Epicenter - Learn about Crypto, Blockchain, Ethereum, Bitcoin and Distributed Technologies

Scientific research & publishing are gruelling tasks that extend outside the scope of science itself. Centralised publications abound in archaic practices that span from submitting a paper to getting it peer-reviewed and finally published, process which may take even up to years. In addition, research requires funding from very early stages of pursuing an idea, all the way to its finality (i.e. clinical trial or real-life applications). In TradSci (traditional science), funding is usually obtained once progress has already been achieved or when a startup has been formed.DeSci (decentralised science) sets out to change this paradigm by funding early stage research via DAOs. When it comes to scientific publications, peer reviewing is also decentralised and incentivised, considerably speeding up the process. Moreover, contributions can be clearly retraced, avoiding false claims over IP, and the research itself becomes much more easily accessible and disseminated.We were joined by Vincent Weisser & Laurence Ion, stewards of Vita DAO, to discuss the advantages of DeSci in general, and the progress of longevity research in particular.Topics covered in this episode:Vincent’s background and his interest in longevityLaurence’s background and his interest in biotechThe purpose of DeSciWhich science branch is better suited for DeSciHow DeSci fixes contribution acknowledgement & incentive misalignmentFrom research idea to startup via DeSci funding$VITA token utilityAccelerating scientific publishing via DeSciHow IP is attributed in a DeSci settingProject review and governance in Vita DAOEpisode links: Vincent WeisserLaurence IonVita DAOMolecule DAOVita DAO projectsMoleculeBio DAO launchpadThe Longevity PrizeThe Longevity Decentralized ReviewThis episode is hosted by Friederike Ernst & Meher Roy. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/488

While Part 1 (#486) focused on the technological advancements that allowed proofs to be generated in a practical manner, lowering both the time and the hardware requirements, in this episode, we take a closer look at the use cases of different types of zk rollups and how they could promote blockchain mass adoption. Polygon's zk EVM equivalence, coupled with low transaction fees, promise a frictionless user experience. As with all L2 rollups, sequencer decentralisation remains a pressing issue that needs to be solved.We were joined by Jordi Baylina (tech lead) & David Schwartz (CTO) from Polygon's zkEVM, to discuss the relationship between Polygon's multiple zk rollups, their use cases, as well as network statistics for zk-EVM.Topics covered in this episode:The relationship between Polygon and zkEVMThe differences between Polygon’s multiple zk rollupsNetwork participant roles in zkEVMTransaction submission stagesSequencer decentralisationTransaction costsUse cases for different zk rollupsOpen-sourceness, decentralisation and the licensing of zkEVM’s proverThe decentralised identity project (DID)Roadmap after main-net launchEpisode links: Polygon zkEVM – From Circuits to Mainnet – Part 1Jordi Baylina on TwitterDavid Schwartz on TwitterPolygon zkEVM on TwitterSponsors: Omni: Access all of Web3 in one easy-to-use wallet! Earn and manage assets at once with Omni's built-in staking, yield vaults, bridges, swaps and NFT support.https://omni.app/ -This episode is hosted by Friederike Ernst & Meher Roy. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/487

With the upcoming launch of Polygon's zkEVM mainnet, L2s are undoubtedly a huge narrative that is unfolding in 2023. It is time to take a step back and recognise the incredible amount of effort that has gone into researching and building L2 scaling solutions in general and zk rollups in particular. Tech-wise, we barely scratched the surface of general purpose processors that can handle zk circuits, so there is still tremendous room to grow. As layer 2s become more efficient, so will the applications that are dependent on blockchain throughput.We were joined by Jordi Baylina (tech lead) & David Schwartz (CTO) from Polygon's zkEVM, to discuss the different milestones & challenges they had to overcome in designing a zk rollup, from circuits to mainnet.Topics covered in this episode:Jordi’s & David’s backgroundsThe idea behind Hermez NetworkzkEVM scaling & validity proofsHow different ZK rollup models functionWhat challenges zkEVM encountered during developmentEvolutionary pathways in the realm of ZKPsAuditing zkEVMTrusted setup requirement for zkEVMEpisode links: Jordi Baylina on TwitterDavid Schwartz on TwitterPolygon zkEVM on TwitterSponsors: Omni: Access all of Web3 in one easy-to-use wallet! Earn and manage assets at once with Omni's built-in staking, yield vaults, bridges, swaps and NFT support.https://omni.app/ -This episode is hosted by Friederike Ernst & Meher Roy. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/486

