The Rollup Tarun Chitra vs. DeSci Debate with Benji Leibowitz
8 snips
Jan 13, 2025 Tarun Chitra, CEO of Gauntlet, and Benji Leibowitz, founder of Pump.Science, dive deep into the heated debate on decentralized science. They discuss whether many DeSci projects are essentially just ICOs in disguise. Chitra criticizes the lack of accountability in these initiatives, while Leibowitz presents live demos showcasing genuine scientific research. Their conversation highlights the tension between blockchain’s promise of innovation and the realities of scientific funding, accountability, and peer review, ultimately questioning if DeSci can genuinely transform scientific research.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
DeSci Skepticism
- Most DeSci projects focus on fundraising, raising concerns about accountability and unrealistic promises.
- This has led to skepticism about whether blockchain can truly fix science funding or if tokenized research is the future.
David Shaw's Funding Challenges
- Tarun Chitra recounts David Shaw's struggle for funding non-Von Neumann computer research, highlighting funding challenges in scientific innovation.
- Despite later success and a Nobel Prize among alumni, Shaw's experience underscores the difficulty of gaining establishment recognition.
Focus on Verifiable Science
- DeSci should focus on areas like result verification, incentivizing replication studies, and negative result publishing.
- This citizen science approach with verifiable outcomes can build trust and address current system shortcomings.