Wired with the article written by @Daniel Roth). Agassi spoke at Davos, TED and was a guest on late night TV shows. He was a hot shot founder who’d sold his previous startup to SAP for $400M and had no problems raising $900M for Better Place. Just as quickly as it had risen, Better Place was dead. Shai Agassi promised that Better Place electric vehicles and the battery swapping stations he would build around the world would revolutionize the auto industry Better Place’s Loss Is Our Gain But did Better Place just die? I say no. What we got reservations for EVs that were yet to be built. What we got from Better Place was economically designed, both on the hardware and cost, charging stations by utilities and . Some of the auto companies that Better Place had taunted would go on to develop battery charging that factored in the technical difficulty and complexity of battery swapping. Instead companies focused on , rolled out just last month, to avoid swapping out batteries even if you chose not to use the plug-in charging facilities that were being made available across the world. Better Place didn’t die. Better Place moved the industry forward. The company might have stopped existing but we all benefit from the mistakes the company made. from Better Place was Tesla’s idea to secure $5000 and $1500 Tesla technology wireless (inductive) charging technologies Courtesy: BMW https://www.press.bmwgroup.com/global/article/detail/T0281369EN/charging-even-easier-than-refuelling?language=en Is Tesla The Next Better Place? Can we compare Better Place to Tesla? Especially as Tesla celebrates what seems like a breakthrough of 5000 Model ? Leaving aside the comparisons/suggestions of hubris that can be laid at the feet of both Agassi and Elon Musk, I’d say we are at a much different time in the evolution of electric vehicles. The technology is much further along (especially battery technology) and consumer perceptions have shifted away from worries of range anxiety to as energy . It’s a different time for the adoption of electric vehicles and, I dare suggest, that we might be crossing the chasm of adoption on the electric vehicle front. Many of the companies, especially utilities, that have done business in this ‘energy space’ will fail to see what is happening for what it truly is; the utility business model is too dependent on how it used to be for the industry to understand this. 3’s manufactured in 1 week 69% of businesses even considering electric vehicles saving/cleaner alternatives to their internal combustion fleet of vehicles Courtesy: Zpryme/Ecova Research: The Utility Business Customer Survey on Energy Management It might not be Tesla that gets us across the chasm from early adopters to the mass market, e. The traditional auto makers, who’ve also jumped on this bandwagon (see BMW above), might actually get us there. What Tesla is absolutely doing though is getting the average consumer more interested in a beautifully designed vehicle that happens to be electric. Just a few steps forward.. Similar to how Better Place got Tesla to where it is today. Elon Musk should send Shai Agassi a Tesla. Or at least get him a drink or two. there is a lot of money shorting the stock due to the many issues I’ve written about her ” Sign up for the ! Polymathic Monthly newsletter, it’s been called an “intellectual rabbit hole of goodness

Is Tesla The 2018 Version of ‘Better Place’ (And The Lesson For All Founders)?

I remember first hearing about the project back in 2012. It is a great project with a simple idea: Everyone can download a free program that processes radio telescopic data from the universe in the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI). AKA Searching for aliens at home. SETI@Home What makes it so great, is that downloading a small program and donating part of your computing power for greater good is no hassle at all. Even so that it can solve one of the biggest questions to humankind: Are we alone? But when a lot of people take part it can have a huge impact. At Inwemo we deal with an equal mystery. A big, big question. Let’s talk about it. The Feedback-Loop From Hell The strong rise of the adblocker is undeniable. Both on mobile and desktop. A whopping are blocking ads according to the . 615 million devices Pagefair Adblocker Report And the numbers are climbing minute by minute. Users are frustrated by annoying interruptions, long loading times and by being on the open field for viruses and malware. But while some users turn their back on ads for a better experience, content creators are left in the cold. Taking a look at , the future of website monetization is at great risk. And thus, great content as well. recent news The reaction to adblocker by advertisers can be summed in one sentence: If there are fewer people seeing ads, we need to grab more attention by those who do. But if we recall, that is the whole problem. If ads are well crafted and subtle, that’s fine! Nobody is against ads per se. But when ads go batshit crazy and only care about stealing your attention, then you can’t blame people for joining the adblocker bandwagon. And when more people opt in to adblocking, then ad formats will get more aggressive for the rest of us. Welcome to the feedback loop from hell. Breaking The Loop, With A Simple Idea Because there is no end in sight to the monetization dilemma, we have to rethink what users and websites want. really Essentially, users want to receive great content for a minimum investment of money and effort. Need to like a page for reading an article? Goodbye! Websites want the complete opposite. They want to maximize returns for producing great content. And that could be in the form of either money, time or engagement. That is contrasting, right? But if that is the case, what would an optimal solution look like? So in a utopian world, users would get great content for free and in a magical way, banknotes would rain down on websites. Well, this is not possible… But we have an idea. Why not build an ecosystem where the transaction of value between webmasters and users is frictionless? Because the current ecosystem is everything else than frictionless. Unless there is a paywall or somewhere similar in place, it’s easy for users to receive value from websites. But the other way around? That’s a whole new ball game! Most of the time, you have to pay a fixed price to get access to video content or great journalism. That means you have to register somewhere. For one website it seems fine, but who consumes content on one site only? And what If I want to pause a subscription, because I am busy as a beaver. Should I cancel? And then two months later subscribe again? It’s simply not convenient. There are a lot of things users have to do and think about to support the content on a website. And therefore it‘s not frictionless. To break the loop, we need a model for website monetization that is frictionless to the highest degree. Fasten your seatbelts. Turning Website Monetization Upside-Down Due to new possibilities in , have better access to the users computing capacity. While it can be used in some bad examples (Looking at you, Coinhive!), it also opens the space for new opportunities. technology browser The second big step forward is that computing capacity of devices gets better and better every year, while the use case stays the same. That leads to massive amounts of unused computing capacity. Similar to we have the idea to open this capacity up to generate value, that can be translated to webmasters effortlessly and without any friction. SETI@Home, We want to establish this ecosystem, by letting visitors help in validating transactions in the Monero blockchain. This process is called . Simply spoken the computer solves math problems. The reward for this task is then handed over to the website owner by us. Cryptomining Without any tracking. Without any disturbance. But never without your consent. We think that if we get this right — with the user in the driver’s seat — it can have a big impact. To the extend of being a well-grounded income stream for our most beloved websites. If you think this is an interesting idea, make sure to learn more at . If you liked this piece, feel free to clap those hands at the bottom of the page. Thank you! www.inwemo.com