Layer 2 scaling solutions are widely regarded as the next step forward in the mainstream adoption of crypto as they enable higher throughput and lower transaction fees. Coinbase’s recent announcement of building an optimistic rollup solution called Base is proof (no pun intended) that major centralized actors view this as an opportunity to onboard new users in a decentralized crypto economy. The following years will abound in innovation as both optimistic and zero-knowledge rollup solutions still have plenty of room to grow, but the involvement of centralized entities will act as a catalyst from a technological, as well as a regulatory standpoint.We were joined by Jesse Pollak, Head of Protocol at Coinbase, to discuss the thesis & business model behind Base and how it will act as an interoperable bridge to onboard the next billion users on-chain.Topics covered in this episode:Jesse’s background and his role as Head of Protocol at CoinbaseBase’s business model & thesisBuilding on the Optimism stackPermissionlessnessHow regulations are going to influence users of Base (vs. Coinbase)Learning from the competition (BSC)Different fee markets to offset transaction costsWhy Base chose the Optimism stackBase’s upgradeabilityTackling Optimism’s withdrawal periodBootstrapping BaseFuture roadmap and mainnet timelineEpisode links: Jesse Pollak on TwitterBase on TwitterCoinbase on TwitterOptimism on TwitterSponsors: Omni: Access all of Web3 in one easy-to-use wallet! Earn and manage assets at once with Omni's built-in staking, yield vaults, bridges, swaps and NFT support.https://omni.app/ -This episode is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain & Friederike Ernst. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/485

Building a blockchain from the ground-up is a daunting task in itself, one that should not be a concern when designing an end-user application. Moreover, as Web3 aims to move away from centralized vertical scalability towards a multi-chain decentralized environment, horizontal scalability and cross-communication should represent a standard. While Cosmos solves the latter, deploying application-specific blockchains has not been a streamlined process. Saga aims to address this by providing automated means of deploying application-specific blockchains, called chainlets that use the validator set of Saga. This leads to a simplified user (and developer) experience, presently much needed in the Web3 gaming and entertainment industries.We were joined by Rebecca Liao, co-founder & CEO of Saga, to discuss bootstrapping app-specific chains in just one click, leveraging the scalability & security of Cosmos, thus allowing developers to focus more on the product and less on the blockchain infrastructure.Topics covered in this episode:Rebecca’s background & building SagaLeveraging Cosmos SDK, IBC & ICS to bootstrap other chainsChainletsSaga validators & tokenomicsIBC & elastic scaling for chainletsICS & Saga’s tech stackChainlet customizationPartnerships & use casesChainlet ‘Musical chairs’ auctionTargeting gaming and entertainment industriesMulti-chain future and inter-chain communicationEpisode links: Rebecca Liao on TwitterSaga on TwitterSponsors: Omni: Access all of Web3 in one easy-to-use wallet! Earn and manage assets at once with Omni's built-in staking, yield vaults, bridges, swaps and NFT support.https://omni.app/ -This episode is hosted by Sebastien Couture & Felix Lutsch. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/484

Web3 has always been criticised for its not so friendly user experience. While one might argue that it requires a mere learning curve, similar to that of e-mail services when first introduced, Web2’s ease of use has become the norm. Account abstraction and smart contract automation are just 2 solutions for unlocking higher flexibility in transaction execution logic. These backend improvements, alongside scaling solutions and a more user-friendly frontend (e.g. wallets, interfaces) will represent the main drivers of adoption.We were joined by Luis Schliesske & Hilmar Orth, founders of Gelato Network, to discuss about Gelato Network’s approach to decentralising Web3's backend through automation and relaying, in order to onboard the next 100 million users.Topics covered in this episode:Luis’ and Hilmar’s backgroundsThe need for automation in smart contractsHow bots operate in automation processesInteracting with Gelato’s node networkAutomation, relayers & gasless transactionsHow automation impacts trust assumptionsGelato beta start & use casesAccount abstraction & user experienceEpisode links:Luis Schliesske on TwitterHilmar Orth on TwitterGelato Network on TwitterSponsors:Omni: Access all of Web3 in one easy-to-use wallet! Earn and manage assets at once with Omni's built-in staking, yield vaults, bridges, swaps and NFT support.https://omni.app/ -This episode is hosted by Friederike Ernst. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/483

