Weekend Recommendation | Delphi Digital Reviews Terra's Gamble; Reflections and Critiques on Web3
Exclusive Interview with a16z Partner: The Blockchain Space is the Best Product of the 2020s.Organizer: Hu Tao, Chain Catcher
1. “The Rise and Fall of the Terra Ecosystem: Reflections on Delphi Digital's 'Terra Gamble'”
As an investment institution that witnessed the "rise and fall" of Terra, Delphi Digital has deeply engaged with the Terra ecosystem over the past year, even shaping the LUNA token model, and gained experiences and reflections that others could hardly experience during this turmoil.
"We chose to believe in the Terra ecosystem, invested a significant amount of money and time, and placed a big bet, but the outcome did not meet our expectations. Fortunately, Delphi is entirely self-funded, so when we make such high-confidence bets, our own capital is at risk. We were aware of the risks associated with algorithmic stablecoin models in advance and sought to maintain transparency throughout the process; however, it is clear that we miscalculated the risks."
The formula for paradigm shifts has been validated over more than two hundred years since the first Industrial Revolution in 1769, including steam engines, alternating current, the internet, and Bitcoin. CB Insights once listed 20 reasons for startup failures, the largest being the reckless development of products without analyzing demand, accounting for 42%. This article analyzes the paradigm shift formula and argues that the crypto sector remains the most promising industry, poised to experience a capital cycle again.
3. “IOSG Report: Rollups Empowering a New Financial System”
After five years of rapid development, winners in various tracks are gradually emerging, and the DeFi market has made significant progress. However, it is evident that no single blockchain can currently handle the throughput of all DeFi applications. The slowdown in DeFi innovation allows us to reflect on the development of DeFi over the past five years and discuss the theoretical future development path of DeFi in the context of a multi-chain narrative.
4. “Interview with a16z Partner: Blockchain Space is the Best Product of the 2020s”
With the collapse of the cryptocurrency market, now is the ideal time to learn the fundamentals of the industry: blockchain space. While this may seem self-evident, understanding blockchain space is the foundation for grasping the world of cryptocurrency and Web3. This is also about preparing for a potential future recovery.
5. “Why We Shouldn't Be Overly Enthusiastic About Web3?”
Tim O'Reilly, who once defined Web 2.0, reflects on various occurrences in Web 2.0, such as the repeated tug-of-war between decentralization and centralization, leaving him uncertain whether this time's Web3 is just another iteration. He also points out that the current Web3 is filled with hype and financial bubbles, but he mentions that bubbles can also lead to the development of infrastructure for innovation. Ultimately, he believes we should focus on how to create real value rather than just seeking speculative wealth.
6. “Opinion: The Web3 Debate Should Focus More on Types Rather than Degree of Decentralization”
Existing "centralized" systems are not as excessively concentrated as Web3 advocates often describe. "Traditional" banks delegate many activities to local branches, and even central banks are often consortia. On the other hand, many Web3 critics point out the extreme inefficiencies brought by proposed decentralized architectures and the inevitable re-emergence of "centralization" in Web3 (NFT platforms, currency exchanges, wallet providers).
This article describes some areas that may have a potential impact on Web3 from aspects such as identity and reputation, data empowerment, and organizational innovation, making it easier for readers to understand the distinction between universality and redundancy.
7. “Aave Team's New Project Lens: When Social Relationships Become Public Infrastructure”
Lens Protocol is a project born with a golden key, established by Aave's founder Stani Kulechov. It is a decentralized social graph that encourages other teams to build different social products based on Lens's social graph and functional modules. Lens Protocol was launched on the Polygon mainnet on May 18, and it is worth early testing and research.
8. “Latest Paper by Vitalik et al. 'Decentralized Society' (Readable Version)”
Today, Web3 more often expresses transferable, financialized assets rather than encoding social trust relationships. However, many core economic activities, such as unsecured loans and building personal brands, are based on enduring, non-transferable relationships. In this article, Vitalik and others explain how non-transferable "soulbound" tokens (SBTs) representing commitments, certificates, and relationships of the soul encode trust networks in the real economy to establish social provenance and reputation.