How Webmining Can Make The Internet A Better Place

I've written several articles here on HackerNoon about the concept of Karma. I’ve always thought of Karma as a type of currency, deriving it from the functioning of monetary systems. A few days ago, I applied for the World Grant program, and while filling out the forms, I was reminded of an approach that I will present in more detail in this article. The Gamification of Helping Others Gamification is a very powerful motivating force. Many people run kilometers or learn a language just to earn a few digital badges. The idea almost suggests itself: what if we tried to gamify helping others? If we could encourage people, even just a little, to do good for others, it would make the world a much better place. The idea isn't entirely new. In 2009, Philip Rosedale (CTO of SecondLife) launched a startup called LoveMachine Inc., where, among other things, developers could 'send love' to each other. If someone wanted to express their gratitude to a colleague, they could send them love, which was like a badge that was publicly visible on the developer's profile. This was, of course, a very simple way of gamifying acts of kindness, but it was very inspiring to me at the time (the company has since shut down, so it’s only accessible via the Internet Archive). My other major inspiration is the protagonist of Charles Stross's novel Accelerando, Manfred Macx, who lived a prosperous life entirely without money, essentially based on favors. Is this really possible? Could one live without money, relying solely on mutual favors?" Economy of Favors In fact, the favor economy is the most natural form of economy. Doing favors is so fundamental that we don’t even consider it a business transaction, though that’s essentially what it is. When we do a favor for a friend, it’s perfectly reasonable to expect that in a similar situation, they would do the same for us. If favor-giving is always one-sided, we eventually feel taken advantage of, and the friendship often deteriorates. While this isn’t as precisely measurable as money, we subconsciously keep a 'cognitive ledger' of favors. About 2 million years ago, our ancestors lived in small communities and got along just fine without money. People would go hunting together, and if someone returned empty-handed from gathering, others would help them. In return, if someone else needed help, the community would support them. The economy of favors, therefore, works very well in small communities, but it has a significant limitation: it requires personal acquaintance. When the participants in a business transaction don’t know each other, or the transaction involves multiple people, the process becomes entirely untraceable, and the 'cognitive ledger' no longer works. This is why barter trade was established and, eventually, money. I have an entire article on the history of money. For those interested in a more detailed exploration of how money developed and what it really is, it might be worth a read. https://hackernoon.com/a-brief-history-of-money-from-the-economy-of-favors-to-bitcoin?embedable=true Karma: The Modernized Version of the Economy of Favors If we want to build an economy with a different dynamic, we need to return to the roots. In this sense, Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies are not true alternatives to the current monetary system. They are speculative assets, much like national currencies, with the difference being that they aren’t issued by any one country. If we want to change the dynamics of the economy, we need to go further back in time to the concept of the economy of favors. As I mentioned earlier, the limitation of the economy of favors stems from the limitations of the 'cognitive ledger.' Favor transactions only work between people who know each other well personally. This is a significant limitation. If we could replace the 'cognitive ledger' with a global ledger, it would remove this barrier. Fortunately, we already have such a technology: the blockchain. By definition, the blockchain is a global ledger operated and owned by the community. It cannot be censored or tampered with. It is the perfect tool to extend the reach of the economy of favors from a small local community to the entire world. How does Karma work? Since I've already written a very detailed article on how Karma works from a technological perspective, here I’ll only provide a brief overview, highlighting the parts that are new to the concept. https://hackernoon.com/karma-an-erc20-compatible-alternative-money-on-the-ethereum-blockchain?embedable=true From a technological perspective, Karma is an ERC20 token, so it works with any Ethereum-compatible wallet. Sending Karma to anyone is as simple as sending any other ERC20 token. One major difference from other ERC20 tokens is that Karma never runs out. In this sense, it’s not like money; it’s more like love. Although Karma never runs out, it’s still not wise to spend it limitlessly, because all outgoing and incoming Karma transactions are public. This visibility shows how much kindness someone has offered to others and how much they’ve received in return. If someone has a lot of 'outgoing' Karma but little 'incoming' Karma, it means they’ve received more favors than they’ve given, which could negatively impact how others perceive them. Ideally, there should be a balance between 'incoming' and 'outgoing' Karma. The truly exciting feature of Karma is that transactions form a directed weighted graph, where cycles can emerge. Let’s say we pick up a hitchhiker (let's call him Tom) and give him a ride, for which he sends us Karma in gratitude. A few months later, Tom finds a lost kitten and, based on the tag on its collar, returns it to its owner, Alice, who gives Tom Karma as a thank-you. At her workplace, Alice helps her colleague John solve a problem, and John, in turn, gives her Karma in appreciation. Years later, we get a flat tire and don’t have a jack. Fortunately, another driver stops to help us—it's John. We send him Karma in gratitude, and the circle is complete. Imagine seeing in the app how the help we gave Tom years ago when we gave him a ride, eventually made its way back to us. This is where the name 'Karma' comes from. The philosophy of Karma, in short, is: do good things, and good things will happen to you. The Karma system visualizes this process and simultaneously incentivizes users to do good for others. Since Karma is not tied to the monetary system, it’s entirely up to us how much Karma we reward for a favor. As