Category: Technology

Ugandan Bitcoin enthusiast Brindon Mwiine’s community-funded trip to BTC Prague highlights the power of Bitcoin and its supportive community in accessing new opportunities, while also raising questions about crowdfunding scalability, sustainability, and potential risks associated with cryptocurrency adoption.

FinTech firm Censo recently launched a mobile phone-based self-custody wallet for institutions and organizations, offering a decentralized key management solution that is more user-friendly and cost-effective than existing technologies. Leveraging secure hardware enclaves in modern mobile devices, Censo’s open-source wallet presents a compelling alternative to MPC-based custody solutions.

Crypto investment platform Finblox enters the tokenized U.S. Treasury bills market, aiming to position itself as a “crypto superapp” offering various financial services. The flourishing $500 million asset class allows investors to allocate stablecoins in short-term government bonds for safer returns.

Shibarium network’s native testnet, Puppynet, records over 20 million transactions, demonstrating impressive transaction times of just five seconds. Enthusiastic participation indicates high demand for the network, potentially driving up the value of Shibarium’s SHIB and BONE tokens. However, maintaining security and scalability are crucial for its success.

Polygon 2.0, an Ethereum-based Layer-2 scalability solution, aspires to democratize the global economy by creating a user-centric, equitable internet experience. However, uncertainty looms due to the SEC ruling on its native cryptocurrency, MATIC. The new iteration focuses on unification, infinite scalability, and leveraging Zero-Knowledge technology for seamless interaction.

The UN emphasizes the “serious and urgent” threat posed by AI deepfakes to information integrity, particularly on social media, and calls for AI stakeholders to address the spread of false information, encouraging responsible use of AI technology.

Emin Gün Sirer, CEA of Ava Labs, urges the U.S. to “nurture” and “support” responsible blockchain innovation to avoid “disastrous consequences.” Blockchain technology has the potential to transform digital services and the economy, but striking a balance between innovation and safety remains a challenge.

Changsha city in China is introducing offline digital yuan “hard wallets” to cater to elderly citizens and children and promote digital currency adoption. These wallets, compatible with IC cards, 2G phones, and IoT devices, allow password-free micropayments and target people who do not own smartphones, especially in rural areas.

Polygon Labs announces “Polygon 2.0,” a set of upgrades designed to establish the “Value Layer” of the internet, enabling users to create, exchange, and program value online. Powered by Zero-Knowledge (ZK) technology, Polygon 2.0 aims to support limitless chains and seamless cross-chain interactions, potentially transforming internet use and blockchain integration while facing regulatory challenges.

The UN report raises concerns about AI-generated deepfakes spreading hate and misinformation on social media, highlighting the importance of responsible AI use. It emphasizes the need to ensure information integrity, urging stakeholders to implement secure, ethical, and human rights-compliant measures for AI applications.

Researchers from UK-based universities warn of “model collapse” in AI, where AI learning from AI-generated content leads to polluted training data and disconnect from reality. Ensuring AI models access real, human-produced data for accurate understanding and simulation is crucial to prevent this phenomenon.

The Bank of Thailand has launched a retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) pilot project in collaboration with local banks and a Singapore-based payment service provider, highlighting the country’s commitment to exploring new technologies. The main challenge lies in distinguishing CBDCs from existing payment platforms like PromptPay.

BOCI, the Bank of China’s investment bank subsidiary, has issued 200 million Chinese Yuan ($28 million) worth of digital structured notes on the Ethereum blockchain. This marks BOCI as the first Chinese financial institution to issue a tokenized security in Hong Kong, with UBS playing a crucial role in product origination. The development showcases growing interest in digital assets and blockchain technology among traditional financial institutions.

Polygon unveils its upcoming project, Polygon 2.0, focusing on development and deployment outside the US amid a tough regulatory environment. With the aim to attract the global community’s attention, Polygon 2.0 will be a network of ZK-powered L2 chains, emphasizing community-driven decisions and facing challenges from US regulatory crackdowns on digital assets.

Louis Vuitton’s upcoming “Treasure Trunks” merge physical products with non-fungible tokens (NFTs), creating a “phygital” experience for consumers. While non-transferable, these NFTs offer unique appeal and exclusive access to future products, potentially driving luxury brands to experiment with this concept for marketing and status benefits.

The upcoming Polygon 2.0 blueprint announcement, focusing on topics like future PoS chain, token utility, and community governance, could significantly impact blockchain technology. However, healthy skepticism is warranted as competition with Ethereum and potential internal conflicts pose challenges.

