The following article is by Tyler Adams.
Over the past two years, cryptocurrency developers and venture capital have focused too much on supporting infrastructure projects at the expense of consumer applications. If you look around the industry, you'll see plenty of tools for developers to scale privacy features, data decentralization, and platforms, but a lack of apps that can leverage these tools. We don't discount claims that blockchain is a solution to a search problem.
It doesn't have to be that way. Cryptography and the underlying blockchain technology have the potential to revolutionize the way we interact online and in the real world. In particular, blockchain as an authentication tool can address a growing crisis in the consumer goods market and provide an immutable source of truth to verify information.
More people in this space need just this kind of integration with the physical world, what I call non-fungible items – NFI.
Rejoice, crypto winter is over
particle for direct object NFT market crash and Defeat of Metaverse The startup, along with the onset of crypto winter, caused many developers to pull back from consumer apps and instead focus on improving decentralized infrastructure.
Remember, in the same year the media coverage of FTX Bankruptcy It severely damaged the reputation of the industry. It didn't seem like a good time to break into mainstream users. Instead, developers put their heads down and focused on issues like scalability, user experience, and security.
Now we have seen progress on all these fronts. Zero Knowledge (ZK) suites have improved speed and efficiency in layer 1 protocols, account abstraction has enabled a web2-like user experience, and Reduce hacking From the first quarter to the second quarter of this year.
Needless to say, Bitcoin The price has reached one All time highthis year by Bitcoin and Ethereum ETF approval and principal interest in Stablecoins and asset tokenization in the real world. There's no better time for decentralized app developers to reach Web 2 users and businesses. We just need to show that blockchain is more than just a platform for speculative assets.
Counterfeit crisis
As a transparent and immutable source of truth, blockchain can be used as a tool to authenticate information in the digital and physical world. The second-hand clothing market alone was almost worth it 230 million dollars This year, with the estimated market value of pre-owned collectibles 134 billion dollars One can only expect that as the used goods industry grows, from Ebay to Depop to Real Real and beyond, the opportunities for counterfeiting are growing.
In fact, the market for counterfeit goods is almost worth it 2 trillion dollars By the end of the decade, imagine an on-chain authentication solution that can verify the origin of goods. This could open up unprecedented opportunities for blockchain integration in the fashion and luxury goods market.
In the digital realm, the growth of decentralized finance (DeFi) means more people are trading assets without centralized actors. While privacy is a core value of DeFi, there must be a method of verifying identity to protect against fraud. Once again, blockchain authentication tools can be used here.
Blockchain and artificial intelligence can be integrated to improve verification methods. Now authenticated by people. But artificial intelligence enables image and pattern recognition and object recognition on a larger scale. Blockchain can then be used to store information collected by AI tools to provide a secure record.
Enter the NFIs
NFIs bring real-world tools to NFT technology. By cryptographically linking a physical asset to a “digital twin” on the blockchain, NFIs can be used as a powerful authentication tool. For example, if you make a luxury watch, you can embed a private cryptographic key that can be used to verify the watch's provenance if it finds its way onto the second-hand market.
Why are brands investing in this technology? Because if buyers can secure a return on the second-hand market, it brings more value to the property. It's not just limited to watches – shoes, jewelry and collectibles can all be verified on the chain.
Keep in mind that fashion and luxury brands haven't given up on NFTs entirely. 9dcc NFT related mod collection This year's Paris Fashion Week debuted with designs inspired by digital innovation. Younger generations pay more attention to the environmental effects of production. Seeing brands embrace the circular economy through blockchain authentication can benefit their marketing.
Blockchain killer app
For too long, developers in the crypto industry have been inward-looking and focused on problems that don't concern the general public. The industry is maturing and we need to embrace use cases beyond finance.
Authentication is a major area where blockchain can offer a better solution than existing technology. Crypto winter is over, it's time to call out the norms.