a general guideline, we might say that one hour of work is worth 100 Karma. However, if someone does us a big favor, we could give them 200 Karma for just 10 minutes of work, or if we feel it was a small favor, we could give only 50 Karma for an hour of work. It’s completely up to us how we value a fellow person’s favor. The basic requirement for the system to function is that each person can only have one profile, thus preventing Sybil attacks. If this condition is not met, anyone could create a new profile if their incoming and outgoing Karma balance is off, or use fake profiles to send Karma to themselves, misleading others. The perfect solution to this problem is WorldID, which provides a unique identifier linked to an iris, ensuring that each person can only have one WorldID. I’ve written a detailed article on how WorldID works. https://hackernoon.com/a-brief-introduction-of-worldcoin-proof-of-unique-humanness-on-blockchain?embedable=true Alongside WorldID, other elements of the World ecosystem provide an ideal foundation for Karma. WorldChain, World’s own Optimism-based L2 solution, is a perfect choice for running the system. On this chain, people with validated WorldIDs can execute transactions for free. The World App includes a built-in wallet necessary for ERC20 transactions, and the visual UI can be made accessible through a Mini App. So, is Karma money or not? One of the great lessons of the Bitcoin revolution, for me, is that money is whatever we consider it to be. If a group accepts something as money, then it is money. Money is nothing more than a social contract. In this sense, Karma can also function as money. Let’s look at an example of how Karma could replace money. If we want to get somewhere by car, we could call an Uber and pay the driver. However, we could also find someone who’s heading in the same direction and ask them to give us a ride in exchange for Karma. A whole 'favor-based Uber' service could be built on this idea. Similarly, a 'favor-based Airbnb' and other services are also conceivable. In small local communities, Karma could even fully replace money. Since all Karma transactions are permanently and publicly visible on each person’s profile, and everyone can only have one profile, Karma accounting becomes a very serious matter. We can think of it as a kind of credit system where the collateral is our unique profile and reputation. In some cases, this could even be a more substantial guarantee than a person’s wealth. Summary Although Karma can be derived from the monetary system, the goal has always been to create something better. Something that can’t be speculated on, accumulated, or increase social inequality. That’s what Karma is— a system that gamifies helping others and encourages people to do good for one another. If the concept proves even slightly workable and fulfills its promise, then it has been worth pursuing. Through Karma, perhaps the world can become a slightly better place... I've written several articles here on HackerNoon about the concept of Karma. I’ve always thought of Karma as a type of currency, deriving it from the functioning of monetary systems. A few days ago, I applied for the World Grant program , and while filling out the forms, I was reminded of an approach that I will present in more detail in this article. World Grant program The Gamification of Helping Others Gamification is a very powerful motivating force. Many people run kilometers or learn a language just to earn a few digital badges. The idea almost suggests itself: what if we tried to gamify helping others? If we could encourage people, even just a little, to do good for others, it would make the world a much better place. The idea isn't entirely new. In 2009, Philip Rosedale (CTO of SecondLife) launched a startup called LoveMachine Inc., where, among other things, developers could 'send love' to each other. If someone wanted to express their gratitude to a colleague, they could send them love, which was like a badge that was publicly visible on the developer's profile. This was, of course, a very simple way of gamifying acts of kindness, but it was very inspiring to me at the time (the company has since shut down, so it’s only accessible via the Internet Archive). My other major inspiration is the protagonist of Charles Stross's novel Accelerando , Manfred Macx, who lived a prosperous life entirely without money, essentially based on favors. Is this really possible? Could one live without money, relying solely on mutual favors?" Accelerando Accelerando Economy of Favors In fact, the favor economy is the most natural form of economy. Doing favors is so fundamental that we don’t even consider it a business transaction, though that’s essentially what it is. When we do a favor for a friend, it’s perfectly reasonable to expect that in a similar situation, they would do the same for us. If favor-giving is always one-sided, we eventually feel taken advantage of, and the friendship often deteriorates. While this isn’t as precisely measurable as money, we subconsciously keep a 'cognitive ledger' of favors. About 2 million years ago, our ancestors lived in small communities and got along just fine without money. People would go hunting together, and if someone returned empty-handed from gathering, others would help them. In return, if someone else needed help, the community would support them. The economy of favors, therefore, works very well in small communities, but it has a significant limitation: it requires personal acquaintance. When the participants in a business transaction don’t know each other, or the transaction involves multiple people, the process becomes entirely untraceable, and the 'cognitive ledger' no longer works. This is why barter trade was established and, eventually, money. I have an entire article on the history of money. For those interested in a more detailed exploration of how money developed and what it really is, it might be worth a read. https://hackernoon.com/a-brief-history-of-money-from-the-economy-of-favors-to-bitcoin?