In the online exhibition IN/Visible, curated by Senegalese artist Linda Dounia Rebeiz, 10 black artists showcase works exploring AI’s biases in representing people of color. Dounia advocates an activist approach and emphasizes the importance of raising questions about AI’s inherent biases, while encouraging black artists to create more inclusive representations using AI tools.

The Bank of China’s investment banking arm, BOCI, has issued tokenized securities on Ethereum in Hong Kong, a first for a Chinese financial institution. This move signifies increased crypto adoption, supports Hong Kong’s ambition to become a key crypto hub, and highlights the need for addressing regulatory and safety challenges.

DeeLance aims to disrupt freelancing through a blockchain-based platform utilizing cryptocurrency, NFTs, and an escrow system for payments. Their ecosystem includes an NFT marketplace, metaverse, and comprehensive freelancing and recruitment platform with lower fees, enabling a fair and transparent environment for freelancers and employers.

AI conferences gain popularity as crypto-focused events seemingly dwindle, yet pitting crypto against AI may be misguided. With potential for collaboration in areas like Web3 projects and decentralized AI models, experts argue that blending these two tech worlds can create a cohesive ecosystem, enhancing capabilities and minimizing risks in the evolving tech landscape.

The UK is set to receive early access to AI models from Google DeepMind, OpenAI, and Anthropic, as announced by British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. This move aims to foster cutting-edge safety research, promote global alliance, and invest in AI and quantum technologies, potentially providing the UK with a competitive edge in AI innovation.

BOCI, the investment arm of Bank of China, partnered with UBS to issue tokenized notes on the Ethereum blockchain in Hong Kong, marking a significant step towards integrating blockchain technology and tokenized assets into the traditional financial industry. As Hong Kong embraces cryptocurrency regulation, this move signals a positive shift in the digital economy landscape and could inspire further innovation.

Swiss-based 21Shares introduces a new crypto exchange-traded product (ETP), offering exposure to Lido DAO, a leader in the liquid-staking ecosystem. Available in 22 European Union countries, the ETP carries substantial risks and is classified as the highest risk class, demanding investor caution.

A solo bitcoin miner recently defied the odds, solving block 793,607 using a single Antminer S9 rig and earning a reward of 6.175 BTC ($160,100). This impressive feat would typically occur only once every 450 years on average, highlighting the potential rewards of perseverance and dedication in the crypto mining world.

Disco, a metaverse company, aims to empower users to regain control of their data by moving it from isolated, company-owned platforms to digital wallets owned by individuals. By utilizing verifiable credentials, users can protect sensitive information while blockchain technology is essential in defining a user-owned identity.

Input Output Global (IOG), the developer behind Cardano, is restructuring to transform into a venture studio, leading to several layoffs. The new business model aims to maintain a smaller core and establish spin-offs within the company’s ecosystem, focusing on efficient and groundbreaking technology amidst the rapidly evolving blockchain and cryptocurrency landscape.

The University of Toronto collaborates with Ripple to launch an XRP ledger validator as part of Ripple’s University Blockchain Research Initiative (UBRI) in Canada. This partnership aims to support blockchain and crypto technology research and provide students with opportunities to develop skills for crypto-native careers.

Chorus One, a staking services provider for over 40 blockchains, including Ethereum, Solana, Cosmos, and Polkadot, has entered the Urbit peer-to-peer network with its launch of Red Horizon hosting platform. This move expands Urbit’s ecosystem and indicates growing interest in decentralized, peer-to-peer solutions for greater autonomy and control over personal data.

Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz plans to expand to London, capitalizing on UK government policies supporting startups and decentralization. This move focuses on investment opportunities in UK and European crypto and startup ecosystems. Market volatility and regulatory uncertainty still pose challenges for investors and startups in the space.

Tether has minted another $1 billion worth of USDT on the Ethereum blockchain, totaling over $16 billion in 2023. The latest mint will replenish inventory and facilitate issuance requests and chain swaps, maintaining Tether’s stablecoin market dominance amidst challenges faced by other issuers like Circle.

Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) hold immense potential for community engagement and financial decision-making but face challenges in retaining participants and achieving their mission. With a value of $8.7 billion in June 2022, key elements include shared treasury, smart contracts, and governance tokens, while successful DAOs balance innovative blockchain features with familiar collaborative practices.

Numerous communities on Reddit, including popular crypto subreddits, are protesting contentious charges imposed on third-party app developers by going private for 48 hours. Reddit’s new API pricing forces developers to pay $12,000 for 50 million requests, leading to the shutdown of four apps.