table of contents

• intro
• oracles + infra
• privacy_zksnarks
• economic empowerment_hyperinflation_remittances

intro

This piece is not intended as investment advice nor is it shilling of any kind. These are sectors and projects that I have studied over the last few years and have genuinely become an important part of my crypto journey. I won’t waste block space going in-depth, theres so much good info out there and I know I won’t do it justice but perhaps this may be a good way to connect meaningfully w/ some buildoooors.

I am an artist at heart. I have been active in the creator economy for several years. A true DIY, self-sufficient, indie creator for most of my life. In this entry I briefly cover what I believe are integral parts of the crypto ecosystem and most importantly areas that I would love to contribute to over the next decade. My overall goal is to make an impact within the creator economy, specifically in the music industry but I believe over time what I hope to do for aspiring creators I can do for others around the world?

Oracles + infra

I want to start here because these technologies helped me truly understand the power of public blockchains, smart contracts and the systems/infrastructure that bring it all together. My first ambition in crypto back in 2016 was to launch a startup utilizing blockchain technology to disrupt and possibly improve upon the inefficiencies and shortcomings of music royalties. I wanted to begin by integrating this “startup” into my label and publisher as a proof of concept knowing that it would be feasible due to the advantage of owning the music in addition to not having to negotiate with intermediaries.

A. Middleware - Chainlink:

Chainlink is a decentralized oracle network that empowers smart contracts to securely interact with real-world data and services that exist outside of blockchain networks.

I believe that in crypto/web3 comprehensive use cases are crucial to understanding most protocols and tokens. Check it out below if you’re interested in learning more.

I am fascinated by the oracle problem and the potential of bridging off chain data on chain.

B. Scaling :

This needs no introduction. I have been following Matic since inception, they originally launched as an IEO through Binance Launchpad. I understood that for the Ethereum blockchain to scale efficiently, complementary technology was necessary since. Ethereum is technically “featureless.”

C. Decentralized Storage

Decentralized storage was definitely an “aha moment” for me in crypto. It was “easy” to understand and most importantly easy to explain as a potential use case to crypto skeptics. When I first came across Arweave, Sia, Storj or Filecoin IPFS I thought they were just simply applications and it didn’t really click for me until I began to see other apps integrate them as solutions for storage. (e.g. Mirror, Zora, Catalog)

Privacy:

The last point is FACTS. We’ve been hearing about privacy so much that I think we’re desensitize. I don’t think thats a good thing, but at least the avg. person is becoming aware. (and paranoid)

The concept of optional privacy and shielded transactions in crypto/digital money is boring to retail but I think the actual tech in itself is super dope. “There is a need to provide certain verifiable data without revealing personal or other sensitive information.” Shit, even the DOD/DARPA is looking at implementing zkSnarks.

empowerment_hyperinflation_remittances

This area in particular hits close to home for me.

I was born in Puerto Rico and I am also half Cuban, which is an important part of my upbringing. My Fathers side of the family experienced the Cuban revolution and during those years suffered immensely, they experienced asset forfeiture, families were separated, and goods like meat, soap, and other items that we take for granted were rationed.

Let’s put it this way, I am extremely fortunate that I have not gone through any of the above. I am a big advocate for economic empowerment and freedom. I recall spending a lot of time reading about the unbanked and the data is staggering.

Hyperinflation:

Bitcoin obviously comes to mind in this section. I came across BTC in 2013, I remember going through so many hurdles to acquire some at the time that I never followed through. Years passed, Coinbase came along and made it super seamless to acquire. Following the space since 2017, I came to appreciate Bitcoins “simplicity” and properties in comparison to some alt coins, especially over the last two years after the pandemic hit. I can only imagine my family having the ability to convert any assets or cash during the Cuban revolution to a non-sovereign, decentralized asset such as BTC as a way to start from scratch after leaving their homeland.

What I came to notice from my perspective is that it became a contrarian bet, at least following retail where the focus was on get-rich-quick alt coins fueled by unit bias tokenomics and marketing hype that would put any top-tier ad agency to shame.

I am based in Central Florida which is a melting pot and I have a lot of friends from Venezuela, some are collaborators that have personally experienced this so I don’t dare speak for them.

I am excited about what Reserve is doing here. Their mission as stated on their site “is to provide every person in the world access to stable currency, in order to avert the intense humanitarian hardship that comes from hyperinflation.”

For this reason Reserve instantly resonated with me when I first learned about it.

Remittances:

This sucks. Fees for international payments are extremely high, and in some regions, cross-border services aren’t even readily available. Conversion to other currencies also eats up earnings for some foreign creators. Exchanges allow for arbitrage into currencies which is another value add for some users.

thanks for reading!

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