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/a-brief-history-of-money-from-the-economy-of-favors-to-bitcoin?embedable=true Karma: The Modernized Version of the Economy of Favors If we want to build an economy with a different dynamic, we need to return to the roots. In this sense, Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies are not true alternatives to the current monetary system. They are speculative assets, much like national currencies, with the difference being that they aren’t issued by any one country. If we want to change the dynamics of the economy, we need to go further back in time to the concept of the economy of favors. As I mentioned earlier, the limitation of the economy of favors stems from the limitations of the 'cognitive ledger.' Favor transactions only work between people who know each other well personally. This is a significant limitation. If we could replace the 'cognitive ledger' with a global ledger, it would remove this barrier. Fortunately, we already have such a technology: the blockchain. By definition, the blockchain is a global ledger operated and owned by the community. It cannot be censored or tampered with. It is the perfect tool to extend the reach of the economy of favors from a small local community to the entire world. How does Karma work? Since I've already written a very detailed article on how Karma works from a technological perspective, here I’ll only provide a brief overview, highlighting the parts that are new to the concept. https://hackernoon.com/karma-an-erc20-compatible-alternative-money-on-the-ethereum-blockchain?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/karma-an-erc20-compatible-alternative-money-on-the-ethereum-blockchain?embedable=true From a technological perspective, Karma is an ERC20 token, so it works with any Ethereum-compatible wallet. Sending Karma to anyone is as simple as sending any other ERC20 token. ERC20 One major difference from other ERC20 tokens is that Karma never runs out. In this sense, it’s not like money; it’s more like love . it’s not like money; it’s more like love Although Karma never runs out, it’s still not wise to spend it limitlessly, because all outgoing and incoming Karma transactions are public. This visibility shows how much kindness someone has offered to others and how much they’ve received in return. If someone has a lot of 'outgoing' Karma but little 'incoming' Karma, it means they’ve received more favors than they’ve given, which could negatively impact how others perceive them. Ideally, there should be a balance between 'incoming' and 'outgoing' Karma. The truly exciting feature of Karma is that transactions form a directed weighted graph, where cycles can emerge. Let’s say we pick up a hitchhiker (let's call him Tom) and give him a ride, for which he sends us Karma in gratitude. A few months later, Tom finds a lost kitten and, based on the tag on its collar, returns it to its owner, Alice, who gives Tom Karma as a thank-you. At her workplace, Alice helps her colleague John solve a problem, and John, in turn, gives her Karma in appreciation. Years later, we get a flat tire and don’t have a jack. Fortunately, another driver stops to help us—it's John. We send him Karma in gratitude, and the circle is complete. Imagine seeing in the app how the help we gave Tom years ago when we gave him a ride, eventually made its way back to us. This is where the name 'Karma' comes from. The philosophy of Karma, in short, is: do good things, and good things will happen to you. The Karma system visualizes this process and simultaneously incentivizes users to do good for others. The philosophy of Karma, in short, is: do good things, and good things will happen to you. The Karma system visualizes this process and simultaneously incentivizes users to do good for others. Since Karma is not tied to the monetary system, it’s entirely up to us how much Karma we reward for a favor. As a general guideline, we might say that one hour of work is worth 100 Karma. However, if someone does us a big favor, we could give them 200 Karma for just 10 minutes of work, or if we feel it was a small favor, we could give only 50 Karma for an hour of work. It’s completely up to us how we value a fellow person’s favor. The basic requirement for the system to function is that each person can only have one profile, thus preventing Sybil attacks . If this condition is not met, anyone could create a new profile if their incoming and outgoing Karma balance is off, or use fake profiles to send Karma to themselves, misleading others. The perfect solution to this problem is WorldID , which provides a unique identifier linked to an iris, ensuring that each person can only have one WorldID. I’ve written a detailed article on how WorldID works. Sybil attacks WorldID https://hackernoon.com/a-brief-introduction-of-worldcoin-proof-of-unique-humanness-on-blockchain?embedable=true https://hackernoon.com/a-brief-introduction-of-worldcoin-proof-of-unique-humanness-on-blockchain?embedable=true Alongside WorldID, other elements of the World ecosystem provide an ideal foundation for Karma. WorldChain, World’s own Optimism-based L2 solution, is a perfect choice for running the system. On this chain, people with validated WorldIDs can execute transactions for free. The World App includes a built-in wallet necessary for ERC20 transactions, and the visual UI can be made accessible through a Mini App. So, is Karma money or not? One of the great lessons of the Bitcoin revolution, for me, is that money is whatever we consider it to be. If a group accepts something as money, then it is money. Money is nothing more than a social contract. In this sense, Karma can also function as money. Let’s look at an example of how Karma could replace money. If we want to get somewhere by car, we could call an Uber and pay the driver. However, we could also find someone who’s heading in the same direction and ask them to give us a ride in exchange for Karma. A whole 'favor-based Uber' service could be built on this idea. Similarly, a 'favor-based Airbnb' and other services are also conceivable. In small local communities, Karma could even fully replace money. Since all Karma transactions are permanently and publicly visible on each person’s profile, and everyone can only have one profile, Karma accounting becomes a very serious matter. We can think of it as a kind of credit system where the collateral is our unique profile and reputation. In some cases, this could even be a more substantial guarantee than a person’s wealth. Summary Although Karma can be derived from the monetary system, the goal has always been to create something better. Something that can’t be speculated on, accumulated, or increase social inequality. That’s what Karma is— a system that gamifies helping others and encourages people to do good for one another. If the concept proves even slightly workable and fulfills its promise, then it has been worth pursuing. Through Karma, perhaps the world can become a slightly better place...

