In this episode, I look back on my journey with Urbit, the ambitious project to rebuild the internet, why I stepped back, detailing the project's unexpected twists, including the challenges faced by startups attempting to build on the platform and the surprising return of founder Curtis Yarvin. I take an honest look at how his initial timeline expectations were off and the difficulties encountered, like the "death by a thousand paper cuts" from technical issues that made building on Urbit painful.
This period offered significant learning about technology projects, market sentiment, and the allure of hype cycles. I share how these experiences shaped my current, more measured approach, as well as my year long involvement with Zorp, a startup from the Urbit ecosystem now building Nockchain, a novel zero knowledge proof of work blockchain. He discusses the potential of ZKPs and why I've adopted a strategy of patient, behind the scenes work before public promotion.
I also discuss working on Nockchain, even building an anonymous following for its blog from scratch. I talk about Nockchain's imminent "fair launch," where anyone can begin mining. This episode is a candid reflection on past miscalculations and a look at a new venture in radical sovereignty technology.
01:21 Discovering Urbit
02:44 Involvement with Urbit
04:44 Challenges and Reflections
05:38 The Independent Scholar
06:57 Urbit's Market Dynamics
15:31 Urbit Startups and Setbacks
22:49 The Rise and Fall of Urbit
23:38 Orbit's Struggles and My Realizations
24:54 Current State and Future Potential of Urbit
31:42 The Promise of Zero Knowledge Proofs
35:18 Introducing Nock Chain
38:31 Reflections and Lessons Learned
45:05 The Launch of Nock Chain
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