The Metaverse has taken the world by storm in 2021 and even though many have and are still opposing it, the fact that we are spending the majority of our lives online is an undeniable truth. The boundaries between physical and digital worlds are slowly eroding away. Our digital presence generates a data footprint that is currently being stored in big tech’s centralized silos. As a whole, these user-generated data breadcrumbs represent our digital identity. Web3 has, so far, mainly focused on financial aspects, disregarding user specific data even though the latter actually represents the vast majority (>90%) of all generated data.We were joined by Joel Thorstensson, co-founder of 3Box Labs, to discuss Ceramic’s goal of decentralizing ‘social’, account-based data in the form of user-generated event streams, that could unlock true application interoperability built on a composable data layer.Topics covered in this episode:Joel’s background & founding CeramicThe concept behind CeramicCeramic’s event stream design vs. other data solutionsThe need for consensus in CeramicUse cases for CeramicData privacy potentialApplication interoperabilityData redundancy & protectionCeramic’s ecosystem & business modelEpisode links: Joel Thorstensson on TwitterCeramic on TwitterSponsors: Omni: Access all of Web3 in one easy-to-use wallet! Earn and manage assets at once with Omni's built-in staking, yield vaults, bridges, swaps and NFT support.https://omni.app/ -This episode is hosted by Friederike Ernst & Meher Roy. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/482

Trent McConaghy, founder of Ocean Protocol, discusses AI, blockchain, and data NFTs. Topics include AI's impact, data NFT minting, data quality, ownership, marketplace users, and data science competitions. Dive into engaging with Ocean Protocol through Python and JavaScript.

DeFi lending protocols operate accordingly to their smart contracts and are perfect examples of ‘Code is law’, even if some recent exploits have not quite abided to this harsh truth. From well established protocols to degenerate DeFi farms with astronomic APYs, they all mainly use liquidity pools. Morpho Labs proposes a peer-to-peer approach that operates on top of another protocol’s liquidity pool (i.e. Aave, Compound), offering better rates for lenders as well as borrowers.We were joined by Paul Frambot, co-founder and CEO of Morpho Labs, to discuss about the benefits and challenges that arise from a peer-to-peer lender-borrower matching system and what failsafes are in place.Topics covered in this episode:Paul’s background and diving into DeFiFounding and funding MorphoThe concept behind MorphoImproving lending & borrowing APYsHow lenders and borrowers are matchedManaging gas fees in a P2P settingSecuring collateral in peer matchesSharing liquidity with Aave and CompoundMorpho token economyManaging liquidationsUser experience & integrationsMorpho’s business modelFuture roadmapEpisode links: Paul Frambot on TwitterMorpho Labs on TwitterMorpho LabsSponsors: Omni: Access all of Web3 in one easy-to-use wallet! Earn and manage assets at once with Omni's built-in staking, yield vaults, bridges, swaps and NFT support.https://omni.app/ -This episode is hosted by Sebastien Couture & Friederike Ernst. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/480

2022 has proven time after time that centralised entities are prone to multiple points of failure, intentional or not. Decentralised finance (DeFi) addresses these, but the user experience has often been lacklustre compared to that from centralised finance (CeFi). Exchanges are the backbone of any market, but high throughput is required in order to ensure that both makers and takers can proficiently use them. Decentralised exchanges have long faced issues due to bandwidth constraints native to blockchains, but recent L2 scaling solutions have provided a considerable increase in terms of throughput. For example, dYdX is currently the largest consumer of STARKs, but growing institutional and retail interest in derivative financial products urges for an even better alternative.We were joined by Antonio Juliano, founder & CEO of dYdX perpetual exchange, to discuss about the upcoming transition to dYdX V4 and what challenges decentralised exchanges have to face amidst technological bottlenecks and upcoming regulations.Topics covered in this episode:Antonio’s background & timing productsdYdX product overviewPrice feed oraclesdYdX user demographics & UXDevelopment timeframes & taking risksOrder book vs. AMMBuilding a sovereign blockchain on CosmosThe challenges of decentralising order booksIBC integrations and composabilityCurrent state of scaling solutionsMigrating from dYdX V3 to V4 & token utilityDeFi vs. CeFiDeFi education & regulatory outreachEpisode links: Antonio Juliano on TwitterdYdX on TwitterdYdX exchangeThis episode is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain & Felix Lutsch. Show notes and listening options: epicenter.tv/479