Karma: Love on the Blockchain and the Gamification of Helping Others

কর্ম: ব্লকচেইনে ভালবাসা এবং অন্যদের সাহায্য করার গ্যামিফিকেশন

Karma: El amor en la blockchain y la gamificación de la ayuda a los demás

Karma: o amor na cadea de bloques e a gamificación de axudar aos demais

קארמה: אהבה בבלוקצ'יין וההתלהבות של עזרה לזולת

カルマ: ブロックチェーン上の愛と他者を助けるゲーム化

Karma: Liefde op de Blockchain en de Gamification van het Helpen van Anderen

کرما: په بلاکچین کې مینه او د نورو سره مرسته کول

Karma: Dragoste pe blockchain și gamificarea ajutorării altora

Karma: Urukundo kuri Blockchain no Gukina Gufasha Abandi

Karma: Dashuria në Blockchain dhe Gamification për të ndihmuar të tjerët

Карма: Љубав на блокчејну и гамификација помоћи другима

Karma: Tình yêu trên Blockchain và trò chơi giúp đỡ người khác

Half a year ago I was an Amazon driver in rural Germany, it was not at all fulfilling. I was working long hours and had no time to myself. One day I had to take a few weeks off from work to do some documents, and that's when I realized I did not want to go back to this job. So I turned to programming. I have always regretted not getting a CS degree when I had the chance earlier in my life, but I was at a make-it-break-it point because I did not want to be a delivery driver anymore. I went back to work but every morning I would get up early and do a free coding course which I finished in three weeks. After that, I went into another one which I also ended up finishing in three weeks. Now I had a solid foundation and basic understanding of web apps due to learning Django, but along with all of that, I was also introduced to React. React was very interesting to me so I decided to go in a direction where React would be a priority. So I found a MERN focused course and ended up almost finishing it fully. I did encounter a learning burnout (I had been studying daily for close to 6 months now…), it was due to be already being skilled enough to make my own projects and I was tired of learning. Now that I had a solid foundation I teamed up with my best friend to work on one of his projects, he tasked me with making the front end for this web app. After completion, I now had enough experience that I felt confident enough to try making my own full-stack web app. During Christmas, my mother visited and we talked about AI, she is a producer and during that time she was working on a movie about AI. From that, I got the idea of making a script-reading AI, since producers often get offered many scripts that they do not have time to read so they outsource that to script readers. So why not kill two birds with one stone and make AI do it? It will save time and money. So I ended up building AIScriptReader in a month using NextJS which I had to learn as I went because it seemed like an awesome tool to know. I also ended up running into issues with NextJS but I was too time invested in it so I had to make a Django microservice that uses Celery to deal with async functionality. Also, I ended up learning Docker and Caprover specifically to make this all work and allow for smooth and simple CI/CD. Now looking back on my journey I am amazed with what I have achieved in the short amount of time that I have spent, from where I was half a year ago to today. I think I was able to do it because I knew what I did not want to do, and I knew that I liked building things with computers. The point is, just do it. I did it all for free, thanks to the various online courses which I found online and even offer certificates. Do it a little at a time because the snowball will start rolling and you will be in a better place day by day. Half a year ago I was an Amazon driver in rural Germany, it was not at all fulfilling. I was working long hours and had no time to myself. One day I had to take a few weeks off from work to do some documents, and that's when I realized I did not want to go back to this job. So I turned to programming. I have always regretted not getting a CS degree when I had the chance earlier in my life, but I was at a make-it-break-it point because I did not want to be a delivery driver anymore. I went back to work but every morning I would get up early and do a free coding course which I finished in three weeks. After that, I went into another one which I also ended up finishing in three weeks. Now I had a solid foundation and basic understanding of web apps due to learning Django, but along with all of that, I was also introduced to React. React was very interesting to me so I decided to go in a direction where React would be a priority. So I found a MERN focused course and ended up almost finishing it fully. I did encounter a learning burnout (I had been studying daily for close to 6 months now…), it was due to be already being skilled enough to make my own projects and I was tired of learning. Now that I had a solid foundation I teamed up with my best friend to work on one of his projects, he tasked me with making the front end for this web app. After completion, I now had enough experience that I felt confident enough to try making my own full-stack web app. During Christmas, my mother visited and we talked about AI, she is a producer and during that time she was working on a movie about AI. From that, I got the idea of making a script-reading AI, since producers often get offered many scripts that they do not have time to read so they outsource that to script readers. So why not kill two birds with one stone and make AI do it? It will save time and money. So I ended up building AIScriptReader in a month using NextJS which I had to learn as I went because it seemed like an awesome tool to know. I also ended up running into issues with NextJS but I was too time invested in it so I had to make a Django microservice that uses Celery to deal with async functionality. Also, I ended up learning Docker and Caprover specifically to make this all work and allow for smooth and simple CI/CD. AIScriptReader Now looking back on my journey I am amazed with what I have achieved in the short amount of time that I have spent, from where I was half a year ago to today. I think I was able to do it because I knew what I did not want to do, and I knew that I liked building things with computers. The point is, just do it. I did it all for free, thanks to the various online courses which I found online and even offer certificates. Do it a little at a time because the snowball will start rolling and you will be in a better place day by day.

