a running list of things i am thinking about or working on in some capacity. if you are interested in any of these let me know
crypto is a tool for self sovereignty, it provides a way to own your own data, own your identity, to transact with who you want to, and allows you to create your own platforms. these platforms can be money platforms, technology platforms, etc. and are outside of the control of any one person, place, government or corporation. when you combine AI and crypto what you are building towards is a new type of intelligence that is also sovereign. we can create highly capable systems that are also not under the control of any one person, place, country, or establishment. AI can fuel the development of crypto platforms, products, and services by combining the generative nature and conversational human language nature with all the great things crypto already provides us.
crypto policy conflict is a power conflict. political parties use crypto for votes for no impact to the people they serve. self custody is a right. mining bitcoin is a right. CBDCs are dangerous. there needs to be an end to harmful regulation.
the technology we need for privacy exists. cryptography can be used to track the provenance of digital objects and protect privacy across crypto and AI surveillance mechanisms. for crypto to reach its potential of full mainstream adoption, the privacy features available must be implemented and need to work. the goal is not to hide activity. security properties and and features need to be a design priority. crypto is actually a huge downgrade in security and privacy from commercial banking.
who are we building for? why are we building it? designing with end users in mind often gets lost in the race to be a first mover and achieve competitive advantage. do the features we ship to end users protect or exploit them? are we making it easy for them to always do the right thing? ultimately, the cost of building outweighs who and what we are building for. speed, scalability, and profits outweigh security and end user experience. are we leading users down a path of exploitation and financial loss for our own gain? the use of gamification of complex financial instruments to increase revenue and profits is misleading and creates a false perception of inclusivity and transparency.
to what degree can defi facilitate financial inclusion? how can the current economic, financial, and ecological crisis be addressed when it is a crisis about democratic, inclusive, and transformative governance. how to bring innovations to democratic economic and financial governance in the context of increasing social divisions and political polarization is anyone’s guess. prior technology thrives under a light regulatory touch, for example TCP/IP and SMTP for the internet in the 90s. imposing centralized regulatory models on decentralized ones hinders innovation and growth. the goal should be to design for coexistence and aim for clear and consistent regulation that does not hinder current operating models (i.e. privacy). the need for consumer education and awareness remains essential so that end users can understand risks and benefits.
the battle between centralization and decentralization reflects the people and the state, the tangible and intangible, individualism and collectivism. political struggles and technological struggles are synonymous. the technological struggle is essential to shape and preserve a more equitable and just future. decentralization must be preserved at all costs to protect and preserve individualism, creativity, and development which are essential to geopolitical competitiveness.
crypto markets can be created and collapsed seemingly overnight. this makes crypto the most interesting case study for market mechanisms of our time. while most criticize the industry, it begs the question, is this just another product of capitalism? what are the lessons we can learn when the interiors of capitalism are exposed? DAOs and NFT communities show possibilities of highly incentivized local anarchy facilitated by shared containers of value encoded with smart contracts.
if intermediaries are eliminated from transactions, and those transactions are neither facilitated nor backed by publicly regulated financial reserves, who secures the promised funds and who ultimately protects the reliability of the regime through which transactions are channeled? who or what is behind the financial peer to peer transactions? there are two takes on how defi can democratize access to capital. non hierarchical access controlled system of financial transactions housed in technology rather than institutions could lead to universal inclusivity and transparency, or a deepening asymmetry between those who can benefit from the evolving technology and those who find themselves further descending into debt and self-exploitation.
the history of fintech goes back to the introduction of computers with significant but disruptive effects in the expansion and acceleration of services and financial markets. technology played a key role in the creation of the globally connected mortgage crisis and some refer to 08/09 as a man-made economic assault. there is a need to connect today’s concerts with defi risks for financial stability with the insights into the multiple dimensions of risk that were gained through the financial crisis. there are significant costs of lingering financial instability. the rise of fintech begs broader questions about the role and limits of bureaucratic expertise in our society and the ability of government experts to engage in public serving innovation that spews the debate around public vs private in the financial system. are the barriers to entry we see in defi really that different from what we see in tradfi? are algorithmic and AI ethics really focused on fairness and distribution?