From Amazon delivery driver to deploying my Full-Stack app in 6 months

Sujeet Kashid is a Robotics Software Engineer, currently based in the San Francisco Bay Area working with Woven by Toyota. His expertise is integrating and improving the Human Machine Interface (HMI) systems of autonomous vehicles, and he completed his Masters in Science from University of Cincinnati with a specialization in Robotics and Intelligent Systems. Kashid’s research could help increase the safety of operation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in GPS-denied indoor areas, and provides a way for multiple robots to cooperate and distribute tasks. Kashid sat down with us and broke down the evolution of the autonomous vehicles, and more importantly, what the next steps are for the automobile industry. Imagine a world of driverless cars–it seems somewhat Orwellian, doesn’t it? Like a scene out of your favorite sci-fi movie, where cars zoom around at breakneck speeds, you never fear they will collide, or in the 1990 film, Total Recall, when we see a driverless taxi. With autonomous vehicles already deployed through major cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles, that sci-fi future is (actually) now. But the world of autonomous vehicles is not limited to this sci-fi vision, it has implications much more far reaching. To gain a better understanding of how autonomous vehicles will continue to evolve, I was lucky enough to sit down with robotics software engineer Sujeet Kashid, who currently works with Woven, which is leading next-generation cars at Toyota. Woven by Toyota is leading Toyota’s “transformation into a mobility company,” according to their website. They’re trying to innovate with one of the most staunch and traditional of all Japanese car brands, which has a vision for the future. If you’re planning on saving up to buy a Toyota car anytime soon, they’re working on incorporating autonomous driving and advanced driver assistance systems. Some of the things they’re working with include OS platform Arene, Woven City, and Toyota's new “test course” for mobility. He is situated at the crossroads of the industry, and gives us a clear picture of not only where we are today, but what the future holds. The Road to Automated Vehicles is Paved with Good Intentions According to Forbes Advisor, in 2022, a total of 42,514 fatal car accidents happened on roads across the country. Meanwhile, 1.6 million crashes resulted in injuries and an additional 4.2 million accidents caused property damages. The main cause of car crashes is drunk driving, lack of seatbelt use, speeding and distracted drivers. Having autonomous vehicles on the roads will go beyond just aiding human error, we’re entering a world where the vehicles themselves can communicate with each other. “In a world where autonomous vehicles can talk to each other, and work cooperatively, they will be able to quickly clear out a way for the emergency vehicles to move faster and uninterrupted to their destination,” said Kashid. Because let's face it: Autonomous vehicles have the potential to reduce road collisions. They also provide a variety of other societal and environmental benefits. But how much of this is realistic? “The intention of robotics is to help people and make the world a better place,” says Kashid, when talking about the safety effects of the robotics industry. The industry has made drastic efforts to help improve the wellbeing of individuals both on the roads and at work–it’s safety focused. “Most road accidents can be attributed to driver error,” says Kashid. “My hope is that autonomous vehicles become ubiquitous making the road a safer place.” In fact, the implications stretch further than the road, entering into workplace safety and time-saving measures. “My research provides a method to operate Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in indoor, GPS-denied environments safely,” says Kashid, diving into another future avenue of exploration. The ability for warehouse vehicles to operate independently will only serve to speed up operations and lower costs. Having autonomous vehicles communicate with each other can help guard our roads with safety. “They can communicate with each other to reach road help faster and save more lives,” he said. “In a world where autonomous vehicles can talk to each other and work cooperatively, this is totally possible.” Pedal To The Metal: The Speedbumps Autonomous Vehicles Face Putting autonomous vehicles on the road is no cheap task. Just look at Waymo, formerly known as the Google self-driving car project, who are trying to make it safe and easy for people to get around with driverless taxis. Waymo has raised over $5.5 billion to get their vehicles on the road in Phoenix alone. While autonomous vehicles are significantly safer than their manned alternatives, a couple of accidents have set the project back. Meanwhile, Tesla switches gears for their customers. Most advanced autonomous features available to many consumers, like Full Self-Driving with Tesla, are only Level 2 autonomous vehicles,” says Kashid. Toyota offers Level 2 autonomous vehicle systems as well, one that can control both steering and acceleration, but Level 2 means it still requires a driver. Right now the issue is twofold before according to the next level. “The next stage in autonomous vehicles is making the functions ubiquitous and affordable,” said Kashid. The potential speed bumps in the development of autonomous vehicles is simple. “I think it's money and time,” said Kashid. “The first cars invented were battery electric vehicles, but it needed huge technological advancements in batteries to make them hold more energy, last longer and make them affordable.” Autonomous cars need to become more affordable, too. “We need technological advancements to make autonomous vehicles affordable, and that research and development takes a lot of money now to enjoy its benefits in the near future,” he adds. Forecasting The Future: Creating Jobs While Innovating With Autonomous Vehicles The intention of robotics is to help people and make the world a better place, notes Kashid. But some tasks may get phased out as technology evolves, and people might lose jobs. “I believe the biggest area of need is that free and accessible skills education be provided to these work forces, so they can be moved to other kinds of jobs,” said Kashid. For example, an Uber driver can be taught to be an autonomous vehicle operator for testing and gathering data.” This might not only mitigate job losses in certain areas, but also help the growth of development of autonomous vehicles if that work force is taught how to help, thus achieving a symbiotic relationship,” he adds. Who doesn’t want to live in a safer world? In order for this vision to be played out there needs to be a massive effort made. This falls in large part on the automobile industry to create affordable autonomous vehicles, but also on the consumers to have faith in the product. Change is scary and often met by resistance. In this case, change should be met with open arms. The future is not far away and thanks to the efforts of those like Kashid, it might be here sooner than we think. Sujeet Kashid is a Robotics Software Engineer, currently based in the San Francisco Bay Area working with Woven by Toyota. His expertise is integrating and improving the Human Machine Interface (HMI) systems of autonomous vehicles, and he completed his Masters in Science from University of Cincinnati with a specialization in Robotics and Intelligent Systems. Kashid’s research could help increase the safety of operation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in GPS-denied indoor areas, and provides a way for multiple robots to cooperate and distribute tasks. Kashid sat down with us and broke down the evolution of the autonomous vehicles, and more importantly, what the next steps are for the automobile industry. Sujeet Kashid is a Robotics Software Engineer, currently based in the San Francisco Bay Area working with Woven by Toyota. His expertise is integrating and improving the Human Machine Interface (HMI) systems of autonomous vehicles, and he completed his Masters in Science from University of Cincinnati with a specialization in Robotics and Intelligent Systems. Kashid’s research could help increase the safety of operation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in GPS-denied indoor areas, and provides a way for multiple robots to cooperate and distribute tasks. Kashid sat down with us and broke down the evolution of the autonomous vehicles, and more importantly, what the next steps are for the automobile industry. Sujeet Kashid is a Robotics Software Engineer, currently based in the San Francisco Bay Area working with Woven by Toyota. His expertise is integrating and improving the Human Machine Interface (HMI) systems of autonomous vehicles, and he completed his Masters in Science from University of Cincinnati with a specialization in Robotics and Intelligent Systems. Kashid’s research could help increase the safety of operation of Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) in GPS-denied indoor areas, and provides a way for multiple robots to cooperate and distribute tasks. Kashid sat down with us and broke down the evolution of the autonomous vehicles, and more importantly, what the next steps are for the automobile industry. Imagine a world of driverless cars–it seems somewhat Orwellian, doesn’t it? Like a scene out of your favorite sci-fi movie, where cars zoom around at breakneck speeds, you never fear they will collide, or in the 1990 film, Total Recall, when we see a driverless taxi. With autonomous vehicles already deployed through major cities like San Francisco and Los Angeles, that sci-fi future is (actually) now. Total Recall, But the world of autonomous vehicles is not limited to this sci-fi vision, it has implications much more far reaching. To gain a better understanding of how autonomous vehicles will continue to evolve, I was lucky enough to sit down with robotics software engineer Sujeet Kashid, who currently works with Woven, which is leading next-generation cars at Toyota. Woven by Toyota is leading Toyota’s “transformation into a mobility company,” according to their website. They’re trying to innovate with one of the most staunch and traditional of all Japanese car brands, which has a vision for the future. If you’re planning on saving up to buy a Toyota car anytime soon, they’re working on incorporating autonomous driving and advanced driver assistance systems. Some of the things they’re working with include OS platform Arene, Woven City, and Toyota's new “test course” for mobility. He is situated at the crossroads of the industry, and gives us a clear picture of not only where we are today, but what the future holds. The Road to Automated Vehicles is Paved with Good Intentions According to Forbes Advisor , in 2022, a total of 42,514 fatal car accidents happened on roads across the country. Meanwhile, 1.6 million crashes resulted in injuries and an additional 4.2 million accidents caused property damages. The main cause of car crashes is drunk driving, lack of seatbelt use, speeding and distracted drivers. Forbes Advisor Forbes Advisor Having autonomous vehicles on the roads will go beyond just aiding human error, we’re entering a world where the vehicles themselves can communicate with each other. “In a world where autonomous vehicles can talk to each other, and work cooperatively, they will be able to quickly clear out a way for the emergency vehicles to move faster and uninterrupted to their destination,” said Kashid. Because let's face it: Autonomous vehicles have the potential to reduce road collisions. They also provide a variety of other societal and environmental benefits. But how much of this is realistic? “The intention of robotics is to help people and make the world a better place,” says Kashid, when talking about the safety effects of the robotics industry. The industry has made drastic efforts to help improve the wellbeing of individuals both on the roads and at work–it’s safety focused. “Most road accidents can be attributed to driver error,” says Kashid. “My hope is that autonomous vehicles become ubiquitous making the road a safer place.” In fact, the implications stretch further than the road, entering into workplace safety and time-saving measures. “My research provides a method to operate Unmanned Aerial Vehicles in indoor, GPS-denied environments safely,” says Kashid, diving into another future avenue of exploration. The ability for warehouse vehicles to operate independently will only serve to speed up operations and lower costs. Having autonomous vehicles communicate with each other can help guard our roads with safety. “They can communicate with each other to reach road help faster and save more lives,” he said. “In a world where autonomous vehicles can talk to each other and work cooperatively, this is totally possible.” Pedal To The Metal: The Speedbumps Autonomous Vehicles Face Putting autonomous vehicles on the road is no cheap task. Just look at Waymo, formerly known as the Google self-driving car project, who are trying to make it safe and easy for people to get around with driverless taxis. Waymo has raised over $5.5 billion to get their vehicles on the road in Phoenix alone. While autonomous vehicles are significantly safer than their manned alternatives, a couple of accidents have set the project back. Meanwhile, Tesla switches gears for their customers. Most advanced autonomous features available to many consumers, like Full Self-Driving with Tesla, are only Level 2 autonomous vehicles,” says Kashid. Toyota offers Level 2 autonomous vehicle systems as well, one that can control both steering and acceleration, but Level 2 means it still requires a driver. Right now the issue is twofold before according to the next level. “The next stage in autonomous vehicles is making the functions ubiquitous and affordable,” said Kashid. The potential speed bumps in the development of autonomous vehicles is simple. “I think it's money and time,” said Kashid. “The first cars invented were battery electric vehicles, but it needed huge technological advancements in batteries to make them hold more energy, last longer and make them affordable.” Autonomous cars need to become more affordable, too. “We need technological advancements to make autonomous vehicles affordable, and that research and development takes a lot of money now to enjoy its benefits in the near future,” he adds. Forecasting The Future: Creating Jobs While Innovating With Autonomous Vehicles The intention of robotics is to help people and make the world a better place, notes Kashid. But some tasks may get phased out as technology evolves, and people might lose jobs. “I believe the biggest area of need is that free and accessible skills education be provided to these work forces, so they can be moved to other kinds of jobs,” said Kashid. For example, an Uber driver can be taught to be an autonomous vehicle operator for testing and gathering data.” This might not only mitigate job losses in certain areas, but also help the growth of development of autonomous vehicles if that work force is taught how to help, thus achieving a symbiotic relationship,” he adds. Who doesn’t want to live in a safer world? In order for this vision to be played out there needs to be a massive effort made. This falls in large part on the automobile industry to create affordable autonomous vehicles, but also on the consumers to have faith in the product. Change is scary and often met by resistance. In this case, change should be met with open arms. The future is not far away and thanks to the efforts of those like Kashid, it might be here sooner than we think.

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